dream hampton and Brie Miranda Bryant, two of the executive producers of the documentary series “Surviving R. Kelly” from A+E Network’s Lifetime channel, will take part in a joint interview as headline speakers for the 8th Annual Women in Global Entertainment Lunch at MIPCOM 2019.

Held in partnership with A+E Networks, MIPCOM’s annual thought-leadership and networking lunch gathers the world’s most influential women shaping the future of TV and entertainment.
The by-invitation event will take place at the Majestic Hotel in Cannes on Monday 14 October.

dream hampton, Showrunner and Executive Producer of “Surviving R. Kelly”, and Brie Miranda Bryant, Executive Producer/SVP Unscripted Programming & Development, Lifetime, will discuss their careers in the entertainment business from the perspective of African-American women, their challenges to serve women’s causes, specifically more marginalised communities, and the impact of the #metoo movement.

Since its bow in January, “Surviving R. Kelly” has reached over 26 million viewers. hampton came on board mid-way into the project, in February 2018, to help craft the scope of the six-part series, and brought in key voices, including John Legend as the sole musician willing to speak out against R. Kelly, who is facing multiple charges for sex crimes – allegations which he denies. Since the series’ premiere, dream was named as one of Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in 2019.

hampton’s credits as executive producer, director or co-producer include “Finding Justice” for BET (2019), “It’s A Hard Truth Ain’t It” for HBO (2019), and “Treasure: From Tragedy to Transjustice, Mapping a Detroit Story” (2015). Since 1990, hampton’s articles and essays have been published in numerous anthologies, newspapers and magazines. In 2010, she collaborated with Shawn Carter on the New York Times bestseller, “Decoded”, and was the 2015 Visiting Artist at Stanford University’s Institute for Diversity in the Arts, where she taught a course on 21st-century activism.

When Bryant heard the pitch for the R. Kelly project, she knew that Lifetime was the right place to tell this story, with its legacy in providing a voice for women. Bryant saw it as a way to provide a platform for women who are usually dismissed and marginalised. What was initially envisioned as a two-hour documentary quickly ballooned to over six hours under Bryant’s watch as the production team’s investigation uncovered allegations of abusive and predatory behaviour by R. Kelly spanning several decades.

Under her tenure at Lifetime, Bryant has been responsible for a string of buzzy, critically-acclaimed series and specials including the documentary “Gretchen Carlson: Breaking the Silence”, following the former journalist as she canvassed the country to speak with everyday women about sexual harassment in the work place.

“For our eighth Women in Global Entertainment Lunch, I feel sure this joint interview will serve as an inspiration to MIPCOM audiences. This annual event has established itself as a valuable forum for influential women in the industry, and the current context makes the issues tackled in this series all-the-more topical,” said Laurine Garaude, Director of Reed MIDEM’s Television Division.

The world’s entertainment content market, MIPCOM takes place in Cannes, France, from 14-17 October 2019.