Annie Churchill

Interview

When and how did you become a member of ASW?

Annie Churchill: I became a member this past February, after all my friends convinced me to.

What is your favorite site feature?

AC: I love to be able to find the information of someone I have just met and get in touch with them.

You co-founded an environmental organization. Can you tell us a bit about that?

AC: I am still in the process of figuring it all out but it is going to be working with two real estate companies. Our organization will help them raise money to build more ‘green’ buildings around the city. We have not finalized anything yet so it’s very preliminary. I am also working closely with Riverkeeper and the NRDC on the Young Members’ Committees and the NYC Council

You had a clothing line with Gillian Hearst called AnGil. What did you like and dislike about being a fashion designer?

AC: I loved many aspects of it, but the hardest part for me was production. I had amazing ideas that I wasn’t able to properly translate to my "liking".

What do you think of the term “Socialite?”

AC: I think the definition has changed over the years and now it really just pertains to anyone who goes out a lot and is social. Years ago it was more about what background one was from.

You have a role in the Nanny Diaries, which is very exciting. What is your part? And when will the movie be released?

AC: I played a small part in a party scene that was supposed to be in Nantucket (we shot it Wainscott, Long Island). I play a very obnoxiously preppy party-goer who spills a drink on Laura Linney. It was small but lots of fun and my scene was with Paul Giamatti, Laura Linney and Scarlet Johanssen, so I can’t complain about that. It is scheduled to be released in October.

Some say that it’s becoming increasingly difficult for Hollywood actresses to find roles that are not two dimensional. What are your thoughts on that?

AC: I think there are still some meaty parts out there, and I’m just waiting for mine to come.

What’s the strongest acting performance you’ve come across recently?

AC: I thought Cate Blanchett in Notes on a Scandal was incredible, as well as Don Cheadle in Hotel Rwanda, which I just watched.

Who would you most like to spend a day with and why?

AC: I would love to spend a day with Meryl Streep, as she can teach me a thing or two or three.

Who are some of your favorite fashion designers?

AC: Karl Lagerfeld, Diane von Furstenberg, Sari Gueron, Stella McCartney, Yves Saint Laurent, and so many others

How do you define beauty?

AC: I think beauty is achieved when there is a combination of depth, confidence and compassion in a person.

Travel Destination?

AC: Paris

Top 5 hotels?

AC: Four Seasons Hualalai in Hawaii; Hôtel Plaza Athénée in Paris,, The Carlyle in NY, Claridges in London, and any Amman Hotel.

Ski Resort?

AC: Beaver Creek, Colorado

. Beach?

AC: Mona Kea, Hawaii

Top 5 restaurants?

AC: Il Cantinori, Da Umberto, Saint Ambroeus, Pearl Oyster Bar, and Stand (burger joint)

Museum or Gallery?

AC: The Whitney

Book?

AC: Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë’

Artist?

AC: Alexander Calder

Gadget?

AC: iPod Nano

Shop?

AC: Bergdorf Goodman

Drink?

AC: Champagne

—- Sabine Heller