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Tiffany Shlain
by Maggie Gallant and Erik Kuntz

She has been called the Webby Queen and the Digital Diva, but Tiffany Shlain is far more than that. Tiffany is the founder and director of The Webby Awards, which honor excellence on the web, and co-founder of the International Academy of Digital Arts & Sciences. A former independent filmmaker, Tiffany has been honored with distinctions for her film-making, graphic design, and leadership role in entertainment and business. She was recently selected as one of the women shaping the New Century in Newsweek Magazine. She lives, works and plays in San Francisco and New York. Recently we tracked Tiffany down and got the latest scoop on her life:

What was your favorite subject in school and how did it influence your career?
Tiffany: "I loved school, especially biology and English lessons. I was lucky because I had several teachers who really believed in me and encouraged me to take more risks. I got into technology pretty early--when I was 14 my father bought me one of the first Macintosh computers. In high school I joined the school newspaper and was responsible for transferring the paper onto Mac. It was amazing to be able to do all the graphics and layout on computer, rather than by hand. When I was 17 I created UNITAS (Uniting Nations in Telecommunications and Software), a group that would allow US and Russian students to connect with one another via modems. I grew up during the Cold War, when there was a lot of tension between the Russian and American governments. My grandparents were Russian and I wanted to find a way for the two countries to see one another as people, not as enemies. The project taught me a lot, especially when I discovered that although the Russian students desperately wanted to connect with us, they didn't even have computers, let alone modems."

"But I was still struck by the power of technology to reach out to people and cross barriers. I went to study at the University of California in Berkeley and was again fortunate to have a wonderful teacher for my film technology class who taught me that that technology (films in this case) really could change society and culture. Ever since then, I've found ways to combine my love for technology and film. I started out making films and documentaries but there wasn't a lot of money to be made and so I ended up working in new media companies to finance my films. It was really a dual life - starving filmmaker and thriving techie!

"The idea for the Webbys came out of my desire to combine these two passions more formally. My geek side gets to work on all the techie stuff while the creative side still manages to make a lot of the films for the show. It's a perfect union."

What are working on now?
Tiffany: "My team and I are working hard on the 5th Annual Webby Awards, to be held on July 18 in San Francisco. The Webbys are often described as the Oscars of the Internet and while they probably have as much impact on the industry as the Oscars do on film, they're more fun. We ignore a lot of the Internet hype and focus on what's really important. And they're also much shorter than Oscars - we limit acceptance speeches to 5 words or less!

"In addition to the Webbys I lecture worldwide on how technology influences our lives and I have the honor of being the on-air Internet expert for ABC's Good Morning America."

What do you enjoy most about your work?
Tiffany: "Honoring people's hard work. Simply put, we recognize the finest work by the most skilled people in the newest field. The great thing about the Webbys is that anyone can enter their website - this is not a contest for the design elite - and so we can often showcase a great site that might not otherwise gain national attention."

What is your biggest challenge?
Tiffany: "Probably learning to trust my instincts--that gut feeling that tells you whether something is right or wrong. We seem to spend a lot of time fighting our instincts, looking for a different set of answers and taking other people's opinions as our own. I know myself well enough to listen to, and trust that inner voice but it has taken some time. Of course trusting your instincts doesn't mean being rigid and I have also had to learn to be flexible and open to different points of view."

What is your advice to Girlstart girls?
Tiffany: "Believe in yourself and trust your own instincts. Don't be afraid to take risks, the best ideas always involve a little risk. And if you don't already keep a journal, then think about starting one and use it to record your everyday thoughts and experiences-both happy and sad. Your ideas and opinions are constantly changing and journals are a great way to look back and watch yourself evolve. They can also be a great source of creative inspiration later in life!"

What's your favorite quote?
Tiffany: "This quote by the philosopher Goethe always sits on my desk at work: 'Whatever you dream or think you can do, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it.'"