About the Speakers

Dr. S. Heijin Lee is Assistant Professor at New York University, focusing on Transnational Feminist Cultural Studies; Asian/American Studies; Gender and Sexuality Studies; Digital Media and Popular Culture. Dr. Lee's research explores the imperial routes of culture and media. In addition to her book, The Geopolitics of Beauty, which maps plastic surgery in South Korea, Asia, and Asian America, Lee is co-editing two anthologies. Dr. Lee’s works include Other Pop Empires, Bollywood to Hallyuwood, and Fashion and Beauty in the Time of Asia, which tracks fashion and beauty as formations of Asian modernities. Lee has been published in Women and Performance: Journal of Feminist Theory and Frontiers: Journal of Women's Studies. She earned her Ph.D. in American Studies and Certificate in Women's Studies from the University of Michigan; a M.A. in Asian American Studies from the University of California, Los Angeles; and a B.A. in Ethnic Studies/Spanish at the University of California, Berkeley.

Lai Frances, whose real name is Allyza Umali, is freelance journalist and producer whose work has been featured in Billboard, Allure, PopCrush, KpopStarz, The Boombox, and many more media outlets. A self-proclaimed Kpop girl group enthusiast, Lai can be found on panels at KCON and New York Comic Con while contributing to podcasts and digital projects on arts, entertainment, and culture. Frances earned a B.A. in Journalism and Video Production from Rutgers University-Newark with a focus on music, entertainment and multimedia journalism.