Cherie Federico is the Director of Aesthetica, the internationally acclaimed British art and culture brand that began with Aesthetica Magazine in 2003. Aesthetica has grown into a multi-platform organization working across publishing and exhibition. The magazine’s reach is over 550,000. With a focus on talent development in art, photography, film and literature, Aesthetica’s portfolio of awards and events celebrate excellence from both new and established practitioners who are contributing to the global dialogue on how art helps us to make sense of our complicated world. These comprise the BAFTA-Qualifying Aesthetica Short Film Festival, the Aesthetica Art Prize, the Future Now Symposium and the Creative Writing Award. Cherie has also launched a number of initiatives locally to support entrepreneurship across the creative industries including Reignite, the Creative Business Skills Academy, the UNESCO City of Media Arts EXPO, Future Media Creators Academy and Filmmaking in Schools.