By Shaun Ryan, The Ponte Vedra Recorder
The link continues to surprise. In fact, this 22,500-square-foot, state-of-the-art facility at 425 Town Plaza Ave., Ponte Vedra Beach, has been surprising people since it opened in July 2021. It’s a space where entrepreneurs and business professionals collaborate. It’s a business incubator and community center that hosts an array of events, classes and camps.
It’s the address for the annual entrepreneur-based EnterCircle Summit and Circle of Creation for women to realize their professional goals. And now, it’s the home for JaxFuse, an annual festival celebrating three alliterative elements of the creative economy: fashion, food and film.
“The link has always been very proud of providing a platform to different kinds of entrepreneurs,” explained Gurpreet Misra who, with husband Raghu, founded the facility. “This time, we really focused on the creative economy because that is something that we are very proud of. There’s so much talent in the city and the surrounding area. They need a platform.”
Misra credited storyteller Keeli Scarlett with the idea to “fuse” the three categories from creatives across the greater Jacksonville area. The inaugural event was held Friday and Saturday, Sept. 13 and 14. It featured the work of seven professionals in the field of fashion, eight cuisine experts and nine filmmakers.
Anytime something is tried for the first time, it is unknown whether it will succeed. But JaxFuse organizers had nothing to fear. “It was extremely well attended,” said Misra. In fact, judging by social media posts, attendees were pleased with the results.
The food included:
• Locally caught seafood from Timoti’s Seafood Shak
• Homestyle fare from Orange Blossom Catering
• Eclectic Southern food from Treylor Park
• Indian café fare from Tea of Jax
• Japanese cuisine from Tank’s Sushi Bistro
• Nothing Bundt Cakes
• Health-conscious cuisine from Healthy Hands Cooking
• Creations by Miss Kara Anderson A
Sustainable fashion show, Straight from 2008, was presented by Strike. Young models received training by Jacksonville-based modeling agent Kate Tunnell. A very diverse selection of fashions was presented.
Participants included:
• Bollywood Dance Mania: Indian wedding outfits
• Ramsey Salter: a 13-year-old prodigy debuting her collection
• Fleur de Lis Boutique: coastal elegance and ultra-feminine designs
• Lady Strut Gowns: statement gowns
• Nena Cavalieri: Timeless pieces celebrating individuality
• Airstream: innovative and standout fashion
Film day featured keynote speaker Carlina Williams, who has worked with Nickelodeon, Universal Pictures, Netflix, the Walt Disney Co. and more. She was involved in “Moana,” “Transformers” and other projects.
Several short films of varying genres were shown. There were dramas from Aidan Fridman, Gilles Bovon and Craig Pedroza; comedies from Marshall Malone and Ramana Murthy; thrillers from Jeremy Bracken and Murthy; a musical from Khaled Edris; and a science fiction film by Terry Spataro. Creatives participating in JaxFuse represented a diversity of experiences.
“This was not only for seasoned professionals, but a mix of ages, as well as experience,” Misra said. That made it really fun, because you were seeing young people and very seasoned, experienced people all coming together.”
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