Instagram Rings Awards: Celebrating Creative Influencers and Innovation

Spike Lee is an American filmmaker, producer, writer and actor known for provocative films that examine race, politics, urban life and media in the United States. He was born Shelton Jackson Lee on March 20, 1957, and raised in Brooklyn; he studied film at Morehouse College and at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, where his student film Joe’s Bed-Stuy Barbershop: We Cut Heads won a Student Academy Award[1][6]. Lee founded the production company 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks and made his feature debut with the low‑budget comedy She’s Gotta Have It (1986), which became a commercial breakthrough and launched his career[1][4]. He gained widespread critical acclaim with Do the Right Thing (1989), a tense, formally inventive portrait of racial conflict in a Brooklyn neighborhood that earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay[1][6]. His subsequent work includes Malcolm X (1992), a major biopic starring Denzel Washington that won the Berlin Film Festival’s Golden Bear, and a range of films blending drama, comedy and political commentary[1][5][6]. Lee has also produced notable documentaries and television projects, including the Oscar‑nominated 4 Little Girls (1997) and the Emmy‑winning HBO series When the Levees Broke (2006), about Hurricane Katrina[1][2][6]. In 2019 he won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for BlacKkKlansman (2018) and received an Academy Honorary Award in 2015 recognizing his career and influence[1][4][6]. He has frequently acted in his own films and collaborated with recurring talents such as Denzel Washington and composer Terence Blanchard[1][2]. In recent years Lee has continued directing features and high‑profile projects across film, documentary and concert film formats (including American Utopia) while remaining a prominent cultural voice on race, history and media in the U.S.[5][1]. He is widely regarded as a leading figure in contemporary American cinema and an influential mentor to younger filmmakers[6][10].

Marc Jacobs is an American fashion designer best known as the founder and head designer of the Marc Jacobs label and for serving as creative director of Louis Vuitton from 1997 to 2014.[1][3] Born April 9, 1963, in New York City, Jacobs studied at the High School of Art and Design and Parsons School of Design, where his graduate knitwear project gained early attention and awards.[3][8] He co‑founded Jacobs Duffy Designs with Robert Duffy in the mid‑1980s and launched his eponymous label, Marc Jacobs, which expanded into boutiques, ready‑to‑wear, accessories, fragrances, and licensed lines.[1][9] Jacobs gained major industry recognition after winning multiple Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) awards, including the Perry Ellis/New Fashion Talent award early in his career and later CFDA honors for womenswear, menswear and accessories across the 1990s and 2000s.[2][3] His 1992 “grunge” collection for Perry Ellis was widely discussed for bringing street and Seattle grunge aesthetics to high fashion, a move that proved controversial yet influential.[3][6] At Louis Vuitton he created the house’s first ready‑to‑wear line and spearheaded high‑profile artist collaborations (including Takashi Murakami and Stephen Sprouse), helping modernize the brand and expand its global profile.[1][3] Jacobs also ran the diffusion line Marc by Marc Jacobs for about 15 years before it was discontinued after the 2015 fall/winter collection.[1] Beyond design, he and Robert Duffy grew Marc Jacobs into a global business with boutiques worldwide and diversified product lines including perfumes and accessories.[2][9] As of the most recent accounts, Marc Jacobs remains a prominent designer and public figure in fashion whose legacy includes pioneering trend reinterpretation, influential brand collaborations, and a sustained retail presence through his namesake label.[6][9]

Adam Mosseri, born January 23, 1983, in New York City to an Egyptian-Israeli Jewish father and Catholic mother, is an American businessman and the head of Instagram.[1][3][4] He effectively serves as Instagram's CEO, though Meta reserves that title for founders, overseeing all business functions including product, engineering, and growth.[1][2][3] Mosseri launched his career with a design consultancy, Blank Mosseri, while at NYU's Gallatin School, focusing on graphic and interaction design, followed by a role as the first designer at TokBox in 2007.[3][5] He joined Facebook in 2008 as a product designer, advancing to product design manager in 2009 and design director for mobile apps in 2012.[2][3][4] From 2012 to 2016, he led the News Feed, transforming it into a core feature and key revenue driver through advertising.[1][2][5] As vice president of product from 2016 to 2018, he managed initiatives like the unsuccessful Facebook Home launcher and publicly addressed fake news post-2016 election and the Cambridge Analytica scandal.[2][3][5] In May 2018, Mosseri became Instagram's VP of Product, and on October 1, 2018, he assumed leadership after co-founders Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger resigned amid tensions with Mark Zuckerberg.[1][3][5] A 16-year Meta veteran and Zuckerberg confidant, he has guided Instagram's "third phase" since, introducing changes like Reels to compete with TikTok, navigating scandals, the pandemic, and cultural shifts.[1][6] Currently based in California after relocating from London in 2023 due to Meta layoffs, Mosseri remains actively involved in philanthropy with his wife, Monica.[2] As of 2024, he continues leading Instagram and Threads, recently addressing moderation issues.[6][7] His tenure emphasizes balancing user needs with Meta's priorities.[5]