Sherryn Gaworecki

Washington Film Institute hosts a divinely fashionable red carpet Oscar party filled with D.C’s finest.

March 2, 2025- Washington, D.C- For a smashing good night of fashion, selfies, and champaign, look no further than Washington Film Institute’s (WFI) Red Carpet Oscar party. The districts best dressed and most attractive, attended this shindig at St. Yves, located in the heart of Dupont circle.

What makes St. Yves most Instagram-worthy is the opulent walls, dramatic staircase, and ceiling tulle sculpture that rounds out this two-story clubhouse. This 5,000 square foot clubhouse, that easily transforms from daytime lounge bar to nighttime club, boasts quality drink services, top 40 hits, and sneak-peak celebrity encounters on any given night.

John Hanshaw, founder of WFI, has been hosting The Red Carpt Oscar party at St.Yves for many eons. “Every year, our red carpet brings together cinephiles, fashionistas, and art lovers together to convene and enjoy the Academy Awards together,” said Hanshaw. “The Washington Film Institute was created in 2007 to inspire DC area audiences through film education, cinematic arts, and with film screenings throughout the years. Our Oscar party is but one of many events that we hold every year.”

D.C’s finest professionals, civil workers, and artists followed this year’s Hollywood trends of sparkly, semi-nude, off-shoulder dresses. Fashionistas in attendance also channeled iconic looks inspired by the movie Wicked, a 10x Academy Award nominee (2 x winner for Best Costume & Best Production Design).

Sam, an environmental scientist, channeled Elphaba in an all black ensemble to pay tribute to the movie. “My outfit is a lowkey tribute to Wicked. I have loved the Broadway show and book for much of my childhood. I really want Ariana Grande to win best supporting actress. She truly outshined most in this role.”

Sahar, a widely-acclaimed stylist in the D.C area, not only wanted Wicked to win, but she styled herself as Glinda with a stunning gown, a Gucci vintage pin, and moxie. Her two-piece gown was equally stunning and a showstopper.

Another showstopper was the pastry arrangement. European-styled wafers, tea cookies, and bundt cakes satiated a hungry crowd. Several of the night’s best dressed beelined for the dark chocolate bon bons (a great pairing with sparkly champaign, by the way). M.J, a local fed, modeled a couture fit floral dress that uniquely gave Hollywood vibes.

“ You would think this dress was made by a designer but I got it years ago at Ann Taylor. I love wearing professional but stylish outfits.”

MJ was mildly caught up on Oscar-nominated movies and shared that she wanted Mikey Madison (Anora) to win Best Actress and wanted the movie Conclave to win best movie of the year.

Anthony Dean, who works with education scholarships, was caught up with Oscar-nominated movies. He wanted Ariana Grande to win for Best Supporting Actress.

“I know the fan favorite to win is Zoe Saldana but Ariana Grande nailed it. She made Wicked a wonderful movie to watch. Quite frankly, I think she’s way better than Zoe.” Dean has watched most of the movies that were nominated, and expounded highlights from several of this year’s nominees. When the main tv by the bar had a minor glitch, Dean shared his phone with attendees so they can watch Adam Sandler dressed in a comfy sweatshirt swear his love for Timothy Chalamet. Dean saved the day for many movie-goers.

While many of our attendees are ardent Oscar fans, not all watched this year’s nominations with zeal. Banjo, who works at Solutions Architect, simply wanted a night out with friends.

“I love video games more than the Oscars. However, I do enjoy community, dressing up, and meeting new people in Washington D.C”

Banjo’s green suit drew attention from a sea of black tuxes. His West African inspired green suit from Diyauna, embraced D.C’s melting pot culture in spades.

Donning a sparkling, snug, black dress paired with a vintage Chanel purse. Brie Crenshaw-Zhou, CEO of Ultimate Dons & Divas Entertainment graced the crowd like an A-lister. She bought her dress from an exclusive D.C boutique, got her eye-catching heels from DKNY but the real gem is her vintage.

“I take pride in my Chanel, it’s survived for many years.”

Crenshaw-Zhou is highly acclaimed in the DMV area for her event-planning, media-based company Ultimate Dons & Divas Entertainment, a Falls Church-based company. Her years of experience in entertainment, fashion, and with the industry came into play with a lively conversation on revamping Oscar nominations.

“The Oscars should include actors and actresses, globally. We need to see movies from all parts of the world and experience actor/actress nods from a wide-range of people.”

This year’s Oscar nominations and wins did shake up the entertainment industry. With the independent movie Anora winning 5 awards, including Best Actress (sorry Demi) this year, many are wondering how the Oscars will play out next year.

Until then, tune into Washington Film Institute’s website for more event and networking updates.