"I think there was a lot of built up anger from harassment throughout the day and we were just tired of it … I had to react to it because I wasn't not going to stand up for myself," Anello-Kitzmiller said today from home in Muriwai, west Auckland.
The young man who grabbed her later made what seemed like an apology as the crowd turned on him - but he and his friends laughed, Anello-Kitzmiller said.
"It wasn't sincere at all.
"I had no idea who he was ... he just hid his face."
The man has yet to contact Anello-Kitzmiller to apologise.
She has since learned the identity of the man, who was tagged in the video's Facebook post several times.
However, she wasn't sure if he should be named and shamed, especially on social media.
Reece said in her post, since taken down by Facebook: "Idk who you are glitter booby girl, but you and your sassy friend were the highlight of my RNV experience. Hope you and your party breasts made it home safe."
She added the hashtag: #lookbutdonttouch
Anello-Kitzmiller, who said she'd been groped before by men when wearing a T-shirt and jeans, said some of the messages she'd received have been vile.
"There are plenty of comments that I've just been trying not to read through. There's a lot of people saying I deserved it or I was asking for it, but the fact is people should be able to dress however they want ... no matter what you wear your body is nobody else's but your own.
"I know people are going to say negative things but I don't need to hear it," she said.
However, she said that many had also contacted her to say they'd been inspired.
"[Saying] that they're glad I did it, that I should've hit him harder. It's been awesome to hear that I've inspired people.
"We got [abused] constantly [while] walking around, but then we got people coming up and saying 'you look amazing', or 'I wish I had the confidence to do that', or 'I'm going to do that next time'."
The Portland, Oregon native said from her experience New Zealand festivals appeared more conservative than those in the US.
Hatfield said she didn't hesitate to act when Anello-Kitzmiller was grabbed.
"Straight away, I was not going to let them get away with. That's her body and I don't think anyone should touch someone like that."
Hatfield said the girls, along with many others, had paid to have the glitter added to their bodies at an art stall.
Their group also won $200 in a competition by going down a slide naked - supported by radio station promotional staff.
"There were a lot of people [naked], a lot of men even. There were quite a few males on the slides with their pants down just doing their own thing – I didn't see them getting harassed at all," Hatfield said.
"I would not let this ruin my experience."
Police have not received a complaint relating to the incident.
