Cindy Cowan is an award-winning film producer, who co-founded Initial Entertainment Group (IEG) in 1995. From its conception to its sale in 2000, IEG became a leading film production and foreign sales company. IEG had many successes including an Emmy nom for Rent-A-Kid; Emmy, Golden Globe, and People’s Choice noms for If These Walls Could Talk; the coveted United Nations Award for Savior; and four Oscar wins for Traffic.
Since forming Cindy Cowan Entertainment (CCE), Cowan has produced films with various A-list talent including Woody Harrelson, Robert DeNiro, Sir Ben Kingsley, Sigourney Weaver and Cillian Murphy, as well as go on to win an Emmy for Miracle on 42nd Street, a documentary featuring Alicia Keys, Terrence Howard, Larry David, and Samuel L. Jackson, to name a few.
Upcoming projects include True Haunting, a supernatural thriller with Screen Gems; a music-based project with TriStar loosely based on a true story involving ‘NSync; Eye in the Sky, an action thriller with Millennium films; Line of Control, a political thriller with the Exchange; and a female-empowerment story about the girl who struck out Babe Ruth starring Abigail Breslin. Additionally, Cowan is producing a faith-based film entitled Iron Will, as well as various TV shows including Ellis Island, a scripted series about immigration during the 1910s. Cowan is also venturing into unscripted television with Seekers, a reality format showing the various modalities people are using to stay in the light in a world going dark, as well as a show documenting the rebranding of Maxim Magazine to promote women’s empowerment, confidence, and self-acceptance.
When she isn’t hard at work, Cowan sits on the boards of Little Kids Rock, a non-profit organization that provides free instruments and lessons to underserved public schools, and Children Mending Hearts, a dynamic arts-based enrichment education program that helps empower disadvantaged youth, building empathy and global citizenry. She also regularly contributes to Music for Relief, a non-profit organization comprised of musicians, music industry professionals, and fans, that are dedicated to providing aid to natural disaster survivors; We Care Solar, a revolutionary solar system that fits in a briefcase, designed to promote safe childbirth in developing regions by providing health workers with reliable lighting and power; and, Grassroots Soccer, a health organization that uses soccer to elevate at-risk youths in developing countries.
All of her contributions lead to her receiving the 2018 Woman of The Year Award presented by Women’s Image Network, and in 2019, Cowan was the Humanitarian of the Year Award recipient from the Hollywood Women’s Film Institute.
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AAYATI DASH KAR
Diane Warren is one of modern music’s most celebrated songwriters. She has penned nine #1 and thirty-two top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100, is tied for having written the most #1 songs as a sole writer in Billboard history and was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2001. She is an Honorary Oscar recipient and has received 14 Academy Award nominations, is a Grammy winner with 15 nominations, Emmy winner and two-time Golden Globe award winner whose songs have been featured in more than 100 motion pictures. She is also the sole owner of her publishing company Realsongs, the most successful female-owned and operated business in the music industry. She is the recipient of a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In summer 2021, Warren released her debut album Diane Warren: The Cave Sessions Vol (Di-Namic/BMG), which included featured guest performances such as Jon Batiste, Carlos Santana, Rita Ora, Maren Morris, John Legend and Jimmie Allen to name a few. She most recently wrote the original song “Applause” performed by Sofia Carson for the feature film Tell It Like a Woman for which she was Oscar nominated. Diane Warren was selected to receive an Honorary Oscar as voted by the Academy’s Board of Governors. She is the first songwriter to receive an Honorary Oscar which was presented at the Academy’s 13th Governors Awards in November 2022.Warren wrote the original song “Gonna Be You” which is performed by icons Dolly Parton, Belinda Carlisle, Cyndi Lauper, Gloria Estefan and Debbie Harry for the feature film 80 For Brady which stars Lily Tomlin, Jane Fonda, Rita Moreno and Sally Field which opened in theaters on February 3, 2023.
