REGINALD HUDLIN is an Oscar, and Emmy nominated director and producer, and he is one of the most influential filmmakers of his generation. Hudlin’s first feature film was HOUSE PARTY and he has since then has gone on to direct many hit films including BOOMERANG with Eddie Murphy, MARSHALL with Chadwick Boseman, the award-winning documentaries THE BLACK GODFATHER and SIDNEY, as well as holiday sports favorite SAFETY for Disney+, among others. In addition, Hudlin produced the Oscar-Winning DJANGO UNCHAINED, the animated hit BEBE’S KIDS, the historical film EMPEROR, as well as the popular television series FRIDAY NIGHT VIBES with Tiffany Haddish, THE BOONDOCKS on Comedy Central, the BLACK PANTHER animated series on BET, THE BERNIE MAC SHOW on FOX and SHOWTIME AT THE APOLLO, also for FOX. During the pandemic, Hudlin produced a duo of Father’s Day specials with Ms. Oprah Winfrey and an innovative series called BEAR WITNESS, TAKE ACTION, which was a trio of political specials for YouTube addressing unbridled disharmony in America after the murder of George Floyd.
His latest film SIDNEY, about the incredible life of actor Sidney Poitier, just won a coveted 2022 Critics Choice Award for BEST BIOGRAPHICAL DOCUMENTARY and Hudlin is currently in production on CANDY CANE LANE, an Amazon original holiday movie starring Eddie Murphy coming Christmas 2023. And early next year Hudlin, along with producing partners Jamie Foxx and Kevin Hart, will premiere NUMBER ONE ON THE CALL SHEET: BLACK LEADING MEN IN HOLLYWOOD. NOOTCS is the upcoming Apple documentary celebrating Black achievement in the film industry and what it takes for Black male actors to succeed in the film business.
Hudlin is the second African American to executive produce THE OSCARS (2016) and the first African American to executive produce the EMMYS (2020, 2021, 2022). He recently completed his eleventh year as executive producer of the NAACP IMAGE AWARDS, and he was the 6th Producer of the AMPAS Governors Awards. As a comic book writer, Hudlin created award-winning runs on THE BLACK PANTHER and SPIDERMAN, and is currently writing and producing for Milestone Media, a wholly blacked owned comic book company he acquired along with partners Dereck Dingle and Denys Cowan. In partnership with Warner Media, Milestone Media develops multi-ethnic superhero properties for print, movies, and television in an effort to bring the hundreds of characters in the Milestone library to life. The partners are currently producing three separate monthly comic books and have two feature films in development. Through their deal with Warner Media, Milestone Media is also adapting these properties for film and television.
Hudlin is one of the very few filmmakers to have helmed a major media company. He was the first president of entertainment for Black Entertainment Television, the biggest black media company in the world. While there, he created B.E.T.’s first full slate of original shows and an award-winning news division.
Hudlin has been honored by numerous esteemed organizations including the NAACP, The American Civil Liberties Union, The United Negro College Fund, The Sundance Film Festival, The American Film Institute, The San Diego Comic-Con, The African American Film Critics Association, The Critics Choice Awards and many more venerable organizations.
DENYS COWAN is an accomplished and celebrated comic and animation creator and illustrator. Founder of Milestone Media, which sold over 10 million copies of groundbreaking comic books, Denys Cowan has numerous credits to his name, including but not limited to: Batman: Lovers & Madmen, Blind Justice, Dominique Laveau: Voodoo Child, The Black Panther: Flags of Our Fathers, The Question, Hardware, and Static Shock.
Static Shock became one of the most beloved characters in the Milestone Universe, spawning a hugely successful animated series. During its run, the series was the only animated show not produced by Nickelodeon to dominate ratings. Denys directed and produced the series, which was nominated for an Emmy.
As Senior Vice President of Animation at BET, Cowan was responsible for the creation, development and production of animated programming for the entire network. This included the development and production of the premiere season of the prime time animated series, The Boondocks. Along with BET President of Entertainment and frequent collaborator, Reginald Hudlin, Cowan also produced The Black Panther animated series.
Serving as Senior Vice President of Motown Animation and Filmworks, he created and developed a number of shows with Fox, ABC, Disney and Nickelodeon. Cowan also co-created the character of Henri Ducard, as played by Liam Neeson in Batman Begins.
Cowan drew the cover art of the GZA/Genius of the Wu-Tang Clan’s platinum selling hip-hop album Liquid Swords. Denys illustrated the successful run of You Can’t Handle the Truth, a monthly full-page comic strip for Ebony magazine. More recently, Denys Cowan illustrated the Django Unchained graphic novel, which was inspired by the Oscar-winning film by Quentin Tarantino.
Among comic book readers and collaborators, Denys Cowan is the stuff of legends. Cowan remains a prolific creator, illustrator, and producer. He is the recipient of the Humanitas Award and he has been nominated for a number of Eisner awards throughout his illustrious career.
DEREK T. DINGLE is Senior Vice President/Editor-In-Chief of BLACK ENTERPRISE magazine.
He is responsible for the strategic planning and editorial direction of the magazine and coordinates content development across print, digital, broadcast and event platforms.
He has oversight and involvement in content development of magazine-related events such as the Black Enterprise Entrepreneurs Conference + Expo as well as the company’s new offerings including the launch of the Black Enterprise iPad app.
In January 2009 he assumed the additional role of BLACK ENTERPRISE chief White House correspondent, splitting his time between the company’s New York headquarters and Washington, D.C. On Feb. 9 he secured the first post-inaugural print interview with President Barack Obama, making national headlines with an exclusive Q&A initially published on the company’s Website, www.blackenterprise.com.
He also founded and served as president and CEO of Milestone Media Inc., the nation’s largest black-owned comic book company. Distributed by DC Comics, Milestone produced an average of eight monthly titles and sold more than 10 million copies from 1992 to 1998. One of the characters he co-created, Static Shock, was developed into an animated series that ran from 2000 to 2005 on the WB Network and The Cartoon Network.
An award-winning editor, Dingle is the author of Titans of the B.E. 100s: Black CEOs Who Redefined and Conquered American Business, and he received the 1999 International Reading Association Award for his book First in the Field: Jackie Robinson, Baseball Hero.
He is a member of the National Association of Black Journalists and the American Society of Magazine Editors, and he serves on the Advisory Board for the American Black Film Festival and Advisory Board of Norfolk State University’s School of Communications. He has also served as a member of the Advisory Board for GE’s Center for Financial Literacy (from 2000-2005).