THE TEAM
Meet our Women Warriors
Cheryl Allison - Dir./Prod.Cheryl is an award-winning actress who has performed in Broadway, Regional Theatre and Film/TV for over 25 years. She is best known for her starring role in the feature film NO LETTING GO (2016) opposite Kathy Najimy, Richard Burgi, and Alysia Reiner. Her performance in the film garnered her 3 Best Actress Awards.
She is the Founder/Producer of WOW FILMS, a production company that strives to create thought provoking stories that deepen our understanding of the human experience. WOW FILMS recently produced short film FAR FROM THE TREE (2017) has received 26 awards in over 22 film festivals worldwide, including 6 Best Short Film awards. Cheryl recently directed the short film HIDING IN DAYLIGHT (2019) which has been selected into 28 film festivals to date including the American Pavilion's Emerging Filmmakers Showcase at the Cannes Film Festival. She is currently directing the documentary feature PIECES OF US produced by Eec! Productions and Blue Door Films. Cheryl, a Regional Emmy Nominee, is also the recipient of the Silver and Bronze Telly Award for a PSA she produced and directed called "This is Cole" for the 5P Minus Society. The spot is currently running on local stations throughout Texas. For more info visit www.cherylallison.net |
Carina Rush - ProducerCarina is a multi-award winning producer whose highly acclaimed feature film No Letting Go (2016) received worldwide distribution through Vision Films. The film received the elite honor of being one of the top 100 films viewed on Amazon Prime. Most recently she produced the award-winning short film Far From The Tree which dealt with the topic of sexual assault. The film starred accomplished actor Gabriel Rush, who happens to be her son, and her producing partner on the film Cheryl Allison. She has guided her son Gabriel’s acting career from National Tours and Broadway (Billy Elliot) to episodic TV and Feature Films, including his recent lead role in Guillermo del Toro's iconic Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark.
Carina's 20 years of experience in the Arts and Entertainment industry and her firsthand knowledge of the business has made her a sought after producer. In addition to her producing partnership with Cheryl and WOW FILMS, she is working on several projects that are in development, currently filming and in post-production. |
Natalie Murray - ProducerNatalie has held management positions in some of the top broadcast companies in NYC, Los Angeles and Dallas. She held the positions of Director of Sales and Director of Business Development at NBC, where she focused on Group Olympic Sales. She was promoted to NBC- Los Angeles as Director of Sales for the NBC Television Stations. While at NBC, she was nominated and attended the elite GE Management Development Course in Crotonville, NY, where she met and was mentored by GE CEO Jack Welch.
After many years with NBC, Natalie accepted a position at Fox Stations Sales as Vice President, Regional Sales Manager for the West Coast territory. After a long and successful career on the east and west coasts, she relocated to Dallas, TX. She was hired by Belo Corporation as the Director of Sales for KFWD-TV, where she rebranded the station. After 27 years in Broadcast Sales and Management, Natalie has retired from the corporate world. She is passionate about producing films that bring social awareness, evoke change and sparks conversations. She is also passionate about her golf game. |
Alison Smith - Exec. ProducerAlison is Executive Vice President of Distribution, Publisher Relations & Administration Services at BMI Music. A Tennessee native, Smith joined BMI’s Writer/Publisher Relations department in BMI’s Nashville office in 1985 and re-located to New York in 1987 where she has held various roles of increasing responsibility throughout her 31-year tenure.
In addition to receiving many accolades from music industry peers, Smith was honored two consecutive years as one of Billboard’s Top 30 Power Players as well as one of Billboard’s Women in Music. She was also honored with the Nashville Business Journal’s Women in Music City Award in 2014, 2016 and 2017. Additionally, she was given the Ambassador Award at the Production Music Association’s annual conference in October 2017. |