Cohen Named Chief of Warner Division

Warner Bros. production executive Polly Cohen has been named president of Warner Independent Pictures, succeeding Mark Gill as head of the Burbank studio’s specialty film unit.

Cohen’s appointment had been expected, with Gill having been forced out of the job last week and given a production deal.

Gill had repeatedly clashed with his boss, production President Jeff Robinov, over the unit’s direction and other strategic issues.

Gill had been at Warner Independent since its inception in 2003, involved in such acclaimed films as the Oscar-winning documentary “March of the Penguins,” “Good Night, and Good Luck” and “Paradise Now,” which was nominated for a best foreign film Oscar.

Cohen has been a key part of Robinov’s team at Warner Bros. She joined the studio in 1997, rising through the ranks to her most recent post as executive vice president, production.

Cohen, who has overseen such Warner Bros. movies as the “Harry Potter” series, “A Perfect Storm” and “Starsky and Hutch,” has had limited experience handling specialty films, though recently she worked on Warner Independent’s “Mama’s Boy,” among others.

She began her industry career at actor Danny DeVito’s Jersey Films production company, where she was involved with movies including “Living Out Loud.”