Working in the industry since 2008, living the creative life since the early-90s.
PROFESSIONAL BIOGRAPHY
Who is Kennon Fleisher today?
Kennon Fleisher is a filmmaker and creative director who specializes in building cinematic worlds for TV and film. He has directed and created visual languages for high-profile projects across Netflix, Hulu, Amazon, Max, Paramount+, Apple TV+, and ESPN. Kennon is an Emmy®-winning lead designer and animator, and an Emmy®-nominated creative director.
Kennon bridges the gap between high-level creative direction and original narrative filmmaking. For studios and showrunners, he translates ambitious ideas into fully realized visuals and cinematic worlds by leading teams of artists to execute a unified vision. His process goes far beyond technical ability and spans into narrative execution. Whether he's establishing the visual identity of a major series or directing his own original IP, Kennon’s value lies in his ability to seamlessly align high-end aesthetics with high-stakes storytelling.
CREATIVE PROCESS / TENETS
01 / Communicating The Core Feeling
My creative approach always starts with finding what the core feeling of a story is. From there, it's about finding ways to write, vocalize, and visualize that feeling so that the finished work will guide others to feel it too. My 'North Star' for every creative decision is about how I can put the audience directly in the shoes of the characters we're watching, and this philosophy applies to both fiction and non-fiction projects alike.
02 / Intention
I make creative decisions with the intention of making people actually feel something. Ideally, the same kind of goosebump-inducing excitement I get from the things that inspired me. I believe most TV shows or films should leave the audience feeling a sense of hope, especially when the characters have to navigate a nightmare to achieve their goals.
It's also worth mentioning that I truly believe people can subconsciously feel this exact creative intention and energy living in the work, even when it's subtle or intangible.
03 / Champion of Misfits and Underdogs
Many people would agree that the best cinematic worlds are grounded by ordinary, flawed, strange, unusual, diverse, often-overlooked people who are suddenly thrown into the unknown against all odds. The kind of people we can empathize with.
On a personal level, I grew up as the red-haired kid who heard the phrase "You'll never be able to do that" far more than not, but I've always found a way to prove those people wrong. Naturally, that pushed me towards being a champion of others in the same position because I know what it feels like to be the doubted underdog.
04 / Reject Cynicism
It's easy to become cynical in this world, especially as someone trying to make a living by working in entertainment. I will never claim to be perfect, but I always do my best to reject cynicism in favor of staying curious, excited, and grateful to be able to do this.
THE HISTORY / ORIGIN STORY
Let's Rewind…
A couple years ago, I digitized nearly two hundred Hi-8, Digital-8, and Mini-DV tapes spanning some of my most formative years between 2000 – 2007. The retrospective exercise helped me realize that my journey began as a child with drawing and music and it evolved into sneaking my parents' camcorder out of the house to film every waking moment with my friends in high school – and that love of being creative has never gone away since.
This is the story of my early-life curiosity, the turbulence that pushed me to discover my identity, and how I've always found ways to push myself and grow.
