Biographie
Kenny Young is a talented and prolific African-American director, screenwriter, and story consultant. As an established pro, he has acquired a notable list of film directing and writing credits.
A Chicago native, Kenny currently lives in Los Angeles where he's partnered with Phil James in his company, James Young Entertainment.
Under this company, Kenny Young wrote & directed: Redrum (featuring Jenifer Lewis, Jill Marie Jones, and Danny Woodburn) and C'Mon Man (featuring Clifton Powell, Kim Whitley, Aries Spears, and Tommy Davidson), which aired on Showtime, Starz!, and TMC.
Kenny also wrote and directed Bachelors (featuring Fred Willard, David Faustino, Anna Hutchison, and Gary Owen), winning "Best Narrative Film" and "Best Director" at the 2015 American Black Film Festival. The film was purchased by Lionsgate.
Early in his career, he optioned a script, Step In The Name Of Love, to MGM Studios with R&B sensation Usher attached to star, and garnered write-ups in the Hollywood Reporter and Variety.
Kenny's first feature film he wrote, One Week, was theatrically released and achieved the 2nd highest per screen average in the nation. It also won best "Narrative Film" at the American Black Film Festival and Urbanworld Film Festival. It also screened at the Toronto Film Festival, The Chicago International Film Festival, and the LA Pan-African Film Festival. The film still screens nationally on "World AIDS Day."
Kenny has also worked with TVOne where he directed Merry Ex-Mas (featuring London Brown, Sean Patrick Thomas, Angel Conwell, and Clifton Powell). The project became the network's third highest-rated original film of 2016. The success of this film garnered more opportunities for him to direct projects.
In 2017, Kenny directed Miss Me This Christmas (featuring Erica Ash, Allen Maldonado, Eva Marcille, and Redaric Williams) and You Can't Stop Christmas (featuring Brely Evans, Persia White, Andra Fuller, Marla Gibbs, and Nathan Davis Jr.), both of which will premiere on TV One network later this year and air on Netflix December 2017.
Always looking to make a mark in the industry, Kenny wrote and produced the animated feature film Chance. Premiering at the 2017 Dances with Films Festival, Chance is the story of a peaceful pit bull that struggles to maintain his values while surviving in the brutal world of dogfighting. The film is gaining global viral buzz with over a million views of the trailer. Chance received praise in the Huffington Post and is being championed internationally by various animal rights activist groups such as the Anti-Dogfighting campaign, Pit-Bull Rescue Central, Doghouse Bully Crew, and many more.
In addition, Kenny has been commissioned to write scripts for legendary writer/director Robert Townsend, legendary actor/director Bill Duke, and legendary rapper Nas. He has also served as story consult on several film projects.
As an exciting writer/director with recognizable credits in mainstream Hollywood, Kenny Young is a creative force to be watched.
