Meet Kent Speakman | CEO, Founder & Exec. Producer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kent Speakman and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kent, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
I saw that there was a large gap in the live production space between the traditional televised live events and all of the amazing people that were supporting important causes. I found a passion for helping non profits, organizations and individuals be able to reach and connect with greater audiences, at a higher production quality. As this started to become more effective it was time to create a company behind it so we could grow and scale, and quickly after that we launched the digital platform KNEKT.tv to be able to show these events online, which lead to the Apple TV, Roku and Google Apps. It came from a place of how can we help more people more effectively reach more people, and from a place of doing good vs going after making a profit.

What should our readers know about your business?
KNEKT ® [connect] was born from a results based digital agency, winning awards for connecting brands, charities and celebrities with their fans. There are two sides of the company, the production side and then the TV network. We evolved into one of the top live video production studios that creates engaging video content, connecting fans and followers with content that matters. From live broadcast, event coverage, music video, commercial, to film & TV, we create some of the most impact live coverage spanning the Daytime Emmys, United Nations, to Jay Shetty & Shaman Durek. Creating a company from the ground up with no outside investment, or partners in the business has been the biggest challenge, but also the most rewarding as the vision for creating a tv network focused on social good could not be sidetracked by people with a different moral compass, or looking for a quick buck vs a sustainable growth for the future. We’ve broadcast and streamed hundreds of live events, daily live programming from one Facebook page to over 100 destinations and have won awards along the way.. KNEKT.TV is an award winning Los Angeles based company focused on producing and distributing live and pre-recorded HD broadcasts from world class events, concerts, performances, charity galas, fundraisers and red carpet shows, as well as developing and producing film and TV shows. Our clients & partners range from top charting recording artists to Fortune 500 Companies and charities. We provide cutting edge HD live broadcasting services as well as non-broadcast recorded content, feature film and television production. Audiences on single projects range from small corporate stakeholders to millions of fans on a world wide stage. We partner with agencies, brands and event producers to create the next level of fully integrated branded entertainment content, on premise activations, and in-video stream advertising during our live and pre-recorded television events. KNEKT holds a number of exclusive partnerships with venues & event producers because of our trust and established relationships with A-List clientele. Many times where other media and camera’s are not permitted, KNEKT will be the only team behind the velvet rope.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
We’d probably have to start in Santa Barbara and work down to San Diego! From Malibu – Paradise cove to Waldorf Astoria in BH there would be a hundred stops along the way! Season pending a whale watching trip would have to be on the itinerary, and certainly a night under the stars in an Airstream would be on the list!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
There are so many people, from supportive family and friends to mentors and people who gave me/us a shot along the way. John Durham, Ferlyn Chmelyk, David Michaels, Alex Kushneir, Ryan James, George Caseres, Papa Joe Aviance, Jesse Markley, Elizabeth Recheis, Chris Whalley, Kevin Vanegas, James Redfield, Leslie Coutterand, Allen Beyer, Adam Campbell, Lorraine D’Alessio, Adi Jaffe, Dave Urner, Paul Vickers, Mike Joseph, Arielle Caputo, Kent Thompson, Mom & Dad..

Website: www.KNEKT.tv
Instagram: www.Instagram.com/KentSpeakman
Linkedin: www.LinkedIn.com/In/KentSpeakman
Twitter: www.twitter.com/KentSpeakman
Facebook: www.Facebook.com/KentSpeakman
Youtube: Youtube.com/KNEKT.tv
Other: for Production: www.KNEKTtv.Com