Michael Lennick was born in Toronto, Canada, to a family of Canadian actors. His parents, Sylvia Lennick and Ben Lennick, were frequent performers on Canadian stages and film sets, and Michael and his siblings, David and Julie, grew up surrounded by the vibrant world of Canadian entertainment. As a result, Michael developed a passion for storytelling and a keen eye for detail, which would serve him well in his future careers.
Michael's childhood was a whirlwind of creativity and exploration, with his parents' careers taking them to various parts of Canada and beyond. During this time, Michael devoured a vast array of classic science fiction and hard science books, which would later inform his work in the science and technology documentary genre.
As he grew older, Michael began to pursue his own creative endeavors, co-creating, co-writing, and directing the Canadian cult TV classic The All-Night Show in 1980. This was just one of several television series he was a part of during this period, and it marked the beginning of a long and successful career in the entertainment industry.
After a two-decade run creating visual effects for films like Videodrome and TV series like War of the Worlds, as well as writing and directing episodes of numerous Canadian kids' shows, Michael shifted his focus to producing, writing, and directing science and history documentaries. This was a natural progression for him, given his passion for science and technology, and his extensive background in the entertainment industry.
The mid-1990s saw a revolution in documentary production, with the advent of high-quality, inexpensive video production and non-linear editing facilities. This, coupled with the explosion of specialty cable channels, made documentary production a viable full-time trade. Michael was well-positioned to take advantage of this new landscape, and he went on to produce a wide range of documentaries, including space and technology-based series and specials for The Discovery Channel, PBS, and other networks.
Today, Michael is the president and CEO of Foolish Earthling Productions, a company that he founded to produce documentaries that explore the wonders of space and technology. His productions have won top prizes at numerous film festivals worldwide, and he continues to be a leading figure in the documentary production industry.
Michael and his wife, Shirley, split their time between Canada, Los Angeles, and Alamogordo, New Mexico, where they have a production hub for many of their documentary projects. They also live with a couple of rambunctious dogs in a deep-woods splendor about two hours north of Toronto, where they continue to work on books, articles, and special projects for DVD companies like Criterion, as well as space and science museums around the world.
