After finishing school, Kent Mackenzie enlisted in the air force and later ended up in Hollywood, where, after gaining a scholarship, he made Bunker Hill, his first film.
The first instance was in 1956 when he made a film about the displacement of pensioners being moved because of high-rise buildings being built in their area.
[11] Christina Rose of the Indian Country Today Media Network wrote that it was the first film to give an accurate portrayal of urban natives.
The film centered on elderly pensioners and their community and the displacement they experienced because of a block of high-rise offices that was to be built there.
[13][14] In 1965, he produced and directed The Teenage Revolution, which featured Barry Brown in an early role and was narrated by Van Heflin.