Cody Hilliard

discovery through the lens

Cody Hilliard signature

ABOUT

Cody Hilliard is a Chicago-based Emmy-winning director and cinematographer / director of photography driven to push the edges of storytelling. For over a decade, he’s crafted bold, immersive visuals designed to linger long after the credits roll.

His work lives in two worlds: [ 👉 The Coco Collection ], original films made to feel, built from emotion, texture, and curiosity, and [ 🤝 The Works ], collaborative projects created alongside agencies, brands, and production partners, where his role is always clearly credited project by project.

Filmmaking wasn’t the original plan. Cody’s path began with a fascination for code, until a college mix-up dropped him into a multimedia course. That “wrong class” became the right turning point: design, photography, then film. The first time he picked up a camera, it clicked. Not as a hobby, as the thing.

He’s been chasing that spark ever since. From six-second clips shot on a flip phone to projects earning multiple Emmy nominations across the country, the path has stretched from small towns to big cities, across states and oceans, always through the lens of story.

At the core is a belief that stories are how we make sense of being human. They connect us, challenge us, and remind us we’re not alone, whether it’s a documentary, a narrative piece, or a 30-second spot.

When he’s not behind the camera, Cody lives life full throttle as a husband, a new dad, and a devoted dog dad. The world is a wild place. He just tries to frame it beautifully.

CONTACT

hello@cococineworks.com

ACCOMPLISHMENTS

2026 Emmy® Nominations

The Luthier: Carving Voices
2026 Chicago/Midwest Emmy® Nominee · Arts/Entertainment – Short Form Content
Role: Director

The Second Run
2026 Chicago/Midwest Emmy® Nominee · Sports Story – Short Form Content
Role: Cinematographer · A Charter Original Film

Find Your People (WHOOP Spec)
2026 Chicago/Midwest Emmy® Nominee · Commercial – Single Spot/Campaign
Role: Cinematographer · A Charter Production

Emmy® Wins

Find Your Light at the Catholic University of America
2025 Chicago/Midwest Emmy® Winner · Commercial – Campaign
Role: Director

Dominican Sisters of Hawthorne Vocations
2023 New York Emmy® Winner · Religion – Short or Long Form Content
Role: Director & Cinematographer

Fill These Shoes
2022 Chicago/Midwest Emmy® Winner · Branded Content – Short and Long Form Content
Role: Director & Cinematographer

Earlier Emmy® Nominations

Lead With Light
2025 Chicago/Midwest Emmy® Nominee · Commercial – Single Spot
Role: Director

Honoring Heroes: A Soldier’s Tribute to Fallen Comrades
2025 Chicago/Midwest Emmy® Nominee · Human Interest – Short Form Content
Role: Director

Breath of Life: The Legacy of Dr. Robert Bartlett
2025 Chicago/Midwest Emmy® Nominee · Human Interest – Short Form Content
Role: Cinematographer

From Struggle to Service
2025 Chicago/Midwest Emmy® Nominee · Public Affairs Program – Short Form Content
Role: Director

Chicago/Midwest Emmy® Nominee
Human Interest – Short Form Content

Lone Star Emmy® Nominee

Other Recognition

Gabriel Award
First Place

Central Illinois 48-hour Filmmakers Festival
First Place

What Could Be
Canada Shorts Film Festival · Award of Distinction

Illinois Central College Film Festival
Best Film

Cody Hilliard holding an Emmy | Coco Cineworks (Chicago Director / Cinematographer / Director of Photography)
Cody Hilliard on set, directing and filming | (Chicago Director / Cinematographer / Director of Photography)
Cody Hilliard, wearing a green t-shirt, is holding a Panavision DXL2 cinema camera. He is on set with natural light, plants on the wall, and filming equipment nearby. (Chicago Cinematographer / Director of Photography) | Coco Cineworks
Cody Hilliard operating a medium format film camera, wearing a cap and a red shirt, against a cyan background. (Chicago Director / Cinematographer / Director of Photography) | Coco Cineworks
A young Cody Hilliard on set, crouching on the street, adjusting a camera mounted on a small stabilizer, with crew. (Chicago Director / Cinematographer / Director of Photography)
Cody Hilliard with a beige baseball cap, black face mask, and light-colored t-shirt, filming with a RED camera inside a vehicle, Filming Amtrak commercial, during sunset. (Chicago Director / Cinematographer / Director of Photography)
Close-up of a young Cody Hilliard with short light blond hair, wearing a brown hat with red trim, looking slightly upward. Disposable film camera.
Cody Hilliard in a yellow hoodie looking at a light meter, in Chicago with blurred pedestrians and buildings in the background, at dusk. (Chicago Director / Cinematographer / Director of Photography)
Cody Hilliard, wearing a gray cap and black t-shirt, sitting in a room with a piano, a yellow lamp, and decorative items in the background. On set for film shoot. (Chicago Director / Cinematographer / Director of Photography)
Cody Hilliard wearing a gray shirt and a dark cap looks through the viewfinder of a large film camera (SR II) while sitting on the wooden floor. The camera has a clapperboard attached with handwritten notes. On film set. (Chicago Director / Cinemato
Cody Hilliard sitting cross-legged on a ledge in front of a fountain in an urban area, wearing a black cap, yellow T-shirt, and black pants, with a medium format film camera around his neck and a smartwatch on his wrist. (Chicago Director / Cinemato
Cody Hilliard with operating a professional cinema camera, dressed in a black t-shirt, against a teal background. Cooke anamorphic lens 40mm (Chicago Director / Cinematographer / Director of Photography)
Cody Hilliard (Chicago Director / Cinematographer / Director of Photography) Virtual Production
Portrait of Cody Hilliard (Chicago Director / Cinematographer / Director of Photography) | Coco Cineworks