Roger Ross Williams is a director and producer whose work includes documentaries, television series and scripted film. He directed Music by Prudence, which won a documentary-short Oscar, and Life, Animated, which received a documentary-feature nomination. He later made Cassandro, a dramatization of the life of wrestler Saúl Armendáriz. His production work includes The 1619 Project and films made by other directors through One Story Up.
Williams grew up in Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley and graduated from Easton High School. He attended Northampton Community College before transferring to New York University. He also grew up singing in the choir at Greater Shiloh Gospel Church. Before making his independent films, his television work included covering fashion for CNN.
At the 2010 Academy Awards, Williams and Elinor Burkett shared the documentary-short award for Music by Prudence. Williams became the first African American director to win an Oscar. His 2016 film Life, Animated follows Owen Suskind and his family, exploring the place of animated films in their communication. Based on Ron Suskind’s book, it received a Sundance directing award. Williams and producer Julie Goldman shared the film’s documentary-feature nomination at the 2017 Oscars.
Williams was an executive producer of the six-part Hulu series The 1619 Project, adapted from the journalism initiated by Nikole Hannah-Jones. Its episodes connect slavery’s history with subjects including democracy, race, music, capitalism, fear and justice. The production involved Hannah-Jones, showrunner Shoshana Guy and fellow executive producers including Oprah Winfrey. In 2023, Williams also released Cassandro, his first scripted feature, with Gael García Bernal playing Armendáriz.
One Story Up’s 2025 projects included Move Ya Body: The Birth of House, directed by Elegance Bratton, and How to Build a Library, directed by Maia LeKow and Christopher King. Williams and Geoff Martz were executive producers of both films. Williams also executive produced Makayla’s Voice: A Letter to the World, directed by Julio Palacio. The documentary short premiered on Netflix in December 2024. In June 2026, the Academy announced his return to its Board of Governors after a hiatus, representing the Documentary Branch.
