Walter Thompson-Hernández
American director (born 1985)
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Walter Thompson-Hernández (born 1985) is an American director, screenwriter, journalist and author. Thompson-Hernández has written for The New York Times, NPR, The Guardian, Remezcla among others. In 2020, he wrote the book The Compton Cowboys: The New Generation of Cowboys in America's Urban Heartland. He has directed the feature-length films Kites (2025) and If I Go Will They Miss Me (2026).
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Stanford University (MA)
Walter Thompson-Hernández | |
|---|---|
Thompson-Hernández in 2026 | |
| Born | 1985 (age 40–41)[1] |
| Education | University of Portland (Bachelor's degree) Stanford University (MA) |
| Occupations | Director, screenwriter, journalist, author |
Early life and education
Thompson-Hernández was born and raised in Huntington Park, California.[2] He is of African American and Mexican descent.[3] He attended the University of Portland, where he played basketball, eventually playing it in Latin America with Caballeros de Culiacan.[4][5][6] However, he suffered an injury, and began pursuing storytelling.[7] Thompson-Hernández graduated with a degree in political science.[8] He also attended Stanford University where he received a master's degree in Latin American Studies.[9]
Thompson-Hernández was enrolled in the UCLA César E. Chávez Department of Chicana/o and Central American Studies Ph.D. program for one year before leaving to begin his journalism career.[7][9]
Career
Journalism
Thompson-Hernández has written for The New York Times, where he was a multimedia subculture reporter.[10] At The Times, Thompson-Hernández wrote about Compton Cowboys, whe eventually writing a book revolving around them, The Compton Cowboys: The New Generation of Cowboys in America's Urban Heartland published in 2020, by HarperCollins.[11] His work has additionally been featured in NPR, BuzzFeed, The Guardian and Remezcla.[12][13]
Filmmaking
In 2022, Thompson-Hernández directed the short film If I Go Will They Miss Me which had its world premiere at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival where it won the Sundance Film Festival Short Film Jury Award.[14] It was then expanded into a feature length film of the same name starring J. Alphonse Nicholson and Danielle Brooks, and premiered at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival.[15][16]
In 2025, Thompson-Hernández directed the documentary Untold: Shooting Guards for Netflix, revolving around an incident by Washington Wizards teammates Gilbert Arenas and Javaris Crittenton.[17] That same year, he made his narrative directorial debut with Kites which premiered at the 2025 Tribeca Festival, where it received a Special Jury Mention for Viewpoints.[18][19]
Filmography
Feature film
| Year | Title | Director | Producer | Writer |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Kites | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| 2026 | If I Go Will They Miss Me | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Documentary film
| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Producer |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Untold: Shooting Guards | Yes | No | No |