ABOUT

Tim Travers Hawkins is an Emmy-nominated director known for creative non-fiction films that explore big ideas through intimate stories, with strong cinematic atmospheres.

Across a body of work spanning five feature films, interactive art, award-winning investigations, he has gained a reputation for telling compelling stories that move, provoke and unsettle - never shying away from nuance and complexity.

His latest feature, American Zoo (2026) begins with the discovery of a lost film archive in the ruins of an abandoned zoo in Upstate New York and unravels a Nazi plot to bring back extinct animals. It opened at Tribeca Film Festival 2026, where it received a special Jury Mention for editing.

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His debut feature XY Chelsea (2019) followed Wikileaks whistleblower and cultural lighting rod Chelsea Manning as she fought for her freedom. It was nominated for two Emmys for Outstanding Politics and Government Documentary and Outstanding Sound.

His work has been released theatrically in cinemas around the world, on cable and streamers such as Netflix, HBO Max, Showtime and Paramount+, played at festivals including Tribeca, SXSW, London BFI Film Festival, Sheffield Doc/Fest, IDFA, Ji.hlava and Visions du Reel, and  received numerous awards including the One World Media Award, DIG Award, Amnesty International Human Rights Cinema Award, and a nomination for the Cinema for Peace Award.

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