A native of Little Rock, Arkansas and Founder / CEO of Second Glance Productions, Anthony L. Williams is a multi-award-winning showrunner and filmmaker, performer, and educator based in Chicago (by way of Raleigh, NC).
A featured artist and activist in the "Imagine Your Impact" exhibit in the new Obama Presidential Center, Anthony's work has earned him a Silver Telly Award in Television - Mental Health, the "Best Indie TV Pilot - Unscripted" award in the inaugural category at the 15th ATX TV Festival, and the "Best TV Series" win at the 2026 International Black & Diversity Film Festival for his newest relationship / dating / mental health docuseries — It’s Not You. It’s Me: Chicago (INYIM).
Holding nominations for "Best Director," "Best Producer," and "Best Cinematography,” INYIM was a "Best Trailer" winner at both the 2024 Cinema WorldFest Awards and Creation International Film Festival and is the 2025 recipient of Emmy-nominated streaming platform Open Television’s #OTVAtlas Post-Production & Distribution Grant program.
In 2021, he was runner-up in the Flip the Script Competition for his TV pilot — Heartstrings — which also claimed 1st place in London & Lisbon’s 2024 Sunday Shorts Film Festival Screenwriting Competition and was an official selection in the 2024 Chicago Script Awards and Toronto Lift-Off Film Festival.
As writer-director of the first installment in this three-part film series, his critically-acclaimed debut feature film — Thicker Than Blood — garnered him awards for "Best Director” at the 2019 Newark International Film Festival, "Best Narrative Feature Film" at the 2019 Arlington International Film Festival, and "Best Actor" and "Best Supporting Actress" at the 2025 World Music & Independent Film Festival.
His award-winning short film — Absolutely Positive — won "Best Director" and holds nominations for Best Narrative Short Film, Best Actor, and Best Actress at the 2013 World Music & Independent Film Festival, also earning him a personal invitation to the National HIV/AIDS Strategy Initiative at the White House in 2013. Now redeveloped as a scripted series, the pilot advanced to the 2026 Top 25 Semifinalist round of Roadmap Writers "The Coletta Preacely-Garcia Diversity Fellowship" competition and the Quarterfinalist round in the 2020 TSL Screenplay Contest.
Having produced content for HGTV, the History Channel, National Geographic, A&E, The Travel Channel, Food Network, Investigative Discovery, and more, no matter the storytelling medium, Anthony takes pride in creating memorable media that pushes boundaries with purpose and on purpose. And with every story he tells, his mission is to ‘edutain’ and inspire viewers at first glance, while provoking deeper thought, conversation, and connection upon ‘second glance.’
