Jonathan Thunder (born march 1977), is Ojibwe from the Red Lake Nation in northwestern Minnesota. He was born on the Red Lake Indian Reservation and grew up in the Twin Cities. Thunder studied painting and creative writing at the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, NM and later studied visual effects and animation at the Art Institute Int’l in Minneapolis, MN.

He is known for his short, animated films, which have been featured in both national in international film festivals. Thunder has won several awards for animation, music video and experimental film categories. He has been involved in filmmaking for several years, with roles ranging from writer/director, animation/design, collaborator and acting. In addition to creating short films, Jonathan has worked on museum and gallery installations that include projected animations, sculpture and paintings.

Thunder has said, "At the core of my practice is storytelling."