THE FILM

Film Synopsis
Directors
Producer
Executive Producers
Editor
Credits
Music
Thank You

FILM SYNOPSIS

Heavy Metal in Baghdad is a feature film documentary that follows the Iraqi heavy metal band Acrassicauda from the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003 to the present day. Playing heavy metal in a Muslim country has always been a difficult (if not impossible) proposition but after Saddam’s regime was toppled, there was a brief moment for the band in which real freedom seemed possible. That hope was quickly dashed as their country fell into a bloody insurgency. From 2003-2006, Iraq disintegrated around them while Acrassicauda struggled to stay together and stay alive, always refusing to let their heavy metal dreams die. Their story echoes the unspoken hopes of an entire generation of young Iraqis.

DIRECTORS

Eddy Moretti holds an Hon. B.A. in English and Cinema Studies from the University of Toronto. In 1996 he received the Norman Jewison Fellowship Award and completed an M.A. in Cinema Studies from New York University. He is currently completing his Ph.D. at NYU. Since 2000 he has served as director of VICE Films, co-authoring original screenplays with Shane Smith for Brad Pitt's Plan B and their own feature film script for White Lightnin': The Jesco White Murders. In 2007 Mr. Moretti co-founded the broadband video network VBS.TV (with Spike Jonze as creative director), where he serves as Executive Producer and a correspondent. He has directed television spots for the National Legacy Foundation's TRUTH anti-smoking campaign, and oversees content production for VIRTUE, the in-house marketing and creative-services agency at VICE. Heavy Metal in Baghdad is Eddy's feature film directorial debut. Eddy lives in New York City. His parents are from Calabria, Italy.

Suroosh Alvi was born in Toronto and studied Philosophy at Montreal’s McGill University. After completing his undergrad he worked at a record label in Minneapolis, taught English in Slovakia, and worked on the railroad in Western Canada. In 1994, halfway through his Master’s in Psychology at the University of Toronto, Suroosh returned to Montreal and co-founded VICE Magazine Publishing. Since then, the company has grown into one of the world’s most influential independent media sources with distribution in 22 countries. Additionally, VICE has diversified into book publishing, television, feature films, and music. Suroosh is the co-author of The VICE Guide to Sex and Drugs and Rock and Roll, is the head of VICE Records, and is a producer for VBS.TV. He has traveled to Pakistan, Afghanistan, the West Bank, Gaza, Iraq and Beirut, corresponding and producing documentaries. Heavy Metal in Baghdad is Suroosh’s feature film directorial debut. Suroosh lives in New York City. His parents are from Lahore, Pakistan.


PRODUCER

Monica Hampton has been making feature films for 14 years. She spent six years at Kevin Smith and Scott Mosier's View Askew Productions, where she worked on Chasing Amy (1997), Dogma (1999), Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back (2001) and produced Vulgar (2002). In 2003 she was asked by Michael Moore to line-produce the documentary Fahrenheit 9/11, which brought home the Palme d’Or at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival and she produced, Captain Mike Across America, which premiered at the 2007 Toronto International Film Festival. Monica is currently Head of Production and Post Production at VBS.TV and VICE Films.


EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS

Shane Smith holds an Hon. B.A. in English Literature and Political Science from Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada. In 1994 he formed VICE Magazine and has since launched the title in the United States, Great Britain, Paris, Australia/ New Zealand, Japan and is expecting to open more international offices in the upcoming years. He recently co-authored a best-selling book “The VICE Guide to Sex and Drugs and Rock n’ Roll” (Harper Collins) with director, Suroosh Alvi, and sold his original screenplay “Dirty Bombs” (co-penned with Moretti) to New Line Cinema in 2002.

In February of 2007 he launched the on-line televison network, VBS.TV, with Suroosh Alvi, Eddy Moretti and creative director, Spike Jonze.

Spike Jonze – Selected Filmography

Director
Adaptation (2002)
- nominated for 4 Academy Awards
- nominated for Golden Globe Best Director
Being John Malkovich (1999)
- nominated for 3 Academy Awards, including Best Director

Producer
Synecdoche, New York (2007)
Jackass Number Two (2006)
Jackass: The Movie (2002)
Human Nature (2001)

Documentaries
Amarillo By Morning (1998)
What’s Up, Fatlip? (2003)
Al Gore Documentary (2000)

Music Videos , Director
Sabotage – Beastie Boys (1994)
Buddy Holly – Weezer (1994)
It’s Oh So Quiet – Bjork (1995)
Drop – The Pharcyde (1996)
Praise You – Fatboy Slim (1998)
Weapon Of Choice – Fatboy Slim (2000)


EDITOR

Bernardo Loyola
Bernardo Loyola was born in Mexico City and studied Media and Communications at the Tecnológico de Monterrey in Queretaro, Mexico. In 2004 he received a Fulbright Scholarship and moved to New York City where he completed his M.F.A. in Filmmaking at the City College of New York. He has directed three short-films: Malaire (2000), Savior (2003) and The Perfect Day (2004), which won numerous awards and screened in various international film festivals.  In 2004 he started working for Michael Moore's production company, creating graphics and titles for Fahrenheit 9/11, and in the fall of 2004 assumed camera duties as he followed Moore around the country during his 63-city "Slacker Uprising Tour". He then edited Captain Mike Across America, a feature length documentary of the tour, also directed by Moore.  Bernardo is currently a Senior Editor at VBS.TV.


CREDITS

MUSIC