Hyena Road

240

120 minutes – Drama
Canadian release date: October 9, 2015
First screening: September 14, 2015 (TIFF)
Canadian distributor: Elevation Pictures
Poster & trailer courtesy of Elevation Pictures.

Canadian actor, writer, and director Paul Gross follows up on his WWI drama, 2008’s Passchendaele, with three different stories of modern warfare all in one movie – Hyena Road. The title takes its name from route built by Canadian and American troops as a highway to Kandahar, Afghanistan. A sniper (Rossif Sutherland) who has never allowed himself to think of his targets as human, becomes implicated in the life of one. An intelligence officer (Paul Gross) who has never contemplated killing, becomes the engine of a plot to kill. A legendary Mujahideen warrior (Neamat Arghandabi) who had put war behind him, is now the center of the battle zone. Three different men, three different worlds, three different conflicts – all stand at the intersection of modern warfare – a murky world of fluid morality where all is not as it seems. A tour-de-force that is equal measures thrilling, moving, and at times heartbreaking, Hyena Road is, without a doubt, unlike any other film ever made in Canada and is a testament to the work that our nation’s soldiers do on a daily basis. Gross spent two weeks at an operating base thirty kilometers away from Kandahar City when Canada’s combat mission was nearing its end. His script for this feature is principally based on interviews he had with soldiers when he was there as well as at home. Hyena Road will have its World Premiere when it screens as a Gala Presentation at the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival.

Crew:

Producer:

Niv Fichman
Paul Gross
Phyllis Laing

Executive Producer:

Mirwais Alizai
Jason Cloth
Aaron L. Gilbert
Frank Siracusa

Co-Producer:

Sari Friedland

Associate Producer:

Fraser Ash
Kevin Krikst
Penny McDonald

Director:

Paul Gross

Screenwriter:

Paul Gross

Cinematographer:

Karim Hussain

Editor:

David Wharnsby

Production Designer:

Arvinder Grewal

Art Director:

David Best

Costume Designer:

Katelynd Johnston

Cast: Roles:

Rossif Sutherland
Paul Gross
Allan Hawco
Clark Johnson
Jennifer Pudavick
David Richmond-Peck
Christine Horne
Nabil Elouahabi
Karl Campbell
Nikki Duval
Darren Felbel
Neamat Arghandabi
Aqqalu Meekis
Hekmat Bavari
Robin Ruel

Ryan
Pete
Travis
General rilmen
Mary
Hickie
Jennifer
The cleaner
Tank
Chewey
Shorty
The Ghost
Wilf
Abdul
Heather