Jonas Åkerlund

Jonas Åkerlund

1965-11-10 Bromma, Stockholm, Stockholms län, Sweden 37 Credits

Biography

Jonas Åkerlund (born November 10, 1965) is a Swedish film and music video director, and drummer. He is best known for his stylish music videos, which are often mock forms of movie trailers and short films. His video for Madonna's song "Ray of Light" won a Grammy for Best Music Video, Short Form, and a record seven awards at 1998 MTV Video Music Awards, including the Video of the Year. He more recently directed the video for Britney Spears' 2011 single "Hold It Against Me".

Known For

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Complete Filmography

Metallica Saved My Life

Metallica Saved My Life

2025

Director, Producer, Writer

Directing Producing Writing

From Award-winning director Jonas Åkerlund, “Metallica Saved My Life” explores the world of Metallica through the lives of their fans—including the ba...

Billy Idol Should Be Dead

Billy Idol Should Be Dead

2025

Director, Producer

Directing Producing

Punk legend turned pop sensation Billy Idol bares it all in this electrifying documentary, revealing his rise to fame, battle with addiction and trium...

Ghost: Rite Here Rite Now

Ghost: Rite Here Rite Now

2024

Producer

8.8
Producing

Whether you’re a devoted disciple looking to relive treasured memories of the GHOST live spectacle or among the curious uninitiated, RITE HERE RITE NO...

Madonna: The Celebration Tour in Rio

Madonna: The Celebration Tour in Rio

2024

Director

8.8
Directing

Madonna celebrates her four-decade career in a special concert for over 1.6 million people at the Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro.

DuEls

DuEls

2024

Director

Directing
Polar

Polar

2019

Director

6.3
Directing

When a retiring assassin realizes that he is the target of a hit, he winds up back in the game going head to head with a gang of younger, ruthless kil...

Lords of Chaos

Lords of Chaos

2018

Screenplay, Director

6.8
Writing Directing

A teenager's quest to launch Norwegian Black Metal in Oslo in the 1990s results in a very violent outcome.

Double Dutchess: Seeing Double

Double Dutchess: Seeing Double

2017

Director

5.8
Directing

A high-art, high-fashion showcase of a star's many personas-and a vivid reminder that our art, not our obstacles, ultimately defines us. Free, focused...

Rammstein: Paris

Rammstein: Paris

2017

Director

8.3
Directing

During the “Made in Germany” tour, Swedish director Jonas Åkerlund filmed two acclaimed Rammstein concerts in March 2012 – each for an audience of 17,...

Lemonade

Lemonade

2016

Director

8.4
Directing

The second "visual album" (a collection of short films) by Beyoncé, this time around she takes a piercing look at racial issues and feminist concepts ...

Roxette Diaries

Roxette Diaries

2016

Director, Editor

3.0
Directing

Everything (and much more) happened to Roxette in the years 1986 and 1995. Hundreds of hours of footage were recorded during the magical years to capt...

Taylor Swift: The 1989 World Tour - Live

Taylor Swift: The 1989 World Tour - Live

2015

Director

8.5
Directing

Filmed in front of 76,000 fans at the ANZ Stadium in Sydney, Australia, "The 1989 World Tour Live" captures Taylor Swift's entire performance while al...

Rammstein in Amerika

Rammstein in Amerika

2015

as Self

8.0
Acting

The concert film celebrates the band’s legendary show in New York’s Madison Square Garden – Rammstein’s return to the US after a ten-year absence. In ...

Artistry/Technology

Artistry/Technology

2015

as Self

Acting

The film gives an insight into the minds of leading creative figures of our time and their thoughts on the relationship between technology and creativ...

Ozzy Osbourne: Memoirs of a Madman

Ozzy Osbourne: Memoirs of a Madman

2014

Director

8.5
Directing

Memoirs of a Madman is a definitive visual two-disc DVD set which includes classic music videos, along with unreleased and out-of-print live performan...

On the Run Tour: Beyoncé and Jay-Z

On the Run Tour: Beyoncé and Jay-Z

2014

Director

7.8
Directing

Beyoncé and Jay Z perform live in Paris at Stade de France during their 2014 "On the Run Tour."

Beyoncé

Beyoncé

2014

Director

9.1
Directing

Developed as a "visual album", Beyoncé's songs are accompanied by non-linear short films that illustrate the musical concepts conceived during product...

Leave the World Behind

Leave the World Behind

2014

Executive Producer

7.1
Producing

A music documentary following the breakup of Swedish House Mafia and their subsequent One Last Tour. The largest electronic tour in history, selling o...

Paul McCartney: Live Kisses

Paul McCartney: Live Kisses

2012

Director

4.8
Directing

On February 9 in the City of Angels, a few hours after the long awaited addition of Paul McCartney’s star to the Hollywood Walk of Fame, McCartney and...

Paul McCartney Live at Zócalo

Paul McCartney Live at Zócalo

2012

Director

7.0
Directing

It's hard to believe Paul McCartney - the mariachi-singing ex-Beatle - is turning 70 years-old next month. After a three-hour performance in front of ...

Small Apartments

Small Apartments

2012

Director

5.9
Directing

When a clumsy deadbeat accidentally kills his landlord, he must do everything in his power to hide the body, only to find that the distractions of lus...

Hollywood Undead: Hear Me Now

Hollywood Undead: Hear Me Now

2011

Director

7.0
Directing

The music video of the first single of the second album of Hollywood Undead.

Place (Ställe)

Place (Ställe)

2009

Director

Directing

Place is a sensational dance film, especially created for world-famous dancers Mikhail Baryshnikov & Ana Laguna by an outstanding international team o...

Pussy

Pussy

2009

Director

3.5
Directing

The Rammstein clip of Pussy

Horsemen

Horsemen

2009

Director

5.9
Directing

A recently widowed detective still grieving over his wife's death discovers a shocking connection between himself and the suspects in a serial killing...

Madonna: The Confessions Tour

Madonna: The Confessions Tour

2006

Director

8.4
Directing

Filmed in its entirety at London's Wembley Arena during her worldwide sold-out 25-city Confessions Tour (2006's top-grossing tour world-wide), this co...

I'm Going to Tell You a Secret

I'm Going to Tell You a Secret

2005

Director, Editor

6.7
Directing

A documentary that follows Madonna on her 2004 Re-Invention World Tour.

Blondie: Good Boys

Blondie: Good Boys

2003

Director

Directing

Filmed partly in black and white and partly in color, the video starts out in the style of an old silent film, with a title screen that presents the b...

Spun

Spun

2003

Editor, Director

6.6
Directing

Over the course of three days Ross, a college dropout addicted to crystal-meth, encounters a variety of oddball folks - including a stripper named Nik...

The Smashing Pumpkins - Greatest Hits Video Collection

The Smashing Pumpkins - Greatest Hits Video Collection

2001

Director

8.3
Directing

Released alongside The Smashing Pumpkins greatest hits CD "Rotten Apples", this video collection comes with all of the Pumpkins music videos (excludin...

You Do the Best You Can

You Do the Best You Can

2001

as Self

Acting

Follows Roy Andersson around different film festivals as he tries to launch his new film "Songs from the Second Floor" mixed with interviews with fami...

Try

2000

Director, Writer, Editor

6.2
Directing Writing

Short movie about a young, drug addicted couple.

Turn the Page

Turn the Page

1999

Director, Writer

5.7
Directing Writing

In this short film, Ginger Lynn Allen plays the night club stripper/prostitute who is trying to raise her 12 year old daughter. We see daily scenes fr...

The Prodigy: Smack My Bitch Up

The Prodigy: Smack My Bitch Up

1997

Director

8.2
Directing

Music video depicting a drug-and-alcohol-fueled night out through the eyes of a mostly-unseen character

The Hidden

1997

Director

5.2
Directing

Jonas Åkerlund of Bathory fame's first directorial short.

En film om Modstrilogin

En film om Modstrilogin

N/A

Director, Editor

Directing

A documentary about Stefan Jarl's Mod-trilogy.

GG Allin: Live. Fast. Die.

N/A

Director

Directing

Allin was a cult and fringe figure in the 1980s punk scene who became notorious for his outrageous behavior at shows, notably defecating onstage and s...