Known for Directing
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".
Born
November 10, 1965 (age 60)
Birthplace
Bromma, Stockholm, Stockholms län, Sweden
Filmography
49 films, 8 shows


Billy Idol Should Be Dead
2026 · 1h 58m · US
Punk legend turned pop sensation Billy Idol bares it all in this electrifying documentary, revealing his rise to fame, battle with addiction and triumphant comeback that captivated millions of fans worldwide.


Metallica Saved My Life
2025 · 2h 15m · UK
From Award-winning director Jonas Åkerlund, “Metallica Saved My Life” explores the world of Metallica through the lives of their fans—including the bandmembers themselves—who have supported each other through highs, lows, trials, and triumphs for over four decades.


Madonna: The Celebration Tour in Rio
2024 · 2h 15m · BR
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
2024 · 1h · NO
DuEls is a journey through the Vigeland Museum by Belgian and French choreographer Damien Jalet and Erna Omarsdottir from Iceland, where groundbreaking contemporary dance meets Vigeland's classic sculptures.


Polar
2019 · 1h 58m · DE
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 killers.


Lords of Chaos
2018 · 1h 58m · UK
A teenager's quest to launch Norwegian Black Metal in Oslo in the 1990s results in a very violent outcome.


Double Dutchess: Seeing Double
2017 · 1h 3m · US
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, and fucking shit up again, it shows every side of Fergie-the superstar, the visual artist, the creative director, the label head, the fashion icon, the wife, and, she'll tell you most importantly, "mom."


Rammstein: Paris
2017 · 1h 38m · DE
During the “Made in Germany” tour, Swedish director Jonas Åkerlund filmed two acclaimed Rammstein concerts in March 2012 – each for an audience of 17,000 at the Bercy Arena in Paris. In the resulting film (with 16 songs from the entire repertoire),


Lemonade
2016 · 1h 5m · US
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 through a sexualized, satirical, and solemn tone.


Roxette Diaries
2016 · 1h 30m · SE
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 capture "everything". Follow them into the studio, backstage, at rehearsals and concerts. These are the private videos of one of the greatest bands of all time - directed by Jonas Åkerlund.


Taylor Swift: The 1989 World Tour - Live
2015 · 2h 12m · AU
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 also mixing in behind-the-scene, rehearsal, and special guest footage from her 1989 Tour.


Ozzy Osbourne: Memoirs of a Madman
2014 · 4h 30m · US
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 performances, plus interviews from his solo career. Both sets offer fans of the multi-platinum recording artist, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee and three-time Grammy® winning singer and songwriter the ultimate collection from Ozzy's distinguished solo career.


On the Run Tour: Beyoncé and Jay-Z
2014 · 2h 35m · US
Beyoncé and Jay Z perform live in Paris at Stade de France during their 2014 "On the Run Tour."


BEYONCÉ
2014 · 1h 27m · US
Developed as a "visual album", Beyoncé's songs are accompanied by non-linear short films that illustrate the musical concepts conceived during production. Its dark and intimate subject material includes feminist themes of sex, monogamous love, and relationship issues, inspired by Beyoncé's desire to assert her full creative freedom.


Paul McCartney: Live Kisses
2012 · 1h 15m
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 an all-star entourage performed a one-time-only magical concert event.


Paul McCartney Live at Zócalo
2012 · 2h 54m · MX
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 200,000 people at Mexico City's historic central square, the Zócalo, the ex-Beatle proved that not only is he as talented as ever, but he is as eternally charming and energetic as one would expect from the former mop-topped demigod. McCartney amped the crowd at the Zocalo by yelling "¡Viva Mexico, Cabrones!" -- a sure fire way to get the crowd up onto their feet -- and made sure to pepper Mexican slang into a few of the songs performed that night. For good measure, Sir Paul also waved the Mexican flag. During the concert, McCartney was joined by a traditional Mexican mariachi band for the Beatles' classic, Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da, an evening highlight that will not be forgotten anytime soon by the masses in attendance.


Small Apartments
2012 · 1h 36m · US
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 lust, the death of his beloved brother, and a crew of misfit characters force him on a journey where a fortune awaits him.


Place (Ställe)
2009 · 30m
Place is a sensational dance film, especially created for world-famous dancers Mikhail Baryshnikov & Ana Laguna by an outstanding international team of artists.


Pussy
2009 · 4m
The Rammstein clip of Pussy


Horsemen
2009 · 1h 30m · CA
A recently widowed detective still grieving over his wife's death discovers a shocking connection between himself and the suspects in a serial killing spree linked to the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.


Madonna: The Confessions Tour
2006 · 2h 2m · US
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 concert film features songs from throughout the queen's career but largely focuses on Confessions On A Dance Floor.


Blink-182: Greatest Hits
2005 · 40m
Blink-182: Greatest Hits DVD was released on November 1, 2005, and features 13 of Blink-182's most popular videos. This DVD was released at the same time as their Greatest Hits album, and the DVD is also available as a bundle with the CD. The DVD does not come in an explicit format. 1. "Dammit" (Directed by Darren Doane, Ken Daurio) 2. "Josie" (Directed by Darren Doane, Ken Daurio) 3. "What's My Age Again?" (Directed by Marcos Siega) 4. "All the Small Things" (Directed by Marcos Siega) 5. "Adam's Song" (Directed by Liz Friedlander) 6. "Man Overboard" (Directed by Marcos Siega) 7. "The Rock Show" (Directed by The Malloys) 8. "Stay Together for the Kids" (Original Version) [Directed by Sam Bayer] 9. "First Date" (Directed by The Malloys) 10. "Feeling This" (Directed by David LaChapelle) 11. "I Miss You" (Directed by Jonas Akerlund) 12. "Down" (Directed by Estevan Oriol) 13. "Always" (Directed by Joseph Kahn)


I'm Going to Tell You a Secret
2005 · 2h 8m · US
A documentary that follows Madonna on her 2004 Re-Invention World Tour.


Blondie: Good Boys
2003 · 4m
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 band, the song, and the director. Debbie Harry appears in a brunette wig, playing a ringmaster conducting the band in a vintage circus setting, intercut with scenes of a circus drama in which a clown is thrown inside a cage with a tiger and mauled to death.


Spun
2003 · 1h 41m · US
Over the course of three days Ross, a college dropout addicted to crystal-meth, encounters a variety of oddball folks - including a stripper named Nikki and her boyfriend, the local meth producer, The Cook - but all he really wants to do is hook up with his old girlfriend, Amy.


The Smashing Pumpkins - Greatest Hits Video Collection
2001 · 2h 3m · US
Released alongside The Smashing Pumpkins greatest hits CD "Rotten Apples", this video collection comes with all of the Pumpkins music videos (excluding "The End is the Beginning is the End"). It also comes with a live performance of "Geek USA" and "An Ode to No One" which is taken from their final performance at the Metro. There is also a hidden video for the never-before-released song "Untitled". All of the videos come with commentary from the band and some have out-takes and behind the scenes footage.
Try
Try
2000 · 15m · SE
Short movie about a young, drug addicted couple.


Madonna: The Video Collection 93:99
1999 · 1h 7m · US
A collection of Madonna's favorite videos from 1993-1999. Contains the 14 videos: Bad Girl, Fever, Rain, Secret, Take A Bow, Bedtime Story, Human Nature, Love Don't Live Here Anymore, Frozen, Ray Of Light, Drowned World, The Power of Goodbye, Nothing Really Matters, and Beautiful Stranger.


Turn the Page
1999 · 15m · SE
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 from her daily life. We hear the story both from the daughter's point of view and her mother's. The mother who is over 35 says she always wanted to be rock star. Her daughter indistinctly and unconsciously questions his mother's way of raising her. For instance, she says things sort of "my mother tells me that I should never start smoking but she smokes a lot" while her mother is smoking as her daughter is asleep or "my mother tells me not to watch a lot of TV because there is too much garbage on TV but she just watches TV more than I do." Ginger Lynn Allen's acting is quite good. Her striptease polo dance and the brutal sex she had to suffer at the end of the movie are among the most memorable scenes of the movie. I guess these scenes could have been more careful if the movie had not been shot in documentary-like voice-over.
The Hidden
The Hidden
1997 · 3m · SE
Jonas Åkerlund of Bathory fame's first directorial short.