cast & crew

basil shadid | producer, story, director of photography
Basil was the Post-Coordinator on the Academy Award nominated documentary Iraq In Fragments. He has been working in film since 2003. Based in Seattle, Washington, Basil works internationally. Previous projects have taken him through Asia, the Middle East, Europe, North America and South America. He has also traveled thousands of miles on freight trains throughout the US. His Masters in Mental Health Counseling, background in popular education, yearning for adventure, and years of experience in production give him a unique perspective on story.

billie rain | director, story
billie is a disabled writer, activist and filmmaker. years of chronic illness and a rare tumor condition have given her an amazing sense of groundedness, connection and self-advocacy that fuel her passion to bring truth, in all it’s pain and glory, to audiences everywhere.

john boucher | editor
John is a screenwriter, director, editor, musician and poet. He holds two film degrees and is proud to have worked for several years as an assistant to screenwriting legend Stewart Stern (Rebel Without A Cause). As co-founder of Seattle-based writing collective Les Sardines, he co-produces and contributes to the group’s entirely hand-made literary publication Les Sar’zine. heart breaks open marks John’s debut feature-length editorial effort.

maximillian davis | cast: jesus
Max began his work in collaborative arts as a performer and facilitator for Project Outreach for Secondary School Education at Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario. He went on to study theatre at the Neighborhood Playhouse in New York. Upon graduating, he became a starting member of Ripple Productions, originating the roles of Marty in Innocent When You Dream (Backstage 2004 off-broadway production of the year), Bes in The Wheat and the Moon, and Kenji in Sweet Pushes, Tangy Pulls. In Seattle, Max has performed for the Intiman Theatre’s Living History program, and collaborated for two years with local performance group Circus Contraption. heart breaks open marks his feature film debut.

brian peters | associate producer, cast: michael/sister alysa trailer
Brian has been in and around the theater world since he was 5 years old, working in small community theaters as well as the Opera Idaho Company. He took some time off to explore himself and found a new calling in life. He found his partner of 9 years and joined the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence™, the Abbey of St. Joan, as Sister Stella Standing. He discovered that community outreach and activism spoke to his soul. Brian is also a person living with HIV for over 10 years and has made it his personal goal to reach people like him and lend a hand whenever needed. heart breaks open marks Brian’s debut in a full-length feature film.

samonte cruz | cast: johnny
Samonte is a mixed-gender, mixed-race Pilipino educator, organizer, singer/songwriter, audio engineer, and video editor. He has performed at various arts festivals in Canada and the US, including the Anti-Beauty Pageant, Seattle WA and Roots, Rhymes and Resistance, Vancouver BC. He believes that music and new media serve as powerful forms of expression, resistance and education — especially for individuals and communities with under-represented perspectives. Samonte is very grateful that he is able to be part of heart breaks open and has enjoyed working with the visionary masterminds behind the project.

eric goetz | composer
Award-winning composer, producer, and multi-instrumentalist Eric Goetz prides himself on his diverse background and flexibility as a composer. Eric started composing at a very early age, writing video game music on his TI-99 computer in BASIC. Eric has scored several feature films and numerous shorts, including Seattle In Color, Greensleeves, Bookie , Black Coffee, Beyond Greenaway, and Photobooth. Eric also performs with numerous groups including Central Services and serves on the board of the Seattle Composers Alliance.

tim’m t west | wrote the theme track for the film
Tim’m T. West is a poet, emcee, scholar and the author of three books: Red Dirt Revival, BARE, and Flirting. A graduate of Duke, The New School, and Stanford universities, he is also co-founder of the now defunct rap group DDC. Tim’m followed their success with three solo projects, Songs from Red Dirt, Blakkboy Blue(s), and the 2009 release In Security: The Golden Error. He also created and hosted the “Front Porch” Spoken Word/Soul/Hip Hop showcase in DC, Oakland, Chicago, Brooklyn, Atlanta, Dallas, Houston and various U.S. Colleges and Universities. Tim’m also appeared in Byron Hurt’s Beyond Beats and Rhymes, Alex Hinton’s Pick Up the Mic, and is featured Mario Van Peebles documentary Bring your “A” Game. Find more at www.reddirt.biz