Off Radar: What was your experience like last weekend at the premiere?

Read: It was wonderful to bring the film to the public eye finally. In a practical sense, I've been working on that film for four years, so it is very near and dear to my heart. I also spent five or six years working in Iraq as a journalist in 2004-2009. My photographs documented so much horror, death, and destruction, so it felt good to come back all these years later to tell a story about hope, joy, unity, and, of course, the element of loss. I'm also an Austin native, so it was great to bring the film home.

Off Radar: When you were working as a photojournalist, you primarily focused on war and tragedy. Were you aware of the soccer team and what was going on there at the time? 

Read: No. Iraq, especially during those years, was extraordinarily dangerous. I was a freelance journalist, so I didn't often have a large media company behind me to have bulletproof cars or security guards. I mostly ended up covering the military. I probably spent more time embedded with the military than maybe anybody else during the war, so my view of Iraq and view of the war was profound and very narrow. I didn't know about the team, and I wasn't aware of the story at all, which I usually point out is an excellent example of how we, as Americans, really had no idea what was going on in that country, particularly our military because we were there and still unaware of it. 

Off Radar: What was the most valuable lesson you learned during this process?

Read: The biggest lesson or the biggest reaffirmation is that everybody wants the same thing, which is – no matter what side of the war you're on – a reason to hope, a future for themselves and their families and their country, and to have heroes. The players on the team exemplify all that and bring that to their country, which is fantastic. The most important people in that war were the Iraqis, and their story was the most crucial story. The movie was an opportunity to go back and tell that story. I'm not super happy with that answer, but it's an answer for now.

Off Radar: Were there any happy accidents during this filmmaking process?

Read: One of the great but unexpected things that happened would be one of our two big shoots. One was in Erbil, northern Iraq, and one was in Baghdad. When we went to the Baghdad shoot, there was a massive sandstorm in the first 24 hours we arrived. I was familiar with sandstorms from my time there before, but this one was pretty extraordinary. We used it in portions of the film that are very poetic. Also, the part that we filmed in Al-Shaab Stadium, which is the big, historically important stadium in Baghdad. The Olympic team just happened to still be there, practicing in the middle of what I'm sure was a real respiratory emergency. The haze of the sandstorm brought a very evocative, dreamlike feeling to those portions of the film, and we had no control over that. 
Off Radar: Were you always a soccer fan?

Read: No. I've never been particularly a great sports fan. Like lots of people, I played soccer as a child. I watch the World Cup every four years. But this really was my first serious education in football, in football history.

Off Radar: What do you hope that viewers gain from watching this movie?

Read: I hope that they gain a new view of Iraq, Iraqi history, and our role as Americans in the war there. I think for Iraqis, it will be a return to a moment of joy and unity.

Off Radar: When does it premiere in Iraq?

Read: It's not out now; we still need distribution. So we're definitely still working on that part. And that's part of the festival's role. I hope that it just deepens and broadens, particularly American, audiences' understanding of Iraq and Iraqi history; there's always more than one story, a deeper story, beyond the headlines. Sports is this universal experience, and Iraqis share that experience in the same way we do.