Logline On her first day in Afghanistan, an interpreter for the US Army is forced to deliver the child of an enemy bomb-maker. Short Synopsis Inspired by a true story, an Afghan-American woman on the heels of a divorce joins the US Military as an interpreter. On her first day of deployment in Afghanistan, her unit searches out the remote house of a bomb-maker. When the bomb-maker's pregnant wife goes into labor, the interpreter must go beyond the call of duty to deliver her breech child. Long Synopsis No husband, no job, no future: Feda, a recently divorced thirty-year-old Afghan-American woman, has been ostracized by her conservative Muslim community. Intent on reclaiming control of her life, she makes the bold decision to return to her birthplace as an interpreter for US forces in Afghanistan. On Feda’s first day in country, her unit raids the house of an enemy bomb-maker, his pregnant wife and their little girl. When the pregnant woman is accidentally knocked over and goes into labor, Feda must deliver her breech child, as local custom forbids the soldiers from entering the room. DAY ONE is a story of humanity in the theater of war -- the miracle of birth bridging the chasm, even if only for a moment, between two cultures at war. In 2009, the director served his second tour of duty in Afghanistan as a Captain in the US Army. This story is inspired by the interpreter with whom he served. 2/20 Team Bios Henry Hughes Michael Steiner WRITER/DIRECTOR PRODUCER Michael Steiner grew up in Boulder, Colorado. He studied media theory at Brown University before transferring to the California Institute of Integral Studies, where he earned a BA in Interdisciplinary Studies. He produced a short dark comedy that screened at Starz Denver Film Festival and won the Audience Award at Cinequest International Film Festival. He co-directed a documentary short in Bolivia about the coca leaf and the impact of the War on Drugs. He has worked as a production coordinator and editor on music videos and studied acting. As part of his studies at AFI, he worked as a development intern at Groundswell Productions and assisted the line producers on an unreleased Electric City Entertainment feature film. Henry grew up as an army brat who spent his childhood both in the US and Europe. He studied film at and received his BS in Communications from Boston University. He spent the following five years as paratrooper in the 173rd Airborne, conducting two combat tours in Afghanistan. He was featured in ABC News’ Standing Up For Heroes where he was paired with George Lucas as a part of American Corporate Partner’s National Mentoring Program. Currently, Henry is completing the second year of his MFA in Directing at the American Film Institute, where he has received the Gary Winick Scholarship in recognition of his talent and academic achievement. 3/20 Kee Kyung Benjamin K. Cox CINEMATOGRAPHER PRODUCTION DESIGNER Benji has been working professionally as a production designer and art department coordinator on commercials for the past five years in NYC. He received a BFA in Film and Television from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, where he directed and designed many short films, as well as DPing a number of music videos, including work for some of Ireland’s top musical acts. Most recently he worked on EUROPA, designed by Oscar winner Eugenio Caballero as well as a major motion picture, BLOOD TIES, designed by Ford Wheeler. Kee is originally from South Korea. He has lived in London for the past 14 years, where he earned his BA in Graphic Design at Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design and his MA in Filmmaking at London Film School. Since graduating in 2006, Kee has worked as a camera assistant on a number of commercial feature films in Korea, shot numerous music videos in London and also shot two independent feature films as a DP, one in London and one in Korea. The Korean feature film he shot, JOURNEY OF LIGHT, currently circulating at film festivals worldwide. Anisha Acharya EDITOR Anisha Acharya is an editor currently completing her master's course in film editing at the AFI conservatory. Originally from India, she loves storytelling for its power to excite, hearten and uplift the soul. Making stories come to life on the big screen is her driving passion. 4/20 Actor Bios Layla Alizada Bill Zasadil Layla Alizada was born in Kabul, Afghanistan and raised in Vancouver, Canada where she attended the prestigious theater program, Studio 58. Throughout her career she has portrayed characters as varied as her own ethnic background, being of Afghani, Egyptian, Spanish and African decent. Layla booked her first lead role in a TV series at the age of 15 and continued to build a diverse and critically acclaimed body of work in film, television and theater. Since moving to Los Angeles she has appeared in a wide range of television shows including The Mentalist, Criminal Minds: Suspect Behavior, Eureka and the Kroll Show on Comedy Central to name a few. Layla received rave reviews for her starring role in the film Chasing Freedom opposite Juliette Lewis and the short film Compromise. Her work in Chasing Freedom won her a Gracie Allen Award and garnered her a nomination for a Gemini Award (the Canadian equivalent of an Emmy). Layla is currently filming a recurring role on the Daytime Emmy award winning drama, Days of Our Lives. Bill Zasadil was born and raised on the outskirts of Chicago. After building a strong skill set as a professional actor and enjoying success in several plays and commercial spots in Chicago, it was time to move to Los Angeles to pursue a career in television and film. Bill has had guest appearances on Desperate Housewives, Vegas, NCIS: Los Angeles, CSI: New York and continually works in independent film. He continues to study and hone his skills in between projects. 5/20 Navid Negahban Alain Washnevsky Born in Mashhad, Iran, Negahban caught the acting bug at the age of eight, when his portrayal of an old man drew laughter from a large audience at an elementary school play. His passion for acting led him to Germany where he spent eight years honing his theatrical skills prior to arriving in the United States. He is fluent in English, Farsi and German and in his spare time enjoys traveling, studying anthropology, shooting pool, driving and playing poker. Navid’s film credits include a leading role in the critically acclaimed feature The Stoning of Soraya M. His portrayal of the character “Ali” was dubbed by the New York Times as, “satanic as any horror-movie apparition.” He has also had significant supporting roles in Brothers starring Tobey Maguire and Jake Gyllenhaal; Powder Blue with Jessica Biel and Forest Whitaker; Charlie Wilson’s War starring Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts and Amy Adams and Words and Pictures with Clive Owens and Juliette Binoche. He’s recently finished filming Clint Eastwood’s American Sniper with Bradley Cooper and Sienna Miller. Navid’s television roles include terrorist Abu Nazir on Showtime’s Emmy winning drama series Homeland, and IRK delegate Jamot on the final season of Fox’s hit show, 24. He has also made appearances on (among others) CSI: NY, CSI: Miami, NCIS: Los Angeles, Law & Order: SVU, The Closer, Criminal Minds, Lost, Jag, The West Wing, Without a Trace and The Shield. Alain was born in Teheran, Iran and grew up in Vienna, Austria. Since his early childhood, he dreamed of being an actor on the big screen. Alain has acted in many short and independent feature movies. Recently, he played a prison inmate in the major motion picture Septembers of Shiraz starring Adrien Brody, Salma Hayek and Shoohreh Agdashloo where he doubled as Adrien’s and Salma’s private accent coach. He also performs in commercials such as the recent American Greetings in May 2014 . Outside of acting, Alain is a successful public speaker, competing in motivational and inspirational speech contests worldwide. In his public speaking he shares his experiences of life and tries to give back what he has learned from the amazing and interesting people he has met throughout his journey. Recently he competed in the 2014 World Championship of Public Speaking and is one of the top 9 worldwide. 6/20 Alexia Pearl Yanellie Ireland Yanellie's first print job was for Toys R Us when she was only three years old. Soon thereafter she was bitten by the acting bug, and made her film debut at age four in a San Diego State University short titled Mediocre Masterpiece. Since the young age of nine, she has followed her dream with enthusiasm and passion, and is acutely dedicated to her craft. Yanellie's numerous credits include commercials, voice-overs, independent films, television shows, music videos, web series, and PSAs. She takes easily to memorizing lines in foreign languages including Dari, Farsi, and Spanish, is able to cry on cue, as well as convincingly convey a wide range of complex emotions. Alexia Pearl was born and raised in Colorado. Her passion for acting began at a young age through movies and school plays. Wasting no time, Alexia persuaded her parents to enroll her in acting classes. She loved the entertainment business and had various acting, modeling, and hosting jobs throughout high school and college. After finishing her studies, Alexia moved to Los Angeles to further pursue her career in film and television. Shari Vasseghi Shari Vasseghi is an international actress who has appeared on numerous independent films as well as TV shows such as Pretty Little Liars and The Whole Truth And has had the honor of performing stand-up comedy for the US troops in Japan.