About me

I’m a Swedish filmmaker dedicated to making documentaries that expose human stories behind complex social issues, from digital rights to cultural identity.

My body of work includes award-winning documentaries such as Hacking Hate, recognized as Tribeca’s 2024 Best Documentary Feature, alongside commercial projects for major brands. 

Hacking Hate exposes the scale of online hate speech and its impact on individuals and communities. My debut documentary, TPB AFK: The Pirate Bay Away From Keyboard, ignited a global conversation on digital rights and became a landmark film about internet freedom in digital culture circles. It was selected as the opening film at the Berlin Film Festival’s Panorama section in 2013 and went on to screen at SXSW, CPH:Dox, Hot Docs, Sheffield, Rio De Janeiro and more.

In addition to my documentaries, I’ve taken on commercial work, such as producing and hosting the VICE Munchies’ series Food Hacking Japan, where I explored themes of futurism and food in Tokyo. I’m also a director, DP, and editor with experience creating engaging branded content for major clients like IKEA, Volvo, and Absolut Vodka. 

Early in my career, I directed Sweet Memories Garden Centre, about two brothers striving to uplift their community in Soweto, South Africa. 

In 2001 I graduated with an LL.M from Stockholm University Law School. Splitting my time between Los Angeles and Malmö, Sweden, I bring a global perspective to the screen, shaped by my background in law and lived experiences in Tokyo and Soweto.

Apart from my documentaries

– I founded and ran the startup LinkLib that connected phones to documentaries to add time synced links to films, a Mozilla Webforward project.

– I was on the Best Documentary Jury for the Swedish Guldbagge ‘Academy Awards’ 2016-19.

– I’ve done speaking engagements for organizations like SXSW, Creative Commons Film Festival, Barcelona Museum of Contemporary Art, Ullen Center For Contemporary Art, Beijing, Hot Docs, Toronto, Nordic Evening in Buenos Aires, Food Hacking and Future Talks, National Food Institute of Denmark, The Conf in Malmö, to name a few.

– I got my start in making documentaries while living in a creative commune in Stockholm, making music videos for my friends Timbuktu (Alla vill till himmelen), Looptroop (Long Arm of the Law) and Chords (Idiot Savante).

– I collect 19th Century Japanese ukiyo-e prints to reimagine Japanese history from the perspective of women.

– In the picture above I’m holding the 35mm ZEISS B-Speed lens that Ingmar Bergman used to shoot Fanny and Alexander, that I used to shoot parts of Hacking Hate.

Simon Klose

s (at) klo.se