Ep. 212: Heavy Metal Parking Lot 40th w/ John Ross Bowie

HEAVY METAL PARKING LOT - RARE AND UNSEEN

Special Features: 40th Anniversary | Q&A with filmmakers John Heyn and Jeff Krulik, plus stars of the film

On May 31,1986, emerging filmmakers John Heyn and Jeff Krulik drove into the parking lot of the Capital Centre in Landover, Maryland — and into pop culture history — when they caught lightning in a bottle recording amped-up Judas Priest fans before a concert. Nobody could have imagined that 40 years later the resulting short film, HEAVY METAL PARKING LOT, would be frequently cited among the greatest rock documentaries ever. Forty years to the day since this much-heralded time capsule was captured on film, AFI Silver will screen — for the first time ever in public — the 60 minutes of original source footage, before the edit. Audiences will experience what was recorded that afternoon, in real time, while both Jeff and John provide live commentary as history is being made. The event will also feature the resulting 16-minute HEAVY METAL PARKING LOT, plus a chance to meet some of the stars. Join us for a special one-of-a-kind screening to officially launch the film’s 40th anniversary commemoration year! DIR/PROD Jeff Krulik, John Heyn. U.S., 1986, color, approx. 76 min. NOT RATED

Run Time: 76 Minutes

Opening Date: Sunday, May 31, 2026

Genre: Documentary - music

Sunday, May 31, 2026

6:15 p.m.

AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center

8633 Colesville Road

Silver Spring, MD 20910

https://silver.afi.com/movies/detail/0100005538/

https://www.instagram.com/hmpl40th

John Ross Bowie

John Ross Bowie is perhaps best known for playing recurring villain and fan favorite Barry Kripke on the international hit television show The Big Bang Theory. He also recently co-starred as Minnie Driver’s husband, Jimmy DiMeo, on ABC’s “Speechless.” John has been appeared on the television shows Veep, Fresh off the Boat, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Brooklyn 99, CSI, and Glee, among many others, and in movies such as Road Trip, The Heat, He’s Just Not That Into You, The Santa Clause 3, Jumanji: The Next Level, and the cult hit What The Bleep Do We Know? Prior to his acting career, John was a contributing writer for the New York Press and has since written and developed television scripts at Fox, CBS, and Amazon. He is currently featured in the new show “Stuart Fails to Save the Universe” coming soon to HBO Max on July 23, 2026

Jeff Krulik

Jeff Krulik has been documentary producer/director for over thirty years. His work has screened at the Museum of Modern Art, Lincoln Center, the American Film Institute and on PBS. His resume includes work for Errol Morris, Discovery Networks, and National Geographic Channel. His commissioned work includes a one-hour documentary on carnival sideshow history for The Travel Channel.

Jeff is also co-producer of cult documentary 'Heavy Metal Parking Lot' which was turned into a reality TV series called ‘Parking Lot’ for pop culture network TRIO. Other documentaries include ‘The Legend of Merv Conn,' 'Ernest Borgnine on the Bus,' and the recent 'Led Zeppelin Played Here.' In 2008, he produced the Emmy Award-winning documentary Eatin' Crabs Chesapeake Style for Maryland Public Television's Chesapeake Bay Week.

In addition to filmmaking, he also does freelance archival research at the National Archives, and this work got him invited on a recent ten-day trip to China as a guest of China Network Television. And earlier this year, he was honored with the inaugural ‘Filmmaker in Residence’ title for the Docs in Progress organization, which mentors and advises documentary filmmakers, both emerging, and professional.

https://www.jeffkrulik.com

https://www.instagram.com/jeffkrulik

John Heyn

John Heyn is known for Neil Diamond Parking Lot (1997), Led Zeppelin Played Here (2014) and Heavy Metal Parking Lot (1986).