Cannibal Holocaust is a 1980 Italian cannibal exploitation horror film directed by Ruggero Deodato from a screenplay by Gianfranco Clerici. It stars Carl Gabriel Yorke, Robert Kerman, Francesca Ciardi, Perry Pirkanen, and Luca Barbareschi. Influenced by the works of Mondo director Gualtiero Jacopetti, the film was inspired by Italian media reporting of Red Brigade terrorism. The coverage included news reports Deodato believed to be staged, an idea which became an integral aspect of the film's story. Cannibal Holocaust was filmed primarily in the Amazon rainforest of Colombia with indigenous tribes interacting with American and Italian actors.