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WildFilmHistory » Home » Films » In-Flight Movie

In-Flight Movie  (1987)

Alan Hayward filming an imprinted pigeon for In-Flight Movie

A pioneering piece of wildlife filmmaking, In-Flight Movie provides a truly insightful investigation into the extraordinary world of ornithological flight. Widely acclaimed for its groundbreaking camera work, this production won at the New York International Film and TV Festival, and Wildscreen 1988.

Skillfully demonstrating flight for a number of bird species, memorable sequences include flitting from hedge to hedge with a starling and joining a flock of geese flying in formation, high amongst the clouds.

Award-winning cameraman John Downer employs a number of innovative filming techniques to bring this fascinating and complex subject to the small screen. Stripping down a camera and attaching it to a trained bird, he conveys what it is like to be a buzzard zooming through the skies. Also establishing the use of model helicopters as flying camera mounts, he captures breathtaking images that, together with an informative commentary from David Attenborough, give a unique insight into avian flight, demonstrating how a bird's evolutionary design is optimally adapted to a life on the wing.

Copyright holder

Copyright Holder: BBC - Natural History Unit
Address: c/o BBC Motion Gallery
Room E251
Woodlands
80 Wood Lane
London
W12 0TT
Telephone: +44 (0) 20 8433 2861 / 2
Email: motiongallery.uk@bbc.co.uk
Website: http://www.bbcmotiongallery.com

Film credits

Series Producer: Dilys Breese
Writer: John Downer
Producer: John Downer
Presenter: David Attenborough
Narrator: David Attenborough
Film Editor: Charles Aldridge
Production Secretary: Ruth Flowers
Photography: Alan Hayward
Sound: Peter Hicks
Photography: Owen Newmann
Photography: Mike Richards
Field Assistant: Nigel Marven
Sound: John Haley
Production Company: BBC - Natural History Unit

Related films

They Said It Couldn't Be Done: In-Flight Movie (1999)
Clips
In flight
In flight
Fast flying teal
Fast flying teal
Mastering the air
Mastering the air
Stills
Clive Hall with a stork-glider, used for the aerial filming of In-Flight Movie
Clive Hall with a stork-glider, used for...
Alan Hayward filming an imprinted pigeon for In-Flight Movie
Alan Hayward filming an imprinted pigeon...
Nigel Marven and Alan Hayward prepare to film starling flying for In-Flight Movie
Nigel Marven and Alan Hayward prepare to...