I spoke with directors Scot McFayden and Sam Dunn their experience making Flight 666. We also spoke about their previous film Global Metal, which is finally getting a U.S. DVD release in July. They also filled us in on their next project, a documentary about Rush.
Chad Bowar: You interviewed Iron Maiden for one of your previous movies. Is that how the relationship developed and you came to be involved in Flight 666?
Scot McFayden: We interviewed Bruce Dickinson on the stage of the Hammersmith for Headbangers Journey, and we also interviewed Maiden for our second film Global Metal when they played in Bangalore, India. So we’ve had a good relationship with them going on for about five years now. To make a long story short, we approached them about making a documentary about the Somewhere Back In Time tour, because we knew it was going to be a one of a kind epic tour. We felt this was something special and would go down in history and we wanted to capture that.
You had complete control over your previous two films. Was it different this time with Iron Maiden?
Scot McFayden: The ownership control is different than our other films. We were a bit concerned about that, but it didn’t turn out to be a problem. We weren’t out to do some kind of expose on the band. They knew our perspective was positive, so we weren’t going to be making fun of heavy metal. On Rock In Rio (a previous Maiden film project), once Steve Harris saw the footage he took it completely out of the hands of the filmmakers and brought it in to the studio and edited it for six months. We had the moment where we showed him the film, and we were really worried the same thing would happen. We were in London and knew Steve had seen it. Rod (Smallwood, the band’s manager) walked into the room with a big pile of paper and said they were Steve’s notes. We looked, and it was only the top sheet that had notes. The rest were blank. It was typical British humor, taking the piss out of us. Steve’s comment to us was that he had very little comment. That’s a compliment from Steve.
Did you attend all 23 shows on the tour?
Sam Dunn: We skipped Brisbane, because we needed a night off. We filmed 22 shows, then went out in the summer and filmed some stuff with the band in Montreal and Western Canada. We’ve seen 30 shows in the last two years.
Do you get to stop and enjoy the shows, or are you too involved in the filming process?
Sam Dunn: We love our work. We were obviously focused on filming every show. We had five cameras there. We wanted to capture what it was like to be at a Maiden show from every possible angle. Speaking personally, a real highlight for me was being able to film Nicko behind his drum kit. I grew up listening to Maiden, and I know their music very well. I’m a bass player and spent hours trying to learn those songs. So to actually be so close to Nicko filming him was an amazing experience. You gain an appreciation for how amazing they are still, in their fifties. It was work for us, but there were days you’d pinch yourself.
Scot McFayden: I was at the front of house filming from the sound booth. I was up on a platform. They are such a great live band. I don’t know if that’s ever been fully captured before.
In the past you’ve filmed with hand held cameras, but this time you shot in high definition. Is the approach any different as a filmmaker?
Scot McFayden: These HD cameras are smaller now. It is different. Our goal with this one was to make a documentary blockbuster. It’s very big. At one point we hired a jet cam, where we’re filming in a jet outside Maiden’s 757. There are some amazing shots.
Sam Dunn: A friend of ours watched the film with us in Toronto. He came out and said it was the first film he could call “guerrilla HD.” It captured on-the-ground and behind the scenes moments, but we wanted to give it production value. We wanted it to be an amazing concert film as well. It was a balancing act between those two modes of filming.
You had spent time with the band before this, but after being with them around the clock for 7 weeks, how did your opinion of them change?
Scot McFayden: I had met Bruce and Adrian, and never really felt close to them. I was a bit nervous going in. I didn’t know how they were going to be. Now, if Adrian comes to town we’ll play tennis or go out for dinner. We are part of their inner circle now. It’s pretty amazing. They’ve embraced us in a way that I wasn’t expecting.
Sam Dunn: Since I’ve been a fan from a very young age, a remarkable thing was to see what it takes to keep yourself vital as a rock band, and how much work and commitment it takes; not only to the music, but to your fan base. The strong relationship between the Maiden fans and the band is really unique. A lot of bands give lip service to that, saying they love their fans and couldn’t do it without the fans. But with Maiden, they have to live up to their fans, especially in South America. For me, it was about getting an appreciation of the broader Maiden phenomenon.
