Welcome back to On The Fly with Jon Gill – this is a special episode with helicopter stunt pilot Fred North. Fred has so many amazing stunt credits to his name which include Bond movies, Mission Impossible, Fast and Furious and a slate of collaborations – and in the interview you here how collaborative they are – collaborations with Michael Bay including this months “Ambulance” with Jake Gyllenhaal.

There are only a handful of people world who can do what he does… and even then, it’s fair to say Fred is one of a kind and very much in demand.

If you don’t already I highly recommend connecting with him on Instagram (@fred_north) or LinkedIn to catch up on the behind the scenes clips he shares so regularly.

But it’s also very cool to hear how he got his start and how entrepreneurial he was in making his mark and so we talk about his experiences as a pilot, what turned him on to it in the first place and his regime for keeping mentally fit in a an industry where accidents are generally not due to mechanical, but human error.

The podcast is on a bit of a break for now while work is busy but I hope to capture a whole load of content at MoJoFest next month which is happening in London for the first time and is partnered with the Media Production and Technology show next month and subscribe and keep an eye out for new content very soon.

For now this is an OnTheFly season three special with stunt pilot Fred North – download the pod!

web: www.playfulcommunications.co.uk

Instagram : @playfulcommunications

Twitter: @OnTheSuperFly

Welcome back to On The Fly with Jon Gill – this episode sponsored by FiLMiCPro!

..which is very exciting because two years ago this month I had a film in competition at FiLMiCFest as did my guest for this episode SJ van Breda with her film Jane Digby which is stunning.

SJ is a filmmaker from Durban, South Africa who specialises in short films captured using mobile phones. In this episode we pick apart some of the techniques and themes in her most recent award winning mini-doc “Symphony of Spheres” – a poetic documentary that captures the process and the world of South African abstract sculptor Brendon Edwards.

I strongly recommend you give it a watch before you listen to this episode, it’s just 5 minutes and an amazing piece of filmmaking by any measure!

We talk about some of the challenges involved with the lockdown but mostly her filmmaking philosophy and practice of piecing together her style of people-portraits through film, sound, music and visual effects… there’s lots to learn here.

WIN!

Win yourself a FiLMic App bundle and further your filmmaking journey… all you need is a phone (or tablet). 

Competition open to folks worldwide!

About our sponsor:

I’ve been using FiLMiC apps for over three years now and without any exaggeration it’s my go to app for shooting video on my phone. Built with the mobile creator in mind, the FiLMiC family of photo and video apps will help you make the best-looking content of your life! 

Simply put, FiLMiC puts you in full manual control of the camera on your phone. Colour balance, focus, exposure – not to mention a full range of filmic simulations that offer extremely accessible  cinematic quality to your work.

For the cinematographers out there FiLMiC Pro now offers full support for 10-bit SDR on iPhone 12 series and select Android mobile devices and ProRes capture on the new iPhone 13 Pro and 13 Pro Max. 

So there’s never been a better time to give these apps a go as FiLMiC are offering bundles of their filmmaking apps to three lucky winner – just share this this episode on Twitter, Instagram or LinkedIn (remember to tag @OntheSuperFly, @FiLMiCPro and most importantly, #OnTheFlyPodcast otherwise I may not see your entry!). Winner will be announced on 30th October 2021.

Learn more about the FiLMiC family of apps at filmicpro.com

Next month I’ll be chatting to legendary helicopter stunt pilot Fred North – he’s responsible for some of the impossible aerial shots in franchises such as Fast and Furious, Mission Impossible and Bond, not to mention his ongoing collaboration with Michael Bay… say what you like about Michael Bay films but he loves an impossible helicopter shot!

COMMENT • LIKE • SUBSCRIBE!!!

Welcome back to On The Fly with Jon Gill – the first ever sponsored edition no less.

Polaris Publishing have sponsored this episode – they are the publisher of this episode’s guest Jonathan Melville who has a new book out, A Kind of Magic [“an engrossing read” – Total Film], a behind the scenes look at the ’85 sci-fi classic Highlander.

I first met Jonathan 10 years ago – and the great thing about him is that he simply writes about things he loves… he’s a full on genuine fan who has managed to turn his hobby into a job.

Based in Edinburgh, has written for the Guardian, The Scotsman, SFX magazine and Radio Scotland. He’s currently working on another Polaris book, a behind the scene look at another 80s classic, Bill Forsyth’s Local Hero.

In this pod we talk about the book and writing in general – the challenges of getting interviews with the likes of Clancy Brown and Chris Lambert – not to mention what it took to get Brian May and Roger Taylor of Queen who worked on the soundtrack.

We also touch on his previous book Seeking Perfection an unofficial guide to the 80’s comedy monster movie Tremors – as well as Jim Henson and the Muppets and other properties Jonathan has in mind to cover in the future.

Find Jonathan on Twitter

Giveaway!

Polaris Publishing are developing a fantastic line of movie-related books from Jonathan's A Kind of Magic to Nige Tassell's And It's a Beautiful Day a companion to the Coen Brothers Fargo – John Rain's hilarious look at Bond in Thunderbook and 80s action movies in Explodobook.

Coming in 2022 is AJ Black's A Cinematic Connery; a revised and updated edition of Brian J Robb's Screams and Nightmares and Jonathan Melville's new book on the making of Bill Forsyth’s Local Hero.

You can these an a whole raft of other titles at www.polarispublishing.com
Follow Polaris on Twitter

However, if you have an aversion to paying for books – 1. Please get that looked at, but 2. Indulge yourself with the first OnTheFly giveaway courtesy of Polaris Publishing:

To win a limited, signed, hardback copy of A Kind of Magic, all you need to do is share a link to this podcast on Twitter, Instagram or LinkedIn.

One lucky winner will be picked from each platform.
Remember and tag me @OnTheSuperfly and hashtags #OnTheFlyPodcast and #Giveaway I may not see your entry. Feel free to share on all platforms, but you will only win once ;)
Deadline for the competition is 18 September 2021.

Thanks to Pete at Polaris for making this happen and sponsoring this episode – follow Pete on Twitter