The film uses a 360-degree 5K VR wing camera to film himself flying his small plane to thefour corners of the Southwest United States in Arizona and Utah. We have caught up with Craig Peyton for an interview on this short film, Code Red: My Southwest Overflight.
UniversalCinema Magazine (UM): How many years have you spent as an aerial photographer?
Craig Peyton (CP): About 40 years, I started making music videos for MTV and VH1 for music projects. That led to stock aerial film sales.
(UM): What inspired you to turn your aerial photography into a documentary?
(CP): My travel to the SW was unnerving, as the climate was under sever stress. A friend suggested I talk about the travel.
(UM): Tell us your experiences as a musician in the film industry.
(CP): I’ve done some scores for television and documentaries so I kind of work near the industry, but of course the idea of telling your own story is very attractive. The key is having a story someone wants to hear.
(UM): How did you get noticed with your aerial photography for Hollywood films like “Along Came Polly”?
(CP): Most of my photography goes through third-party vendors like Getty, Adobe, Shutterstock, Pond5. It’s very exciting to see your working in a movie, but only the agency gets credited. Photographers making stock are rarely recognized. If you’re willing to shoot and 35 film clips, getting feature film placements is not that unusual. I found a niche in aerial landscapes and cloudscapes.
(UM): Describe the challenges in making this film given the harsh climates you experienced.
(CP): The heat wave pushed the plane and camera. High density altitude in the mountains far exceeded what my 43 year old plane was built for, hurting performance. The turbulence added to camera shake and a general discomfort when flying low. The music and story was the easy part. It feels good to be Shooting film, I was always happy to get :30 seconds for an hour of flying…digital is much easier.
(UM): What kind of camera did you use that was suited for mounting on the
wing of your plane?
(CP): I used an Insta360 5k consumer cam. The small, size worked for wing mounting, and I could run it off my phone in flight. 35mm, back in the day, slowed the plane way down with camera drag, and you had to land after and unload after shooting 2 minutes.
(UM): What life lessons would you give to those who are pursuing their passions?
(CP): There’s a few..follow your heart and money might come, or at least show you a direction…favor passive income whenever possible…always work on multiple plans…I used to figure 1 out of 5 might generate income. To survive as an artist you need a number of practical skills + luck…and finely, learn to always live beneath your means, saving for the rough times. Discipline is critical for the long haul.
(UM): How long did the flight take to capture all the footage in the
film?
(CP): About 4 days shooting. The trip took 10 days.
(UM): Will there be a follow-up to this film?
(CP): Depending on feedback and energy, I would like do continue.
(UM): Where can we see more of your aerial photography on the web?
(CP): Shutterstock: https://www.
https://earthflight.com/ my business & YT site.
http://craigpeyton.com/ For music