Kew jetpack doc lands at BBC4

Own the Sky took 10 years to film

The UK’s BBC4 has picked up two documentaries from Kew Media Distribution, including a feature doc about an Australian inventor’s attempt to fly a jetpack around the Statue of Liberty.

Own the Sky (1×90’/1×52’) is a coproduction from Australian prodcos Firelight, Paper Bark Films and Essential Media Group.

Written and directed by Gregory Read (Eye of the Storm), it chronicles David Mayman’s quest to build and fly the world’s first jetpack around the Statue of Liberty and the impact his obsession had on his family. It was filmed over 10 years in the US and Australia.

BBC4 has also acquired Churchill & the Movie Mogul (1×60’), which tells how the British prime minister and film producer Alexander Korda changed the course of history.

In 1934, Korda signed up Churchill as a screenwriter and historical advisor. When war broke out, Korda was sent on a spy mission to Hollywood with the aim of bringing the US into the war.

Produced by January Pictures, the doc is written and directed by John Fleet.

Kew Media also revealed the slate of documentaries it is taking to Mipcom next month.

They include The Movies (12×60’/6×120’), which explores US cinema through the decades and the cultural, societal and political shifts that framed its evolution, and Laurel Canyon, an intimate portrait of the artists who created a music revolution that would change popular culture. The latter is available as a 1×120’ film or in two parts.

Griff’s Great Kiwi Road Trip (4×60’), meanwhile, follows UK comedian and travel enthusiast Griff Rhys Jones as he explores New Zealand. Kew will also be shoping Rhys Jones’ previous series Griff’s Great Australian Rail Trip (6×60’).