“There’s a long history between humans and pigeons, and that tradition is ultimately being kept alive by this collection of characters”: Gavin Fitzgerald on Million Dollar Pigeons

From the director of Conor McGregor: Notorious (2017) about the infamous boxer (the highest-grossing Irish documentary of all time) and Liam Gallagher: As It Was (2019), focusing on the Oasis frontman (which won an NME award for Best Music Documentary) comes a third, albeit unlikely feature: Million Dollar Pigeons, taking as its subject the world of pigeon racing. Told through the eyes of those who partake in the sport, from ageing, working-class community groups to international competitors with eye-watering sums of money at their disposal, this off-beat film will do nothing if not give viewers a whole new perspective on the birds and those obsessed with racing them.

The Upcoming had a fascinating chat with the Irish filmmaker about why he followed up his docs about McGregor and Gallagher with one about this niche sport; he described being first introduced to a pigeon “fancier” through his father and “casting” his documentary from a host of colourful subjects he met among the international community. We also discussed why now seemed like the perfect time to release Million Dollar Pigeons as the value of pigeons soars to millions of dollars, and how the film leans into the comedy and drama of pigeon racing, as well as reflecting on the modern world as a microcosm of the gap between the have and the have-nots amplified by capitalism. 

Sarah Bradbury

Million Dollar Pigeons is released digitally on demand on 26^th November 2022. Read our review here.

Watch the trailer for Million Dollar Pigeons here: