IRON MAIDEN's 'Flight 666' Rio Premiere: Video Report, Photos Available

"Iron Maiden: Flight 666" — the feature-length documentary film which follows the IRON MAIDEN bandmembers on the first leg of their "Somewhere Back In Time World Tour" in February and March of 2008 — had its world premiere on Saturday (March 14) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The Cine Odeon in the center of Rio was packed with 400 fans and 200 media and guests, with hundreds of fans outside welcoming the band to this first public viewing of the movie. MAIDEN vocalist Bruce Dickinson introduced the film's directors, Sam Dunn and Scot McFadyen, and drummer Nicko McBrain joined them after the movie for a lively question-and-answer session with the fans.

A video report from the premiere can be viewed below. Also available is about a dozen photos that were taken by Tadeu Salgado of Agenda do Headbanger.

Says manager Rod Smallwood, "As Brazil is such a feature of the film and also almost a second home to us, we thought it totally appropriate to have the world premiere here and the fans didn't let us down. There was a great turnout inside and outside the cinema. The atmosphere inside was electric, as you would expect from our fans here — everyone singing along and having a good laugh at all the humourous parts (yes, there are quite a few, but then what would you expect with Nicko around?!).

"We would like to thank all you Brazilian fans who turned out and anyone else who travelled far to be part of it — yes, that includes you two guys who flew in specially from Sweden!

"We would like to thank our mates at EMI Brazil and Fabio Lima and his team at Movie Mobz here and the team at AAM for all their hard work and assistance on this. We all had a terrific time and I think everyone really enjoyed seeing the film!!"

The premiere was followed by a spectacular concert in Rio, the first of five upcoming in Brazil.

For "Iron Maiden: Flight 666", the band was accompanied everywhere by award-winning documentary makers Banger Productions from Toronto in Canada, who have received international critical acclaim for their previous movies "Metal: A Headbanger's Journey" and recently "Global Metal". Producer/presenter Sam Dunn and his team bring an intimate, behind-the-scenes view of this remarkable journey, with a close look at the logistics involved and following Team Maiden in the cockpit, on the plane and on and offstage, getting to the heart of this global adventure of a band that has very rarely even let cameras backstage before.

Shot in high definition and with superb 5.1 surround sound, mixed by the band's producer Kevin "Caveman" Shirley, "Flight 666" brings to the screen all the drama, excitement and hysteria that followed the band around the world every time Ed Force One (the band's plane) touched down in a new country. The film documents the intensity of the punishing show schedules, the struggle with the time zones, the pressures of ensuring that every performance matched the energy of the many thousands of ecstatic and expectant fans from many cultural backgrounds, unusual angles from the spectacular shows... and, of course, the fun had on the way!

A special international "Iron Maiden Day" is being planned for April 21 with simultaneous showings of "Iron Maiden: Flight 666" in selected digital cinemas around the world.

All photos below were taken by Tadeu Salgado of Agenda do Headbanger.