- [Narrator] For "The Pigeon Hustle" director Jackie Savery, creating a film uncovering the secret lives of pigeons has been a lifetime goal.

- Over 20 years ago, I worked as a biologist on pigeons in Trafalgar Square.

Wow.

And I'd always wondered whether we could make a film that really looked into their lives.

And luckily enough, nearly 20 years later, a opportunity came up, and we've been able to now, with much better camera technology, follow the really intricate lives of pigeons and uncover some of their secrets.

- [Narrator] Over the course of a year, the camera team spent time detailing the lives of pigeons in London and New York; using lightweight, stabilized cameras, their aim was to get a pigeon's eye view of the cities.

But this quickly posed some unexpected challenges.

- It wasn't too difficult to pick up how to use the gimbal, but I think, for us, the most surprising thing was how suspicious the pigeons were when we were using it.

But it was something that was really important to us, because we wanted to really open the world that pigeons live in and see the world the way they do.

- [Narrator] Filming in cities posed a whole new set of challenges for the team, where keeping up with the pigeons was only half the battle.

- I think the busier it gets, the harder it becomes to film, because there's so much less space of the pigeons to be in, less space for me to be in.

And they just start walking so chaotically that trying to track them is just like completely impossible.

You definitely get some funny looks off people following pigeons around.

You'd think pigeons would be easy, but they're just starting to prove that they're anything but.

(upbeat music) They definitely move more erratically than maybe anything else I've ever filmed.

It's always this way that way, backwards and forwards.

We want nice, straight walking.

so chilled, walking really nice straight lines, until I've blocked them off.

I'm sorry.

Oh, blocked him off.

He didn't like it.

So we've gotta keep going, keep trying, keep persevering, and hope that even one in a hundred of 'em looks quite good, because at the moment I'm not sure I'm getting very much that'll ever make a final program.

Very good.

I'm a officially the Pigeon Man of London.

(gentle music) - Pigeons were a really unusual subject for us as a wildlife film team.

And we had to adapt the way in which we were filming, because we were working so close to people.

- Filming in cities is definitely quite different to what we're used to.

And probably the biggest thing is just transporting kit around.

So normally you might go to a spot for a day and you're just spent all day there.

You definitely don't really do that with pigeons.

They move around as the day goes on, and also we're trying to film lots of different stories in lots of different places.

So we found that actually having this massive cart and just logging everything around is the best way to do it.

Obviously, it makes you stick out a bit in a city, but it's been good fun and a challenge in equal measure.

- [Narrator] Pigeons have shown an incredible ability to capitalize on the opportunities that arise from city life.

And the team were always on the lookout for unusual stories.

- We'd done a lot of research into different behaviors of pigeons, but there was one particular one I really wanted to capture, and that was the pigeon riding a Tube train.

But it was definitely not an easy scene to film.

- The station's pretty quiet, which is good, 'cause I think if it's too busy, the pigeons probably won't come down and look for food.

So after rush hour is probably the best bet.

But at the moment it's a little too quiet.

We could do with a few more pigeons as well.

But we've got a wee bit of time, so we'll see what happens.

(light music) Got a pigeon up ahead of us, see what we can find.

(light music continues) So they're just down sitting between the tracks.

And then the male is just showing off as best he can.

So he's definitely got other things in his mind than food.

Oh, he's coming up, he's coming up, he's coming up.

- [Narrator] It looks like the team's patience may yet pay off.

Or not quite.

(light music continues) - We've got one here at the moment, but it's quite nervous so far.

So we'll just follow on and hope we get something.

- [Narrator] It's a waiting game.

(light music continues) - Can you get on the train?

Go on, go on, go on.

- [Narrator] Eventually, their perseverance pays off, and one of the pigeons hops on board.

- Hey, look at that.

On the train.

- [Narrator] Followed by Fergus.

- That's our girl.

We got 'em going all the way up and down the train, which I didn't really expect.

At the last minute, all came good.

And then the thing I didn't really think about was that all the doors opened, so I was trying to shepherd him towards where there were some people so he'd get off the train.

And the door opened over my shoulder, and he just flew away past me, which was a bit of a surprise, but, you know, he made it off the train.

There's no sign of him here now, so I'm guessing he's gone back home.

Mission success.

(light music) - [Narrator] Pigeons face a host of challenges in our cities, from peregrine falcons to anti-pigeon deterrents, and the never-ending challenge of finding enough food to get through the day.

But the resilience of pigeons and their ability to adapt to urban life is most obvious here in New York.

- It was really important for us to try and get the sense of what it's like for a pigeon in a city.

And to do that we had to be very much amongst the noise and the bustle and right down at street level to get that kind of perspective.

And watching the Times Square pigeons as they navigate right the way through the night in that amazing display of light, you know, we were really in awe of this incredible bird.

We were getting some great shots from New York, and it was really exciting to see how the film was coming together.

But we had a sequence that was much more a traditional, natural history sequence we wanted to capture.

And it was a behavior that was quite unusual, and it happened right in the middle of London.

- [Narrator] The team headed out to Hyde Park in the west end of the city, where it was rumored a lesser black-backed gull preyed upon the local pigeon population.

- After the first morning we went, we just sat there for like five, six hours.

And in that time we actually saw it.

And so I think we realized that chances are he is doing this every day.

The key is you just got to sit there for as long as it takes.

- [Narrator] After carefully watching, the team noticed a sudden change in the gull's behavior.

- In his head you'd see there'd be a flick of a switch, and suddenly he was really into hunting mode.

And you could tell this because he'd just be walking around completely normally.

And then the next thing you know, he'd really duck his head down low and almost try and look like he was stalking his prey.

The funny thing is the pigeons themselves almost didn't seem to notice.

- [Narrator] With so much going on, it was crucial that Fergus stayed focused.

- And it's quite adrenaline-fueled, actually, when you're watching it happening.

It's obviously not that nice when you think about it from the pigeon's perspective.

But in the time where he's stalking them, you're just so hyperfocused on his success and you trying to capture that, because he can be stalking them for an hour, and he just doesn't even go for an attempt.

So you really can't switch off.

You've got to be so hypervigilant and just always tracking and keeping him in focus.

But you know, in the end, just through persistence, I think we got there.

(dramatic music) I'd say I've definitely got a greater appreciation of pigeons now.

And now, quite often with these feral pigeons, they're living on the streets.

They're still so dependent on the kindness of people.

You have (indistinct) groups going out, where you see all of these pigeons that have incredibly damaged feet.

But a lot of these problems are because of us and the things that we do in the landscape, and pigeons are reflective of that.

So I think it's really amazing that there's still people out there who really care for them and are really trying to help them.

And it's been really quite a joy to meet how many people love these birds throughout the course of this filming.

- I think all the crew at the end of it had a newfound respect for pigeons.

Because although they're familiar, when you spend every day uncovering their daily lives, their struggles, and see how truly resilient and incredible they are, you can't help but respect them.

(upbeat music) (wind howling)