More than a decade after a world-record attempt ended in a near-fatal crash, Rocketman Dan Schlund is going back up. His comeback pulls us into a wild sixty-year subculture of Cold War dreamers, backyard builders, rivalries, true crime, and the long-delayed promise of personal flight.

The Obsession

When the future didn't arrive, they built it themselves.

Born from the future-obsessed engineers of the 1960s, the rocket belt was supposed to usher in an age of personal flight. Instead, the dream survived in the hands of a tiny subculture of pilots and backyard builders who simply refused to let it die.

Their pursuit led to spectacular shows, world-record attempts, crashes, rivalries, and a true-crime saga involving a stolen prototype, kidnapping, and murder. Chuck Norris even makes an appearance. Which, for a group of people strapping rockets to themselves, feels very on-brand.

Jetpacks occupy a regulatory gray area. Which means, if you can figure out how to build one, there’s surprisingly little stopping you from trying to fly it.

The Pilot

Rocketman Dan Schlund barely survived a crash on live TV during a Guinness World Record attempt in 2013. More than a decade later, against the advice of approximately everyone, he's training to strap the jetpack (also known as a Rocket Belt) back on.

Not for another world record, but because some parts of yourself are harder to leave behind than others.

Beyond the Film

The film is only
part of the story.

Every historical detour, every character, and every absurd true-crime tangent hangs off one human question: what does it take to get back on the horse when the horse is, technically, a rocket?

Dan Schlund's memoir goes even further into the pilots, inventions, rivalries, close calls, and stories that couldn't all fit on screen.

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The People

They strapped rockets to their backs.
We brought the cameras.

Directed by Jonny Zeller. Produced by Tatiana Kelly. Executive Producer Eric Dunn. Co-Executive Producers P.G. Cuschieri and Matthew Hatchette. Producer Kyle Schember.

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