When Red Light Management contacted us with a call for directors to pitch concepts for The Vaccines’ upcoming single, “Heartbreak Kid,” our team got to work. The concept we proposed hinged on the visual allure of an iconic vintage lens; the Optex 4mm. We proposed to create a Kubrick-esque, immersive, one-shot music video and were ultimately successful in our pitch.

Set in a spacious mid-century home in Hertfordshire, the heart of the video was the camera, which was positioned at the centre of a living room. A deliberate, slow revolution around the room captured The Vaccines engaging in a mix of everyday and unexpected activities, choreographed with precision.

The video celebrated minimalistic execution and the nonchalant, mundane nature of the band’s activities. The Optex 4mm lens, thriving on proximity, provided otherworldly perspectives, with actions unfolding in the foreground, creating a captivating visual experience.

With the band’s limited availability, we had only three hours to execute the entire video. The ambitious one-take concept required meticulous planning, blocking, and thorough rehearsals. We developed a blocking video to share with the band so they could prepare before the shoot.

One shot videos are technically difficult and there was a frenzy of activity behind the camera in order to pull it off. The band and crew did an amazing job and fortunately everything went very smoothly, thanks to the thorough preparation by everyone involved.

It was rewarding when the music video was featured on a huge screen in Times Square as part of The Vaccines’ album campaign. This was a proud and very cool moment for our team. It acknowledged our efforts of creating a visually captivating and technically challenging music video.