Synopsis
London Grammar perform "Nightcall" in a bleak field after dark, surrounded by isolated figures and strange, dreamlike scenes. A woman sits on a swing, a man waits beside a car, a woman occupies a trailer, and children gather around a fire. The camera drifts continuously through the landscape, gradually revealing the band and a group of horses. As the horses suddenly charge across the field, the video's quiet, suspended atmosphere gives way to a powerful image of movement and release.
Factoids & Trivia
- The video was filmed entirely outdoors at a horse ranch outside London, although its lighting and controlled atmosphere make the setting resemble a studio.
- The production was designed around a continuous camera movement using motion-control technology. The technique allowed the camera to glide through several apparently disconnected scenes while maintaining the feeling of a single shot.
- The visual concept drew inspiration from the work of American photographer Greg Crewdson, whose staged images often place ordinary people in mysterious, cinematic environments.
- The horses were trained stunt animals. The ranch owner was also a horse stuntman, and the animals were able to run on cue during every take.
- The horse sequence was planned with one animal leading the others, creating the striking sense of a coordinated escape rather than an accidental stampede.
- The video's creators described its central theme as loneliness, static existence and breaking free. It deliberately avoids a conventional narrative, leaving the figures and their actions open to interpretation.
- The production used an Arri Alexa camera, with visual effects completed by Phink and post-production color work by MPC.
- London Grammar's version is a cover of Kavinsky's "Nightcall." It appeared on the band's 2013 debut album, "If You Wait," and the official video was released on November 28, 2013.