Synopsis

On a barren, moonlike world, golden meteorites rain into craters and trigger the growth of towering crystals. Bjork appears as an otherworldly observer, her image multiplied and projected across a rotating metallic disc above the lunar landscape. The crystalline formations rise, shimmer, and eventually collapse as the song moves from delicate, chiming passages into its explosive electronic finale. The video blends cosmic imagery, abstract performance, stop-motion movement, and flickering light to create a compact science-fiction tableau.

Factoids & Trivia

• The video premiered on July 26, 2011, ahead of the release of *Biophilia*, whose first single was "Crystalline."

• The live-action footage was shot on 16 mm with Bolex cameras. Rather than relying mainly on digital compositing, the production captured many of its light trails, reflections, and graphic effects directly in camera.

• Bjork's performance was projected onto a spinning disc positioned above a miniature lunar landscape. Three projectors were arranged along an arc so that her projected image changed perspective as the camera moved.

• Multiple exposures, long exposures, reversed film movement, and carefully blocked lens apertures were used to build the video's layered visual texture.

• The production included specially made ice crystals, metal drums embedded in the craters, comets, and abstract two-dimensional drawings.

• Peter Sluszka served as animation director, with Partizan producing the video and Hornet Workshop handling co-production.

• The visual concept reflects the broader *Biophilia* project, in which natural structures and scientific processes were treated as sources for musical and visual form.

• "Crystalline" also had an interactive app for iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad. Its gameplay involved steering a crystal through tunnels by tilting the device, extending the song's visual world beyond the music video.