Synopsis

A lone man is stranded at sea after a shipwreck, drifting through an abstract ocean of waves, memories, and shifting landscapes. As he struggles to reach shore, fragments of his relationship with a loved one appear, turning the journey into both a physical ordeal and an emotional farewell. The video initially suggests a separation between two people, but its symbolic imagery gradually points toward something more final. In the closing moments, the man's voyage takes on its true meaning: he is making a spiritual journey back to the person he loves.

Factoids & Trivia

• "Goodbye" was released as a single on June 5, 2012. The track runs for approximately four minutes and 20 seconds.

• The video was produced by MakeMake Studio, with the work credited to Liam Stevens and Chris Tozer. It was their first music video assignment.

• The production began as a planned stop-motion paper-cut film. The amount of cutting required, combined with the desired pencil-texture look, led the team to change direction.

• The finished animation combines 3D work in Cinema 4D with 2D compositing and hand-rendered watercolor and pencil textures in After Effects.

• The studio's original interpretation focused on a man unable to say goodbye to his partner. After discussing the song with My Robot Friend, the story was reshaped around the man's death and his attempt to return to his loved one.

• The filmmakers used abstract images and metaphors to keep the video visually hopeful while concealing the darker meaning until the final scene.

• The production process reportedly generated more than 300,000 files and caused significant delays on the studio's computers.

• The video was featured as a Vimeo Staff Pick and appeared on Vimeo's homepage. It was also selected for screenings and festival consideration after its completion in May 2012.

• Character modeling and setup were handled by Davide Melis. The official upload identifies the animation as a My Robot Friend and MakeMake Studio production from 2012.