Synopsis

A nervous man arrives outside Esther's apartment with an unusual plan: a tiny transforming robot slips inside and moves through the building while she remains unaware. The machine's covert progress gives the encounter an unsettling, almost threatening tone, but its purpose gradually becomes clearer. After navigating the apartment and confronting several obstacles, the visitor delivers a single flower. The closing gesture reframes the elaborate operation as an awkward declaration of affection, while leaving enough ambiguity to suggest that romance and intrusion may look remarkably similar from the outside.

Factoids & Trivia

• The track comes from Amon Tobin's 2007 album "Foley Room." The video appeared in 2010 as part of Ninja Tune's 20th-anniversary celebrations.

• The project began in 2007, several years before its release. Its creator reportedly pursued the idea with Tobin after first encountering him at a live show.

• Ninja Tune initially said there was no budget for a video. After other funding proposals failed, the label eventually financed a small live-action shoot.

• More than 120 shots were filmed in only two nights. The compressed schedule made the production a race against changing daylight.

• The computer animation was completed over approximately eight months in a home studio. Friends contributed their time when available, helping the production continue despite its limited resources.

• The robot was built through a mixture of live-action work, animatronics, and computer-generated modeling and animation rather than relying on a single technique.

• The concept grew partly from the motorcycle-like sound at the beginning of "Esther's" and from the robot-part imagery associated with Tobin's album artwork.

• The video intentionally keeps the visitor's motives uncertain. Its central idea is less a conventional love story than a reflection on how difficult people can make a simple declaration.

• The film became a Vimeo Staff Pick and won second prize in the European Music Video category at the 2011 Young Director Awards in Cannes.