Emeli Sandé wrote Clown about her feelings when she was just entering the music business, trying to get signed, and dealing with music business people for the first time. She wanted the video for Clown to reflect that – and, fresh from his video for Robbie Williams’ Different, WIZ has reimagined that specific experience into a classic (in fact, ancient) scenario. He turns Emeli into a heroine faced with a situation that requires moral courage.

The video takes place on the floor of a debating chamber – like the Roman Senate – with Emeli surrounded by men in vaguely fascistic military uniform, urging her to sign a document that will give her something in exchange for something else. Typically, WIZ draws out the political and romantic aspect of the situation, and as with the Robbie video he seems to have found much visual inspiration from British cinema of the 1940s.

Its emotional, thanks to Emeli Sandé’s excellent performance as someone caught on the horns of a dilemma. She says: “It’s about how I felt when I was trying to get signed, I was going for all these meetings and people were looking at me like ‘What do we do with you’? It’s about not allowing yourself to be judged by others or to be taken for an idiot. I feel the video reflects that.”

Artist: Emeli Sandé
Track: ‘Clown’ (EMI)
Director: WIZ
Production company: A+
Executive Producer: Liz Kessler
Producer: Scott O’Donnell
Production manager: Lou Whiston
Director of Photography: Richard Stewart
Art Director: Annie Gregson
Editor: Owen Oppenheimer @ The Quarry
Colourist: Tom Russell @ Prime Focus
Online: Emily Irvine @ Prime Focus
Casting: Sue Pocklington
Commisioner: James Hackett
Watch: here