In Ryan Hope's audacious promo for Sam Smith's Lay Me Down, the Church nave is invoked for all its traditional purposes: to mourn at a funeral, to celebrate a marriage, to worship at the altar. Technically it's a marvel - each ceremony is captured within one continuous Steadicam shot. Even more important than that is the message sent out by the centrepiece of the video - a same-sex wedding between Sam Smith and his partner.

"This video shows my dreams that one day gay men and women and transgendered men and women all over the world, like all our straight families and friends, will be able to get married under any roof, in any city, in any town, in any village, in any country," writes Sam Smith, in a Facebook post on the video's release.

And aside from the controversy surrounding the political message, the video's visual narrative packs a punch in framing the ballad initially as a funeral hymn, before it transforms into a soulful serenade. Expertly shot by Jake Scott and graded by Richard Fearon of MPC, the video holds our attention through its rich yet mournful auburn hues which flow seamlessly into the lightness and reverence of the matrimony scene. Richard Fearon explains, "throughout the promo there are countless dynamic grades happening, over multiple layers and windows that are tracked in and out of the shot."