James Lawes' promo for Atriums is a beautiful piece of narrative film that blurs the lines of what makes a traditional music promo.

The clip follows Aaron, a 17-year-old on the cusp of adulthood as he discovers himself and the world around him. Tender moments of intimacy are coupled here with much more traditionally 'macho' scenes to create a film that explores the nature of masculinity in with an intelligent, yet still youthfully wild outlook.

The video also uses great sound design to mix plenty of diegetic sound in with the track without either one feeling like it's obstructing the other.

JAMES LAWES:

"I set out to create a piece about transition and acceptance. The promo focuses on Aaron, a 17-year-old boy in that awkward stage in his life where he’s not quite a man yet, but also no longer a boy. He’s searching and challenging his circumstances and surroundings, trying to discover who he is and who he wants to be.  

"The approach I took was to move away from the traditional format of a standard music promo and instead, use the song as a backdrop to an emotive drama of sorts. I liked the idea of the song always be predominantly audible, but also introducing local sounds from our story's environments to merge the two worlds together. I hope that the result is a fresh and interesting take on creating a music promo."