Back in the midst of Deep Lockdown, director Melody Maker co-created a video with R&B artist JGrrey for her single Ain't So, which ushers the viewer into a fantastical world of butterflies, bluebells and gigantic spiders - an animated concept inspired by J’s favourite things.

Due to strict lockdown regulations, it had to be shot, styled and performed by JGrrey herself with the help of Maker remotely. They really made the most of deserted open spaces, nature's early summer bloom, and crystal blue skies. Then the VFX team at The Mill augmented reality with a dose of supernature. 

MELODY MAKER:

Whilst modern life has been put on pause, Mother Earth has been left to flourish.

“We hatched out a rough plan after a virtual recce of JGrrey’s home and parts of Watford, but we knew we couldn't limit ourselves to a shot-list. Wanting to be respectful of lockdown, we decided to shoot this over a period of five days, giving each scene 30 minutes outside of the house.”

"The opening line - Things will get worse before they get better - couldn’t have struck a more familiar chord. Never in our lifetimes have we experienced enforced economic inactivity, but just as there will be many negative things because of this pandemic, so will there be many positive things to take away from it, too.

"Whilst modern life has been put on pause, Mother Earth has been left to flourish, from cleaner air to liberated wildlife. This concept ‘Return to Nature’ whimsically explores lockdown to the extreme. How far could nature go if it were left alone?”