Murai's collaboration with FKA Twigs is an action-packed epic affair, embracing Chinese martial arts. It is a brilliant, and beautiful - and brutal - showcase for the artist's unique talents.

In characteristic Murai style, and with the help of regular collaborators like DoP Larkin Sieple and colourist Ricky Gausis, the grittily mundane is transformed into something breathtaking. As with so many of his music videos, this is shot entirely at night and again Murai shows his mastery of the specific atmosphere that night creates in the quieter parts of a cityscape. And in this case, the city is London.

In a late night café, Twigs encounters a male alter-ego (played by Teake), and their assignation quickly becomes violent. A terrifying swordfight begins within the cafe, with Twigs' and her rival's athleticism taking them headlong through its shopfront window. Then their fight moves across quiet suburban streets, via the swooping, sensual movements of Wushu martial arts - so the conflict begins to hint at a complex backstory to their relationship/rivalry. But within the café again, at close quarters it gets brutal again and there is an extraordinary outcome - arguably not for the fainthearted.

This climactic moment, where Twigs is divided by a samurai sword, is the most obvious contribution of VFX in a piece which, as with much of Murai's work, employs extensive VFX without drawing huge attention to itself. He worked in close collaboration with a team at MPC in Los Angeles to create those crucial sequences. Not only the choreographed fight sequence across buildings, epic smashes through shop windows, and that dramatic final scene, but digital matte painting was also used throughout to enhance the gritty backdrops.

FKA Twigs - Sad Day

CREDITS

Hiro murai

Nicole Powell

Jason Cole

Luke Lynch

Ricky Gausis

Trevor Gates

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