Watch: Beautifully shot Welsh music video looks more like WW1 period film

A Welsh heavy rock band has released a new music video which includes cinematic World War 1 scenes shot on the grounds of Bodelwyddan Castle in north Wales.

The music video by Welsh band Ffatri Jam, is shot as a short film and is first video for their latest single, ‘Geiriau Ffug’.

The song was originally released on Welsh Music Day back in February and was broadcast on BBC Radio 1 where it was recognised as one of the Best Sounds of 2022.

As well as introducing new sounds to the Welsh audience, the band’s creative vision extends to something far more visual in the short film which was part of a collaboration with S4C’s music platform – ‘Lŵp’.

Trench

Produced and directed by Andy Pritchard and Aled Wyn Jones for Darlun TV, the period film highlights the harshness of the First World War which is a somewhat unexpected subject for a music video – especially when the central protagonist of the story is a woman.

Parts of the video were shot in a trench a WW1 trench replica to replace where so many Welsh-speaking men would have lost their lives.

The video focuses on the individual’s internal struggle which is highlighted through a series of flashbacks and offers an imaginative, realistic experience of the portrayal of life in the trenches.

The video was relatively low budget and making it appear as if the scale was far larger was quite a challenge for the team of 4.

The short film includes a moving portrait of a story that feeds on the themes of roots, guilt, relationships, mental health, anxiety and the power of the mind.

Obsession

We see a girl returning home following the death of her grandmother to collect belongings which turns into an obsession about her family’s history – and the desire to know more.

The main character is seen standing in the middle of a now empty battlefield portraying the past and present, and the relationship between one and the other, as well as working as a metaphor of the main character’s internal struggle arising from the initial guilt.

The music video breaks up the flow of the story with film worthy scenes in order to give the audience the freedom to decide for themselves what exactly happens in the spaces in between.