London Alley

While most people spent quarantine baking bread, TicToking, and teaching Grandma how to Zoom, Hannah Lux Davis was busy directing the Be Kind music video for the vibey summer single from Halsey and Marshmello.

“It was important to me to make a video that would still be great even without the added context of, ‘oh she couldn’t go outside’,” Halsey said about her ambitions for the video. Thanks to the sophisticated 3-D animation made possible by Unreal Engine and the team of artists who worked on Disney’s The Mandalorian, Hannah and Halsey were able to social distance and shoot a video that looked as if everything was back to normal.

The video opens in an empty warehouse where a fuschia-haired Halsey dances around the space with a single sunflower prop. The industrial warehouse transforms into fantasy land filled with vibrant flowers, big dreamy clouds, and even a few little easter eggs- bringing Halsey’s anime dreams to life.

Safety protocols allowed for less than 10 people on set, which required intricate planning prior to production, and little room for error on the day of. To pull it off, all blocking was coordinated over Zoom and despite a fractured ankle, Halsey learned all of the choreography over Zoom and did her own makeup for the shoot. The Be Kind video is a testament to the power of the imagination at a time when we need it most. Check out the BTS below for an inside look into their socially distanced music video!