Empire Of The Sun - Alive

What this video is

Released on 15 April 2013 as the lead single from Empire of the Sun's second studio album Ice on the Dune, 'Alive' arrived at the apex of a wave of maximalist, world-building music videos by indie-electronic acts. The video's production by Kelvin Optical — a division of Bad Robot Productions — brought Hollywood-calibre sci-fi spectacle to the music video format, reflecting the era's convergence of film and music…

Why it matters

A flagship visual statement for Australian electropop/synthpop, 'Alive' demonstrated how acts in the early-2010s indie-electronic space could leverage high-budget, cinematic location production and elaborate costuming to construct entire mythological universes, influencing the aesthetic ambitions…

The director

Charles Scott IV and Alex Theurer co-directed under the banner of Kelvin Optical, Inc., a production division of J. J. Abrams' Bad Robot Productions. The duo collaborated on both the direction and screenplay for the 'Alive' video, with James Codeglia serving…