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The Line Between Reality and Animation Blurs in a Motion Capture Music Video for Ed Sheeran

Pop singer Ed Sheeran flaunts his star power in an incredibly complex music video that combines motion capture, computer generated extras, and a guest appearance by Chance the Rapper to boot. The colorful video for “Cross Me” starts off with a professional dancer, Courtney Scarr, in a motion capture suit. Scarr becomes the sole real-life character in the video revisited throughout the song. Teeming animations of human figures, light effects, and a shower of sprinkles fill a dance hall, outdoor track, baseball field, and video game. Sheeran and Chance both appear as animated versions of themselves, navigating these computer-generated worlds and thoroughly blurring the line between real and imagined.

“Cross Me” was directed by Ryan Staake (previously), and also brings to mind this music video for The Chemical Brothers, directed by DOM&NIC. You can view the comprehensive list of collaborators on the project on the official video’s Vimeo page.