Fred Rowson directs film for Years and Years, called Palo Santo

Years and Years unveils a short film to new single Palo Santo which is released today.

The film is directed by filmmaker Fred Rowson, who has a long-standing relationship with the band, previously directing the videos for If You’re Over Me and Sanctify, and overseen creative direction over the band’s look and feel for the album.

The 15 minute film features the band’s frontman Olly, who performs for androids in a strange, futuristic city named Palo Santo. The film opens with text that explores a futuristic world and how we exist within it, reading, “Androids desire nothing more than to experience real emotion”. The film goes on to transport humans into an android manufacturing plant, Palo Santo Android Solutions where Olly is asked to dance, and Dame Judy Dench features in the film as the voice of Palo Santo.

Speaking about the film, Rawson says, “We wanted to make a sci fi film! But we also wanted to make something which felt fun, and accessible, and slightly strange. A really important element for us was that the story we were telling didn’t feel like it was trying to ram a particular message down anyone’s throat. So it includes a lot of elements that are very dear to us without – hopefully – being too preachy. We had a holy trinity of inspirations for this film, which we kept coming back to: Showgirls, The Muppets, and Twin Peaks”.

“We shot this over 4 days in Thailand, at the beginning of this year, in a cabaret theatre, a university, and an abandoned warehouse in the jungle, during which time our set was invaded by a snake”.

The album and film, both titled Palo Santo , are out today.