Transformed through prosthetics and a glinting gold grill, the British rapper Little Simz looks a convincing older version of herself in the video in her music video for the track Young.
Director Dave Meyers, known for his work with Harry Styles, Ariana Grande, and Kendrick Lamar, used physical effects to handle the aging process, but VFX was also crucial to help bring the creative vision to life, including handling last-minute tweaks (see our guide to the best CGI movie moments for more inspiration)
Little Simz’ creative spirit shines through in a very British video that captures the bittersweet tension in aging as she daydreams of a wilder, freer time. Bringing the vision to life required fast but precise post-production work, which was handled by Daydreamer VFX, a London-based studio that’s worked with clients like Nike, Mercedes and Burberry since starting out in 2020.
The Daydreamer team, led by Creative Director Pete Rypstra and VFX Supervisor Tom Clapp worked closely with Dave Meyers to deliver the VFX work for the offbeat piece and used the AI VFX toolkit SLAPSHOT for visuals that bounce between the homey nostalgia of a London flat and the energy of the streets.
The team says this approach helped with last-minute decisions like changing the colour of Little Simz’ robe and bonnet plus background wall replacements on several crowd scenes. For the former, the team used SLAPSHOT’s AI-powered roto technology to quickly isolate Simz’s clothes and produce mattes that allowed them to mock up a range of colour options, including deep purple, green, and dark red, in just a few days.
“Simz’ robe and bonnet were originally black on set, but Dave was keen to amplify colour in the promo,” explained 2D lead Polly Gwinnett. “There wasn’t much time, so SLAPSHOT allowed us to create clean mattes quickly and iterate multiple colour comps to find the perfect look.”
The team also used the AI Roto tool to isolate wardrobe and environment elements across 18 shots, plus additional crowd scenes.
While the final polish and minor keying enhancements were added in comp, the bulk of the roto lift was completed using SLAPSHOT — allowing the team to keep up with rapid client feedback and creative iteration. “Once I learned to start from the most representative frame, the tool was incredibly accurate,” technical operator Jake Day says.”