Steven Spielberg just filmed his very first music video and did so in one shot — with his phone.
While Spielberg has smashed box office records and become the most commercially successful director in history, the “Jurassic Park” filmmaker has never shot a music video before, according to The Los Angeles Times. That honor went to Marcus Mumford, lead singer of Mumford and Sons.
“On Sunday 3rd July in a high school gym in New York, Steven Spielberg directed my first music video, in one shot, on his phone,” wrote Mumford in a Twitter thread. “Kate Capshaw was the almighty dolly grip.”
Mumford released the “Cannibal” video Thursday on his YouTube channel and it has since amassed more than 200,000 views. It serves as the first single for his upcoming album, which is cheekily dubbed “(self-titled)” and is set to be released on Sept. 16.
Spielberg, who has been nominated for 19 Oscars and won three of them, approached the project with a leisure that only someone whose films have grossed more than $10 billion could.
“Cannibal” sees Mumford strumming away on his guitar while belting out devastating confessions. Sitting on stage with black curtains as the backdrop, he performs the entire song in one go as Spielberg moves from an establishing shot to intimate close-ups.
Mumford documented the production with a series of photos in his Twitter thread. One shows Spielberg sitting on a rolling chair which was ushered through the empty gymnasium by his wife, Kate Capshaw, while another serves as a portrait to wrap production.
“I’ve been overwhelmed by the support of the people around me to bring this music to you, and I cannot hope to express all of my gratitude,” Mumford wrote. “When people get it, it blows my mind. Kate and Steven just got it, and I cannot thank them enough.”