From time to time, Liverpool becomes a filming stage, which brings attention to the city and helps locals break into the film industry. The Liverpool Film Office organised a training programme that helped long-term unemployed people find jobs. Among the interesting projects is the video for Taylor Swift’s song I Can See You. Learn more about this clip at liverpool-trend.com.
INFORMATION ABOUT THE SONG I CAN SEE YOU
This is a song written by American singer and songwriter Taylor Swift. The accompanying video was released on July 7, 2023, and already on July 8, the clip appeared on YouTube. It was produced by Taylor Swift and Jack Antonoff. The chosen musical style is indie rock with a fiery guitar riff. The lyrics contain flirtatious and overtly sexual hints, describing the attraction of the main character to a person with whom she often meets.
The song got positive reviews from music critics and took first positions in the charts in Australia, Canada, Ireland, the USA, Great Britain, Japan and other countries. Listeners noted the high-quality rhythmic performance, the sensuality of the sounds as well as catchy lyrics.
VIDEO CLIP TO TAYLOR SWIFT’S SONG
The video was filmed in April 2023 in Liverpool (namely in the Cunard Building, Tobacco Warehouse and the National Westminster Bank). The first of these locations can be seen in photos from the shoot, but some residents of Liverpool have also claimed to have seen the singer in other places, including Castle Street. At the time, the 33-year-old global superstar was taking a short break from The Eras Tour and used the time to create this project.
In addition to Swift, Joey King, Taylor Lautner and Presley Cash appeared in the video too. The central plot of the clip is a robbery. The group of three tries to free Swift from the vault in the museum (in the clip it is located inside the Cunard Building). The difficulty was that this vault was well guarded.
Thus, the singer metaphorically shows the support of her fans after the controversy surrounding the sale of the covers of her first six albums, including Speak Now. Swift said that the concept of the clip arose a year and a half before its release. She decided to visualise the story of how her fans helped her to recover her music. Swift directed the video and Jonathan Sela was the cinematographer.
Journalists praised the video as well. Alexa Camp from Slant Magazine noted that the clip was action-packed, with singer Taylor Swift taking control of her performance. Reviewers also note that the video features a well-designed outfit reminiscent of the Speak Now album era.
PLOT
We have already described the basic concept of the clip. But looking more closely, we can single out such plot details as
- Joey King exits a van on Castle Street before storming into the Cunard Building. There were a bunch of glass boxes with Taylor Swift’s clothes, which she wore during previous tours and video clips.
- Lautner joins King and they begin fighting the masked men inside the museum.
- As Swift is released from the vault, all three celebrities run out the side door of the building on Water Street. In just a moment, the door behind them is blown up.
- At the end of the video, a white van drives past Tobacco Warehouse on Regent Road.
DETAILS OF THE FILMING AND SIGNIFICANCE OF THE PROJECT
As already mentioned, the filming of the clip took place in the most iconic building of the city. Six local film crews and services were also hired, resulting in a major investment in the city.
Filming didn’t go unnoticed by fans. When pictures of Taylor Swift filming in Liverpool appeared on the Internet in April, there were various theories about what she was doing there. One of them was that Swift participated in the filming of a Batman-themed music video inspired by the film of the same name, starring Robert Pattinson. This film was also shot mainly in Liverpool.
The filming of the clip pleasantly impressed the local authorities. After all, choosing Liverpool for such a purpose was very honourable for those who care about the reputation of the city. For example, Harry Doyle, Liverpool City Council’s Cabinet Member for Culture, noted that this once again brings the city to the international level.
The project demonstrated the cinematic potential of the city. It also opened up new opportunities for local residents and companies, who could make money by contributing to world culture. The participants gained invaluable experience. Some noted that in the past, young people who wanted to get into the film industry had to move, but thanks to the Swift project, they didn’t have to do this. It was also noted that Liverpool became the second English city in terms of the number of filming sessions outside of London.
Well, Liverpool had a lot to be proud of. In addition, after the video was released, Taylor Swift said that she was very proud of the Liverpool video too. Around the same time, the singer announced that in June 2024, she would play three concerts at the Anfield football stadium with Paramore as an invited guest band.
