Filmmaker Jeff Nichols has directed a music video styled as a short film, starring Michael Shannon, for country-punk rock band Lucero. Nichols’s brother, Ben Nichols, is the band’s lead guitarist.
The Western-style video, Long Way Back Home, opens with Stanton (Shannon) asking a friend (Paul Sparks) about his brothers’ whereabouts. When his friend suspects that Stanton wants to kill them, Shannon’s character says: “Why would I want to kill my little brothers?” He then gets into his car and takes a trip down memory lane, while Lucero’s song plays in the background.
The seven-minute video features Garrett Hedlund and Scoot McNairy as Stanton’s brothers. Ben Nichols and other band members – Brian Venable, Roy Berry and John C. Stubblefield – also appear in the video. Long Way Back Home is from Lucero’s new album Among The Ghosts.
Nichols made his debut in 2007 with Shotgun Stories. Since then, he has directed Take Shelter (2011), Mud (2012), Midnight Special (2016), and Loving (2016). Long Way Back Home marks Nichols’s sixth collaboration with Shannon, who has featured in all of the director’s films so far. It is also his first music video.
In a statement, Nichols said he always knew he would one day collaborate with his brother’s band. “And once I heard the haunting sounds of Long Way Back Home, I knew this song was the perfect opportunity to do it. It’s been an amazing ride bringing this project together with so many people who I love and admire. Shooting this brought me back to the days of filming my first movie, Shotgun Stories.”
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