Following on from her stellar role as Robin in Stranger Things, Maya Hawke has shared the short video for her single “Thérèse” ahead of the release of her upcoming album Moss later this year. 

Directed by Brady Corbet (Vox Lux, Mysterious Skins), the film ventures deep into the woods where a group of friends are having an orgy, before the moment is interrupted by the police. Featuring disorientating shots of people fleeing in opposing directions, the group is eventually caught, with Hawke‘s character singing the track while handcuffed. 

“Brady saw the video very clearly in his head, but I can’t imagine he could have guessed how well his idea fit with what I wanted to reveal and express about the song,” Hawke tells Dazed. She describes wanting to express “the feeling that loneliness is the worst thing, until you realise it’s far superior to bad company; about how free we are as kids and then as we go through puberty and culture crushes down on us and instead of being ourselves, we start to try and be like everyone else”.

Hawke met Corbet when auditioning for one of his films a few years ago. Although she didn’t get the part, the pair striked up a friendship and made the decision to work on the music video for “Thérèse”. The pair were inspired by the work of Japanese photographer Kohei Yoshiyuki, who’s best known for his series Kōen, featuring photographs of people engaged in sexual activities at night in parks across Tokyo.

”In an article on Art News upon his death, it was written that ‘Yoshiyuki’s photographs remind us that the conflict between private and public is timeless, something we all must grapple with in every aspect of our lives’ – that sounded really right to me,” she explains.

“I hope people like it or hate it, or whatever,” she concludes. “I hope it makes them feel something other than shame, self-hatred, and loneliness. I think we are all tired of feeling like that.”

Watch the video for “Thérèse” below.