Suzie Stapleton

In 2020, I was approached by the immensely talented singer-songwriter Suzie Stapleton to collaborate on a series of music videos leading up to the release of her album, We Are The Plague. The title alone felt eerily fitting for the time, and I was immediately intrigued.

Together, we embarked on a creative journey, producing three music videos. For two of them, I primarily took on the role of editor, shaping the final visuals. However, for Blood on the Windscreen, I was deeply involved in every stage—shooting, directing, and editing—seeing the project through from concept to completion.

A thunderous rush of razor-sharp riffs plunges us into the heart of the track, while Stapleton’s husky, hypnotic vocals demand our full attention. Blood on the Windscreen is a dark, brooding force of nature, swirling with raw energy and cinematic intensity.

Dive deeper into the creative process and behind-the-scenes details of this collaboration—read on to explore how these visuals came to life.

2020 - Blood on the Windscreen

Blood on the Windscreen – The Process

Some projects come together effortlessly, sparked by a moment of creative instinct. Blood on the Windscreen was one of those. A quick-fire phone conversation with Suzie Stapleton set everything in motion. We both knew we wanted a raw, no-frills performance video—it was just a matter of finding the right place and time.

Almost immediately, a location came to mind: Bidder Street, an off-the-beaten-path industrial zone on the edge of Canning Town, near the River Lea. A battered relic of East London’s industrial past, it still bore the scars of its history—cracked roads, pylons, barbed wire fences, piles of junk, and the skeletal remains of burned-out cars lining the pavement. The street had been on my radar for years, waiting for the right project. Suzie was on board, and we locked in a plan.

To capture the energy of the track, I brought in analogue filmmaker Antonio Curcetti as a second cameraman, armed with his glitchy, scrambled VHS camera for an added layer of texture. We scheduled the shoot for midweek, aiming for a dry but overcast day—perfect for the gritty aesthetic we wanted.

Filming was a rush. Suzie tore through her performance as trucks and delivery vans blared their horns, adding to the raw, unpolished atmosphere. I made sure to gather extra footage of the surroundings, weaving the street’s character into the edit to reinforce the song’s energy.

When it came to post-production, the visuals and track clicked together effortlessly. The stark, forgotten landscape of Bidder Street became the perfect stage—a place where Blood on the Windscreen felt right at home, deep in the back alleys of rock and roll.

Released as a single in 2020, Blood on the Windscreen was later included on Suzie Stapleton’s critically acclaimed album We Are The Plague, which also debuted that year. The song is a fierce, brooding force of dark rock, and this video sought to capture that spirit—raw, relentless, and unapologetic.