Ellie Goulding is trapped in a simulated dreamworld, in Sophia Ray's spectacular promo for Easy Lover, featuring Big Sean. 

The eccentric promo was shot in Sofia, Bulgaria, and explores a world whose characters aren't quite what they seem. In fact, they are Sims-like videogame characters that have found themselves in un-virtual reality...

"It was inspiring to get the initial brief from Nathan Klein - Ellie's Creative Director - for this video, as he really mapped out the creative mood he wanted to take this new era for Ellie in, and gave me a lot of visual references to latch on to," says Ray.

"The concept of the video is based around these mysterious sim-like creatures, called Skins. These Skins are being controllable game-like characters - that live out bizarre 'realistic' lives in what appears to be a 'real' world. How and what is controlling them, however, remains unclear.

"The more the audience watch, the more we see the world and these Skins start to glitch and malfunction, giving the impression of a synthetic wider world where nothing is quite as it seems."

The expansive world is created through stylish set design, otherworldly locations and a sense of enigmatic mystery, which perfectly encapsulates the artificial world Goulding inhabits. 

"Ellie wanted to play a few of the Skin characters in this world, where she could have a bit of fun with her styling and characterisation," continues Ray. "It was so cool to work with her and see these playful sides of her come out as she got into character.

"It was such a fun three-day shoot, as we travelled all over Sofia, Bulgaria shooting in crazy locations and finishing on a more chilled studio-build day, where we shot our game cube 'dollhouse' set up. Massive thanks to the production team, and Partizan, Mayling and Ayo for making the process so seamless and fun, Katie Dolan who trusted us implicitly and supported us along the way, and also the amazing Four Elements service team in Bulgaria."