Reverie - Amble
Memory, grief, and the quiet joy of remembering someone you’ve lost
Directed by Donnagh Fitzpatrick
Weaving stunning visuals into an emotional track, Director Donnagh Fitzpatrick collaborates with Amble for Reverie. The video invites us into a delicate meditation on grief, memory, and the quiet solace of remembrance, set in a rural farmhouse and anchored by a time-turner that bends the rules of reality.
With a body of work that has premiered at Cannes and earned accolades from the Emerging Directors Awards to the Kinsale Sharks, Fitzpatrick is known for crafting intimate stories that explore loss, resilience, and connection. His latest project, Reverie, continues this through an evocative film that pairs haunting beauty with a deep emotional core.
Reverie feels deeply in sync with the music, like it’s an emotional extension of the song. How did the collaboration with Amble shape the story, and can you share with us a bit about that creative process, from concept to screen?
I’ve been collaborating with Amble for a few years now, so there’s a real trust and creative understanding between us. They’re such strong storytellers, which makes it a rewarding challenge to create videos that complement their music. With Reverie, I saw the concept straight away — it felt like the visuals were already woven into the track, like the music was guiding the story. I was delighted when they connected with the pitch, because it was a story I really wanted to tell.
The rural farmhouse and setting for the video feel like characters themselves. It's isolated, yet somewhere that still holds endless memories. What role did setting play in shaping the emotional tone of the film?
Setting played a key role in Reverie. Getting the right look and feel was crucial, and our brilliant producers, Aaron Chalke and Louise McCabe, were instrumental in securing the locations. I like to shoot in spaces that feel lived-in — it’s hard to fake that kind of authenticity. The main character needed to feel small and alone in places filled with happy memories, but marked by absence. That mix of isolation and nostalgia really shaped the film’s emotional tone.
“I wanted to capture her sadness without it feeling too heavy, and reflect her memories without them seeming forced.”
Following that, memory plays a huge part in Reverie, not just in the narrative but in the way it's visually told, through light, movement, and transitions. How did you successfully capture the feeling of remembering someone, rather than just showing it?
That’s a great question — capturing the feeling of a memory can be tricky. Our cinematographer, Kevin Minogue, did an amazing job shaping the lighting and visuals to reflect that tone. I aimed to write scenes that held both joy and vulnerability. Memories often feel rose-tinted, but when you focus on the details, they’re usually more intimate and complicated than they first seem. For this video, I wanted to focus on the quiet, fleeting joys shared between two sisters — the kind of small moments that tend to linger.
Grief often brings darkness, but your film holds onto warmth with sorrow, but also gentleness. Was that emotional balance something you consciously worked toward from the beginning, and why was it important?
Absolutely, that balance was something I was mindful of from the start. With Amble’s music, I always get a sense of warm nostalgia, and with this track, it came (for me) with a quiet melancholy. I wanted to capture her sadness without it feeling too heavy, and reflect her memories without them seeming forced. Grief and memory often carry conflicting emotions - finding that middle ground was where I wanted the story to sit. Our cast, Enya Donohue and Fianna Nolan, captured that tone beautifully.
The ending is quietly powerful as we move from memory to the future, and there’s this sense that life continues through the next generation. What did it mean for you to include that perspective?
It’s interesting you see it as moving toward the future — and that’s a completely valid reading. For me, the story goes back to our character’s childhood, with the woman in the kitchen as her grandmother. But it also works as a look ahead, with her grown and watching her own grandchildren. We really wanted to walk that line between two emotional spaces. Amble were keen to leave it open to interpretation. I like to think the ending invites each viewer to bring their own meaning to it.
Your work often blends emotional storytelling with strong visual design - how do you navigate that balance when working within the format of a music video? Does it offer more freedom or a different kind of pressure than narrative film?
Music videos definitely offer certain freedoms, but they also come with their own constraints — the track is almost like a main character, and the short runtime really shapes how you tell the story. It’s a slightly different discipline to narrative film, but the two definitely feed into each other. I tend to think visually, but I’m always grounded in story — balancing the two is a key part of the process. Music videos are great fun, and I feel lucky to collaborate with talented artists.
What's next for you?
I’m working on a couple of narrative projects I’ve wanted to make for some time, along with a few music videos. I’m also carving out more time just to write — slowing down is really valuable because it gives you the space to figure out what you truly want to say in your work.
Starring:
Enya Donohue, Fianna Nolan
Lucy Kate Martin, Lola Mae McCormack, Siobhan O' Dea,
& Joe Mullins
Written & Directed by: Donnagh Fitzpatrick
Produced by: Aaron Chalke, Louise McCabe, Donnagh Fitzpatrick
Cinematography by: Kevin Minogue
Camera Assistant: Patrick Dempsey
Gaffer:Jay Boland
Best Boy: Eamon Corcoran
Make Up & Hair by: Therese McMenamy
Boom/Sound Recordist: Aaron Chalke
Production Assistant: Aria Risovaite
Editor:Donnagh Fitzpatrick
Post Sound Design: Folding Waves
Colour Grade: Leandro Arouca, Raygun Post Production
Post Supervisor: Kit Brennan
Title Design: Sara Chong, Grimmy Granny
Music by: Amble, Robbie Cunningham, Ross McNerney, Oisin McCaffrey
Equipment Rental: Alvays Press Record
Casting Agencies: Take 2 Talent Management, The Agency, Stagebox
41 Record Label: Warner Music Ireland
*Chaperones: Denise Martin, Donna McCormack
Production Company: Foe, House 9 Films, Northside
Special Thanks: David McGuire, Aidan Scahill, Sharon Fitzpatrick, Isabella Fitzpatrick