Coldplay’s shot-in-Singapore music video: Cosplayer co-stars share what the filming experience was like

British pop-rock band Coldplay released their Singapore-centred music video for their new song Man In The Moon on Feb 7. The video featured the city’s landscapes and people. 

Coldplay, made up of band mates Chris Martin, Guy Berryman, Jonny Buckland and Will Champion, filmed the music video during their stop in Singapore for their Music of the Spheres World Tour in January 2024, where they performed six sold-out shows at the National Stadium. 

Among the characters featured in the music video, shot by director Ben Mor, are two cosplayers who get to know each other and then fall in love.

CNA Lifestyle spoke with the two actors who played the cosplayers: Singaporean-Filipino student and cosplayer, Ysabella Banta, 21, whose cosplay name is Venus; and Singaporean-British model Akihiko Turner, 26. 

In the video, they were dressed as action role-playing game Genshin Impact characters Yae Miko and Zhongli, respectively. 

Banta and Turner shared with CNA Lifestyle how they secured their gigs and also let us in on some behind-the-scenes details of their three action-packed days of filming. 

SECURING THE ‘SECRET GIG’

It seemed like knowing the right people at the right time paid off for the co-stars.

Banta, who has been doing cosplay since 2017, was approached on Jan 16 by a friend at a video agency she had worked with before, with the opportunity to audition for a music video for a “British rock band”. The agency was looking for youth talents who were part of subcultures or had niche interests.

“I was a bit curious, because (the term) ‘British rock band’ was oddly specific,” Banta said. “And this was in January 2024. The only British rock band I knew in Singapore was Coldplay.”

Initially, Banta rejected the offer as she was swamped with school work. But eventually, after her friends convinced her that it was a once in a lifetime opportunity, she agreed to audition. 

“It was very paiseh (embarassing),” Banta said, laughing. “Because you reject the offer, then after that you go, ‘Hey, is it still available?’

“So I just went for the audition online, met the director, and one or two days later, I got the call back, and I was… I was just shocked,” she said. 

Similarly, a friend of a friend reached out to Turner after seeing that he was a freelance model.

Turner said: “The friend told me ‘I’ve got a gig, but you can’t tell anybody about it. I want you to come down to the studio to try it out, but you're going to have to dance.’” 

The model shared that he had no idea at the time who the gig was for or what it was. 

At the audition, he said that the staff got him into a room, blasted Mr Brightside by rock band The Killers and asked him to dance. He admitted that "it was the most awkward thing ever". 

Turner was originally cast as an extra in the video but director Ben Mor had other plans after seeing his appearance and wanted to meet Turner personally. 

That was when Turner found out he was auditioning for Coldplay. 

“I went from being an extra to being featured quite prominently in the video. That was quite a shock for me,” he said. 

Both Banta and Turner said they were beyond excited about the opportunity because they'd both been listening to Coldplay since they were young. 

For Turner, his father in particular was a big fan of the band, often playing Coldplay songs in the car while driving Turner to school. Turner and his family had also just seen the band live in Singapore to celebrate his father’s birthday. 

Banta, too, was a fan. “I would listen to their songs on the radio. My favourite song was Paradise, and I remember hearing it since I was in primary school and dancing to it. And never would I have known that in the future, I would be doing a music video for them. It’s crazy,” she said. 

In the music video, Banta and Turner were dressed as Genshin Impact’s Yae Miko and Zhongli, respectively. 

While Banta was an experienced cosplayer, Turner had never done cosplay before. But when director Mor pitched the cosplayer story to Turner, the model immediately agreed. 

And so began the co-stars’ three action-packed filming days from Jan 29 to Jan 31, 2024.

DAY 1 – BANTA’S TEXTING SCENE AND THE FLOATING PLATFORM 

On the first day, Jan 29, at 5am, Banta showed up to an HDB flat in Bishan for her first scene. 

“They had me in natural makeup and casual clothes. They told me to just pretend like you're texting the guy that you really like and you're giggling,” Banta said. 

She said that the production crew also had her put on makeup in front of a mirror and play with a rainbow light.

After the shoot, Banta went home to prepare for the main scene at the floating platform in the evening. 

“I just remember I felt so tired, but also really excited, because I know what's to come. So I think that's what kept me going – the adrenaline,” Banta said. 

In the evening, Turner, Banta and the rest of the cast and crew gathered at an event hall at Marina Bay Sands before shooting with the band at the floating platform.

The co-stars had their cosplay makeup done by Coldplay’s team and got into costume for the first time. 

“It was super cool. Even for me as a cosplayer – I can't do that type of wig styling. I don't know how they do it. It's amazing,” Banta said about her look for the video. 

The cast members then had to surrender their devices as they were about to hear Man In The Moon for the first time. 

“The team came in with a really big speaker and told us, ‘We're going to let you listen to Man In The Moon, and we want you to try and memorise as much of the lyrics as you can, so that you can vibe and get into the groove of the song’,” Banta explained. 

The team then revealed that the cast would meet the band later at night. This got everyone excited. 

All the cast and production crew then took a ferry to the floating platform, where the band had already been filming scenes. 

“When we got off the boat, the first thing Chris Martin did was shake everybody's hand,” Banta said. “He was super friendly and really down to earth."

In the video, the cast danced and sang along with Coldplay as they performed their song on the floating stage. 

“He even got some of us to dance on stage and play the drums with the band as they were performing the song,” Banta said. “It was really surreal."

But for Turner, the night was not all smooth sailing, especially for his first time in cosplay. 

“Most of the time, it (the costume) was uncomfortable. It was so hot,” Turner confessed. 

“Day one, the wig, for me at least, was giving me the worst headache,” he said. “We're out on the floating platform and we're dancing – I was dying. But the show goes on, right?” 

DAY 2 – TURNER’S AQUARIUM SCENE 

The next day, on Jan 30, Turner filmed at an empty SEA Aquarium Singapore.

Turner said that he did not know what actions or scenes he would be filming until he met Mor on the day itself, who showed him some movements to try. 

The 26-year-old said that for the scenes that day, some were improvised and mostly only needed one take.

“We only had the place to ourselves for two hours, so we were on a time constraint as well,” he said.

DAY 3 – BANTA AND TURNER’S JEWEL CHANGI AIRPORT AND GARDENS BY THE BAY SCENE 

At 5am, Banta and Turner arrived at Jewel Changi Airport for their first scene together. 

After getting their makeup done, they immediately started filming the scene on the Canopy Bridge, where the co-stars walk to the middle and have their cosplay weapons touch.

Turner shared that the scene took longer than expected. 

“I think the problem was that Venus and I were supposed to be looking at each other the whole time, but we couldn't get our distance right,” Turner explained. 

At the shoot at Gardens by the Bay in the afternoon, many eyes were on the cosplay co-stars. 

“Because it's in a public open space, people started to gather and then suddenly, before you know it, there's a crowd of 100 people just watching you film,” Turner said.

KEEPING THINGS A SECRET 

Banta and Turner kept their Coldplay gig under wraps for one year. When the music video was released, their friends and family were pleasantly surprised. 

“When the video came out and I started posting on social media that I’m in it, everyone was just like ‘Huh? What do you mean? I didn’t know that you were part of it’,” Turner said.

The model said that he definitely wants to continue pursuing acting.  

“I realised even before Coldplay that I really enjoyed acting – the whole being on set, playing a character was just really fun for me,” said Turner, who is signed with Now Models Management, a modelling agency in Singapore. 

For Banta, she said that the video has been the only thing her family and friends talk about. 

“I’m still trying to process everything. The support has been unbelievable,” she said. “It just makes me feel so warm that everyone is genuinely surprised at this collaboration.”

The cosplayer said that the Coldplay gig was something way out of her comfort zone and it set a bar to what she was capable of accomplishing. 

She said: “That means I can aim to go somewhere higher, as ambitious as it is. The sky’s the limit.”