Ariana Grande Shares ‘Brighter Days Ahead’ Behind-the-Scenes Video

Ariana Grande is spilling all the secrets from her Brighter Days Ahead short film. In a new behind-the-scenes clip, the pop star shares the touching concepts behind her dreamy visual, inspired by the 2004 indie classic Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. At the end of March, the singer released the short film in tandem with Eternal Sunshine Deluxe: Brighter Day Ahead, which featured six new tracks.

The visual showcased each deluxe track by pairing them with a memory for lead character Peaches, a role Grande reprises from her “We Can’t Be Friends” video. “When we are young sometimes we want to erase certain things or rewrite certain things that seem painful to us in the moment but when we grow older we would do anything to relive those moments,” Grande says, wearing a pink sweatshirt on the set of the film. “We’re so grateful for them and for how they made us who we are and helped us become who we are today.”

Grande also shared how her father, Edward Butera, played the “crazy doctor” who stitches Peaches back together. “It was his first time acting, ever,” the singer says before she continues to explain all of the vivid emotions and ideas portrayed in the film. “This is called when you have too many ideas and too many resources. It can go any which way,” Grande adds with a laugh.

At one point, Grande and Christian Breslauer, who co-directed the film with the singer, sit on the set of Peaches’ destroyed bedroom to further explain the film. “We think this is the right way to tie up the album,” Breslauer says. Grande agrees: “It’s my favorite album, you’re my favorite director, and these are my favorite videos, so we’re going to overdo it.”