Must Be Nice
About the Film
Must Be Nice opens with a vinyl record dropping onto a turntable, setting a nostalgic tone that carries through the entire piece. From there, the video moves through the quiet, often unseen process of making a song. Late nights in the studio. Bills piling up. Long walks to clear your head. The stillness of home after everyone has left.
Inspired by lyrics like “shout out to my ex, sorry for the stress, swear I did my best,” the visuals reflect the tension between chasing a dream and holding on to the people around you. The chorus, “must be nice to pretend,” echoes through moments that reveal the difference between how success looks from the outside and what it actually costs behind closed doors.
Rather than glamorizing the grind, the video sits with it. It lingers in the isolation, the repetition, and the small daily rituals that keep an artist moving forward. At its core, Must Be Nice is a portrait of resilience of choosing to keep creating, even when it asks more from you than you expected to give.
Director: Marlene Leyzaola
Producer: Marlene Leyzaola
United States // 2025 // Experimental // Los Especiales
2 minutes
About the Filmmaker
Marlene Leyzaola is a television producer and emerging filmmaker based in California. With over a decade of experience leading unscripted series for global platforms, she has built a career shaping culturally grounded storytelling across development and production.
Must Be Nice marks her first music video as a director, cinematographer, and editor, a deeply personal project created in collaboration with longtime creative partner William J. Sullivan and Paris Texas. Her work explores emotional interiority, resilience, and the unseen realities behind creative ambition.
Through her company Mesa de Masa, Marlene continues to expand her creative voice across mediums, blending documentary instinct with intimate visual storytelling.
