Jeff Scher Gives Animated Treatment To Unreleased Tom Petty Track

The video for Tom Petty’s previously unreleased track, “Never Be You,” finds its perfect visual partner in American indie artist Jeff Scher.

Known for his distinctive animation style, Scher brings a vivid and emotionally resonant interpretation to Petty’s themes of longing, lost love, and the struggle to move forward.

Using rotoscope techniques and a tactile blend of markers and crayons, Scher creates a visually dynamic narrative. His chaotic yet deliberate collage of source imagery — drawn from films and archival footage — transforms into a mesmerizing kaleidoscope of emotion, reflecting the transient and multifaceted nature of love and desire.

Says Scher:

I use everything, pens, pastels, crayons, inks, pencils, pretty much anything that’ll make a mark on paper. I work on 4.5 x 6” Acme-punched paper. My rotoscope is now a digital projector on a copy stand. I keep a stopwatch going to race myself with each drawing. My animation stand is behind me, so I generally shoot as I draw to make sure it’s working. I have music loaded into the capture program (Dragonframe) so I can really see and hear where I am as the shot builds.

Scher’s animation not only captures the song’s essence but enhances it, turning Petty’s poignant lyrics and melodies into an immersive visual experience. “This song is a sad song about love lost,” Scher added. “I knew I’d want to anchor it with Tom, and then support the lyrics with a montage of unkissing. I shot/found couples kissing, but used the shots backwards; so they un-kiss, and it feels very different.“

Scher is a celebrated painter and experimental filmmaker whose work is housed in prestigious collections such as the Museum of Modern Art and the Hirshhorn Museum. His films have been featured globally, with showings at the Guggenheim and the New York Film Festival.

“Never Be You” was supported by Universal Music and the Tom Petty Estate.