Here's What Taylor Swift's 'All Too Well' Short Film Truly Means: 'It Turned Into Bruised Adulthood'

Taylor Swift offered a more heartbreaking explanation of how she created her hit short film, "All Too Well: The Short Film."

Following the success of her song "All Too Well," Swift gave birth to its short film version, which she wrote and directed. Sadie Sink and Dylan O'Brien were the main stars of the flick, but the pop star also appeared in it.

The video, which now has 80 million views, was released in November 2021.

Speaking in a new interview with director Martin McDonagh for Variety, the "Shake It Off" hitmaker revealed more details about her directing "All Too Well: The Short Film."

Deeper than the music video implies, Swift disclosed that she herself went through exactly what the short film shows. She noted that it was a hard story to tell, but she finished it proudly because she knew that "a story would be good if it were hard to tell."

"I think there's a moment when you're 19 or 20 where your heart is so susceptible to just getting broken, getting shattered, and your sense of self goes out the window so quickly, and it's such a formative age," she said. "I wanted to tell that story, too, about sort of girlhood calcifying into this bruised adulthood."

Swift's painful memory led her and the short film to score several accolades. The singer won the MTV Video Music Awards' Video of the Year, Best Longform Video, and Best Direction. She also won MTV Europe Music Awards' Best Video and Best Longform Video; and American Music Awards' Favorite Music Video.

She and Saul Germaine are up to win Best Music Video at the Grammy Awards next year.

The film was also screened at the Tribeca Film Festival and the Toronto International Film Festival.

Taylor Swift Scores Directing Gig

After the success of "All Too Well: The Short Film," Swift will be working on her feature-length film directorial debut.

Searchlight Pictures announced on Friday that the 32-year-old would work on the original script she wrote for the project. PEOPLE obtained the official statement from the company, but further details about the film, including its plot and cast members, have not yet been disclosed to the public.

Ahead of the collaboration, Searchlight presidents David Greenbaum and Matthew Greenfield praised Swift and called her "once in a generation artist and storyteller."

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