diff --git a/static/css/style.css b/static/css/style.css
index fa7722e..fbe8562 100644
--- a/static/css/style.css
+++ b/static/css/style.css
@@ -12,8 +12,9 @@
   --radius: 12px;
   --radius-sm: 8px;
   --shadow: 0 8px 30px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.5);
-  --font: "Inter", -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto,
-    Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;
+  --font:
+    "Inter", -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica,
+    Arial, sans-serif;
 }
 
 * {
@@ -95,7 +96,9 @@ header {
   color: var(--text-primary);
   font-size: 14px;
   outline: none;
-  transition: border-color 0.2s, box-shadow 0.2s;
+  transition:
+    border-color 0.2s,
+    box-shadow 0.2s;
 }
 .search-wrap input:focus {
   border-color: var(--accent);
@@ -166,6 +169,20 @@ header {
   object-fit: contain;
   background: #000;
 }
+.noise-canvas {
+  position: absolute;
+  inset: 0;
+  width: 100%;
+  height: 100%;
+  z-index: 1;
+  pointer-events: none;
+  opacity: 1;
+  image-rendering: pixelated;
+  transition: opacity 0.3s ease;
+}
+.noise-canvas.hidden {
+  opacity: 0;
+}
 .video-placeholder {
   position: absolute;
   inset: 0;
@@ -502,4 +519,4 @@ header {
 
 [hidden] {
   display: none !important;
-}
\ No newline at end of file
+}
diff --git a/static/js/app.js b/static/js/app.js
index f9158b5..845eec2 100644
--- a/static/js/app.js
+++ b/static/js/app.js
@@ -30,6 +30,7 @@
   });
 
   const player = document.getElementById("player");
+  const noiseCanvas = document.getElementById("noiseCanvas");
   const placeholder = document.getElementById("videoPlaceholder");
   const badge = document.getElementById("videoBadge");
   const badgeText = document.getElementById("badgeText");
@@ -50,6 +51,65 @@
   let sortMode = "oldest";
   let current = null;
 
+  // ---- Static noise canvas for loading indicator ----
+
+  var noiseCtx = noiseCanvas.getContext("2d");
+  var noiseAnimId = null;
+  var noiseRunning = false;
+
+  function noiseStart() {
+    if (noiseRunning) return;
+    noiseRunning = true;
+    noiseCanvas.classList.remove("hidden");
+    noiseAnimId = null;
+    noiseTick();
+  }
+
+  function noiseStop() {
+    noiseRunning = false;
+    noiseCanvas.classList.add("hidden");
+    if (noiseAnimId) {
+      cancelAnimationFrame(noiseAnimId);
+      noiseAnimId = null;
+    }
+  }
+
+  function noiseTick() {
+    if (!noiseRunning) return;
+    var w = noiseCanvas.width;
+    var h = noiseCanvas.height;
+    var rect = noiseCanvas.getBoundingClientRect();
+    // Render at reduced resolution (160px wide) for performance,
+    // CSS image-rendering: pixelated handles the upscale.
+    var targetW = Math.max(1, Math.min(160, (rect.width * 0.25) | 0));
+    var ratio = rect.height / Math.max(1, rect.width);
+    var targetH = Math.max(1, (targetW * ratio) | 0);
+    if (w !== targetW || h !== targetH) {
+      noiseCanvas.width = targetW;
+      noiseCanvas.height = targetH;
+      w = targetW;
+      h = targetH;
+    }
+    if (w === 0 || h === 0) {
+      noiseAnimId = requestAnimationFrame(noiseTick);
+      return;
+    }
+    var imageData = noiseCtx.createImageData(w, h);
+    var data = imageData.data;
+    for (var i = 0; i < data.length; i += 4) {
+      var v = (Math.random() * 255) | 0;
+      data[i] = v;
+      data[i + 1] = v;
+      data[i + 2] = v;
+      data[i + 3] = 255;
+    }
+    noiseCtx.putImageData(imageData, 0, 0);
+    noiseAnimId = requestAnimationFrame(noiseTick);
+  }
+
+  // Start noise immediately on page load (no video selected yet)
+  noiseStart();
+
   // ---- Prefetch helpers ----
 
   // Track already-prefetched URLs so we don't re-fetch
@@ -262,9 +322,11 @@
     player.src = clip.url;
     player.load();
 
-    // Start playback first, prefetch only after the video is actually playing
+    // Show noise while loading, stop when video starts playing
+    noiseStart();
     var prefetchDone = false;
     function onPlaying() {
+      noiseStop();
       if (prefetchDone) return;
       prefetchDone = true;
       player.removeEventListener("playing", onPlaying);
@@ -273,6 +335,7 @@
     player.addEventListener("playing", onPlaying);
     player.play().catch(function () {
       // Even if autoplay is blocked, still prefetch for when the user clicks play
+      noiseStop();
       if (!prefetchDone) {
         prefetchDone = true;
         player.removeEventListener("playing", onPlaying);
diff --git a/templates/index.html b/templates/index.html
index 5d7c6b0..d1146fb 100644
--- a/templates/index.html
+++ b/templates/index.html
@@ -4,7 +4,10 @@
     <meta charset="UTF-8" />
     <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0" />
     <title>TeslaCam Video Player</title>
-    <link rel="stylesheet" href="{{ url_for('static', filename='css/style.css') }}">
+    <link
+      rel="stylesheet"
+      href="{{ url_for('static', filename='css/style.css') }}"
+    />
   </head>
   <body>
     <!-- Header -->
@@ -56,6 +59,7 @@
       <section class="player-panel">
         <div class="video-stage">
           <video id="player" controls preload="metadata" playsinline></video>
+          <canvas id="noiseCanvas" class="noise-canvas"></canvas>
           <div class="video-badge" id="videoBadge">
             <span class="dot"></span><span id="badgeText">Front</span>
           </div>