Film.Music.Media

Composer Interview: John Ottman (June 13, 2014)

The extremely fun and informative John Ottman chats in detail about his scoring and editing process for X-Men: Days Of Future Past. John is completely open when he talks about his career as an editor for Bryan Singer. We talk about how he separates the editing and scoring process. Also, John discusses what it's like being the first composer to actually return to the X-Men franchise and bring the first note of continuity back to the score with his themes. We also delve into a tiny tangent about Lake Placid when the upcoming Blu-ray release is brought up. It was such a fun pleasure to listen to John fully disclose his process and speak on his amazing work.
Interview Conducted By:Kaya Savas
Special Thanks:John OttmanRay CostaAlbert TelloCosta Communications

Composer Interview: Sean Callery (June 13, 2014)

Emmy-winning composer, Sean Callery takes some time to chat about his work on the return of Jack Bauer in 24: Live Another Day. We discuss essentially returning to the show and picking up where the end of the series left off. Sean reflects on the 24 series from the start up till the point, and what it's like to have a project be in your life for that long. We also discuss Homeland and Elementary, plus Sean compares and contrasts his processes for these different series. Sean always gives the most fantastic and informative chats, and this one is no different. Enjoy!
Interview Conducted By:Kaya Savas
Special Thanks:Sean CalleryJana DavidoffAshley PattersonCW3PR

Composer Interview: Toby Chu (May 6, 2014)

Toby Chu takes some time to talk about his recent score to the new star-studded animated feature Legends Of Oz: Dorothy's Return. Toby's story of his journey to his film composing career is a fascinating one. He talks about how he discovered music and what led him to finally get to Los Angeles and by chance getting a job with Hans Zimmer's company (Media Ventures at the time). This led to working as an additional composer on many of Harry Gregson-Williams' scores, and being an essential part of Harry's team at Wavecrest Studios. Toby talks about his own process as well on show's like Covert Affairs and Burn Notice. With Burn Notice, Toby came into the series run late in the game and had to hit the ground running which is fascinating to learn about. We of course also discuss Legends Of Oz and how Toby wanted to approach his version of Oz plus getting the rare opportunity to write an overture for the film, an almost non-existent thing in films these days. All in all, Toby gives an incredibly in-depth and personal interview that really illuminates his talents as a composer.
Interview Conducted By:Kaya Savas
Special Thanks:Toby ChuEmilie ErskineCW3PR

Composer Interview: Jeff Russo (May 6, 2014)

Composer Jeff Russo is behind the music to the critically acclaimed and popular new series Fargo on FX. Jeff shares about his background and how he came to film and TV scoring. We dive into his process for Fargo, which sees him continuing his collaboration with showrunner/writer and creator Noah Hawley. The process for Fargo was so interesting as Jeff explains he wrote a majority of all the music to script before production. He discusses how he embraced the tone and world created by Carter Burwell's score to the film but aimed to flesh out an entirely new world. We chat about balancing the dark humor and heavy emotional weight of the series as well. A very fascinating interview with a fantastic composer who is doing amazing work on one of the best series on television right now.
Interview Conducted By:Kaya Savas
Special Thanks:Jeff RussoJana Davidoff-MorrisonCW3PR

Composer Interview: Noah Sorota (April 25, 2014)

Composer Noah Sorota takes some time to talk about his scores to the hit series Falling Skies and the action suspense thriller Jinn. Noah talks about his amazing path to film composing including working for Hans Zimmer as a programmer and arranger on some of Hans' biggest scores. He goes into detail about the technical work he did, which in turn taught him a lot about the intricacies of the business that he now carries on in his own successful career. He also shares how Steven Spielberg hired him for Falling Skies, and how his music has evolved over the course of 4 seasons. We discuss his scoring process for Jinn as well, and how the movie was essentially recut and how he had to replace his own score for the new tone of the film. Noah is such a great talent and it was a pleasure to speak with him.
Interview Conducted By:Kaya Savas
Special Thanks:Noah SorotaChandler PolingLiz CookeWhite Bear PR

Composer Interview: Henry Jackman (April 11, 2014)

Henry Jackman is one of the busiest and most versatile film composers working today. His style is distinct and his range is impressive. Projects like Wreck-It Ralph, This Is The End, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, Turbo, Captain Phillips, Winnie The Pooh, X-Men: First Class and Kick-Ass all show his ability to tackle any genre. Henry is now the composer behind Captain America: The Winter Soldier and has crafted a finely tuned machine of a score. We chat about how he got involved on the project and what his stylistic approach for the film was. Henry addresses all the internet responses to his heavy use of electronics in the score and why some people may find it jarring. We discuss how he went about crafting the electronic sounds and textures of the score including the menacing Winter Soldier motif. Henry talks about how certain German electronica bands helped influence some of the structures in his music here as well as finding places to interject traditional orchestral moments. Henry always gives the most insightful interviews and this one is no different.
Interview Conducted By:Kaya Savas
Special Thanks:Henry JackmanRay CostaAlbert TelloCosta Communications

Composer Interview: Sergio Mendes (April 9, 2014)

Sergio Mendes is a true music legend. He is one of the most iconic musical figures and is responsible for ushering Brazilian music to a worldwide audience. Sergio Mendes has had an amazing career, but here we focus on his work for Rio 2. Sergio served as Executive Music Producer on the Rio films as well as a songwriter. We discuss his collaborative process with composer John Powell and how his work with the songs worked hand in hand with the score. Sergio discusses when in the production process does the songwriting start, and how do they fit into the narrative. We also discuss the importance of exposing people, especially children to different musical cultures which the Rio films most definitely do. His work on Rio 2 infuses Brazilian culture into the story to bring everything to life. Sergio Mendes is continually keeping busy, and it was an honor that he was able to chat for a bit.
Interview Conducted By:Kaya Savas
Special Thanks:Sergio MendesJeff SandersonDan BarryChasen & Company

Composer Interview: Silas Hite (April 1, 2014)

The versatile and talented Silas Hite takes some time to chat about his work as a film, TV, game and media composer. Silas is truly a composer who has mastered adaptability in his artistic output early in his career. He shares how he started working closely with his uncles, Bob Mothersbaugh and Mark Mothersbaugh. Silas shares his unique approach to music as well as to his passion for drawing, which as seen his artwork featured in many gallery exhibitions. We talk about if music and drawing come from the same place as well as if one medium can express things the other can't. Silas also discusses his extensive work in commercials and how commercials are a great experience for a composer. Plus we explore his upcoming projects and how he likes to keep things diversified. Silas is definitely an amazing voice in the industry and it was a pleasure to chat with him for a bit for this wonderful interview.
Interview Conducted By:Kaya Savas
Special Thanks:Silas HiteChandler PolingWhite Bear PR

Composer Interview: Tom Holkenborg [Junkie XL] (March 2, 2014)

Junkie XL (aka Tom Holkenborg) is a multi-talented instrumentalist, producer, arranger and composer. His background is a very unique one as he comes from both traditional and modern electronic approaches to music. Junkie XL has made a name for himself with a few notable solo albums as well as his collaborations with musicians and remixes. He recently began collaborating with Hans Zimmer and has worked on quite a few of Hans' scores such as Man Of Steel and The Dark Knight Rises. His solo composing credits include Paranoia, 300: Rise Of An Empire and Divergent. In this interview Junkie XL talks about his background, how he came to music, how he approaches music and so much more. We chat about 300: Rise Of An Empire, Divergent and he shares a little bit of Mad Max: Fury Road which is his next big project. Junkie XL is also part of the co-composing group Hans Zimmer put together for The Amazing Spider-Man 2 including Pharrell Williams and Johnny Marr. Tom is a truly unique talent and it was fascinating getting to hear about his process.
Interview Conducted By:Kaya Savas
Special Thanks:Tom HolkenborgRay CostaAlbert TelloCosta Communications

Composer Interview: Edwin Wendler (February 25, 2014)

Composer Edwin Wendler has quickly made a name for himself scoring some supremely engaging scores like Escape and The Right To Love: An American Family. He has also worked with some big-name composers like John Ottman, Stephen Trask and Paul Haslinger doing arranging, orchestrating and additional composing. For this interview Edwin shares about how he got started in music and eventually moved to Los Angeles to pursue film scoring. He shares about his techniques and approaches to some of his recent scores. Edwin also shares what he's learned while working with great composers like John Ottman, most recently as an additional composer on John's score to the blockbuster Non-Stop starring Liam Neeson. A truly great interview with an enormous talent.
Interview Conducted By:Kaya Savas
Special Thanks:Edwin WendlerPeter Hackman