Film.Music.Media

Composers Talk (2nd Annual Symposium)

Stories have the opportunity for international reach. This panel will explore how composers uplift stories that appealed to audiences in the U.S. and beyond, as well as share their unique journeys and perspectives.
Join Kevin Smithers, Sandro Morales Santoro, Dan Zlotnik, Camilo Froideval and Wei-San Hsu
We’ve partnered with our good friends at Impact24 PR once again for our 2nd Annual F.M.M Symposium! This is panel 3 of 3!

Music That Drives Stories (2nd Annual Symposium)

Music is a necessity in movies, television, and video games that serves as a plot device and a way to evoke emotion in the viewer. This panel dives into the process of creating unique scores for media and how it compliments and drives the story with J.D. Spears, Lewis Rapkin, Jonathan Snipes and Denise Santos.
We’ve partnered with our good friends at Impact24 PR once again for our 2nd Annual F.M.M Symposium! This is panel 2 of 3!

Composing Combos & Songwriting Duos (2nd Annual Symposium)

Explore prestige drama and children's entertainment through musical and scoring collaborations in this informative virtual panel with Rachel Charest and Aaron Bertram of Kids Imagine Nation, Antonio Naranjo and Meiro Stamm.
We’ve partnered with our good friends at Impact24 PR once again for our 2nd Annual F.M.M Symposium! Visit our YouTube Channel or Facebook page to view the video version.

Sharon Farber (Composer: Brainwashed - Sex-Camera-Power

Composer Sharon Farber joins us for this illuminating and fantastic All Access conversation where we take a look at her path to becoming a composer, her work in film and television, her concert work, and a deep focus on her new score to Brainwashed: Sex-Camera-Power.
Sharon will also be discussing her work on Brainwashed with director Nina Menkes on January 24th for an ASCAP Screen Time Conversation which is part of ASCAP’s annual Sundance Music Cafe. People can check that out by creating a free account at festival.sundance.org.
For this discussion, we focus on Sharon's versatile career and look at her general approach to both writing for the screen as well as writing for the concert stage. Sharon talks about her love for working with musicians and embracing everyone's personal voice and styles.
We then take a close look at her score to Brainwashed and how she had the rare opportunity to use an orchestra for a documentary score, and how working on the film opened her eyes to how film being told through the male perspective has objectified women for decades, and what the ripple effect of that is on society. This results in an amazing dialogue about the visual language of cinema and how women are portrayed onscreen, which is the central subject of the documentary as well.
Sharon is an incredible storyteller and one of the most talented composers working today, and she brings some amazing insight to the craft of composing.
A Film.Music.Media Interview | Produced & Presented by Kaya Savas

Rufus Wainwright (Songwriter: ”Secret Sister” from Rebel Hearts)

Rufus Wainwright is one of the most talented songwriters and performers working in music today. His musical upbringing helped shape him into a storyteller who works across songs, opera, theater and more. His music resonates with millions, with each of his albums being a true reflection of himself.
Rufus is also no stranger to having his work featured in films from original songs, covers and new performances. His recent original song "Secret Sister" was written for the incredible documentary Rebel Hearts. Rebel Hearts tells the story of a group of nuns in in the 1960's that stood up against the patriarchy of the Catholic church to fight for freedom and equality. You can check out the documentary on Discovery+.
For this All Access we sit with Rufus for an intimate chat about his childhood growing up in a musical family, how he found his path as a songwriter, what it's like to perform live vs recording an album, writing for stage and screen vs crafting a song for an album, and much more.
We take a look at his approach for writing "Secret Sister" specifically and how he actually has a personal connection to the story. Rufus talks about the point of view of the song and what about the film inspired him.
Rufus is an artist that is true to himself, and his voice as a storyteller resonates with so many since his songs truly explore the human condition and never fail to emotionally resonate.
A Film.Music.Media Interview | Produced & Presented by Kaya Savas

Alan Silvestri (Music & Lyrics: Back To The Future - The Musical)

For our last All Access of 2021, Alan Silvestri joins us once again. This time to talk about Back To The Future: The Musical, The Witches, and how The Polar Express has become a holiday classic over the years.
Alan is one of our favorite guests and it's an absolute pleasure to have him for his third All Access on Film.Music.Media. In this episode we talk about the long journey to completion that Back To The Future: The Musical had, and what it took to adapt the iconic film for the stage. Alan also takes us into the process of adapting the score, and creating new music and lyrics with Grammy-winning songwriter Glen Ballard who he shares co-credit with.
We also look back at his score for Robert Zemeckis's The Witches, and what it was like to score the film during the pandemic. We also touch upon the lasting creative relationship that Alan has with Robert, and why the bond is still strong after all these years.
Alan also looks back at the lasting legacy of Back To The Future and what it means to him, as well as how he feels that The Polar Express has found its way to be a movie-watching tradition for many families during the holidays.
We hope you're watching or listening to this interview safe and happy as we near the end of the year, and look forward to more in 2022! Happy holidays and happy New Year!
A Film.Music.Media Interview | Produced & Presented by Kaya Savas

Dara Taylor (Composer: The Tender Bar)

Composer Dara Taylor is one of the brightest and most original voices working in the industry today. If you're a fan of Christopher Lennertz then you may recognize her name as she got her start working with Chris as part of his music team. In the years she has showed her versatility across all genres with projects like Echo Boomers, Little Ellen, Barb And Star Go To Vista Del Mar, and most recently she teamed up with director George Clooney for The Tender Bar starring Ben Affleck.
In this All Access get to hear Dara's journey from growing up and living in New York all the way to moving to Los Angeles, and how she got her foot in the door with her first jobs. We dive into her time working with Christopher Lennertz and everything she learned and carried into her career when she branched out and started taking solo projects. Also learn how she became connected with George Clooney and Grant Heslov that lead to her being hired for The Tender Bar.
Dara also takes us into her process including her approach to scoring The Tender Bar and how she had to navigate needle drops and create an overarching emotional thread through the narrative that leaned into the heartwarming tone that George Clooney was trying to capture.
A Film.Music.Media Interview | Produced & Presented by Kaya Savas

Matthew Margeson & Dominic Lewis (Composers: The King‘s Man)

Matthew Margeson And Dominic Lewis are taking their friendship to the next level and are working side by side to co-compose The King's Man from director Matthew Vaughn. You've seen them on All Access before, but now we're diving into their latest collaboration together.
Matt and Dom discuss how they met working for composer Henry Jackman early in their careers at Remote Control Productions. We talk about late night coffee chats at 3am, and how the two always wanted to co-compose a film together.
Matt and Dom then take us into the world of Matthew Vaughn's Kingsmen films, and how the two of them came onboard together to work on The King's Man. Hear about the approach of how this new film gave them the opportunity to really start fresh and not feel obligated to reference the other two films given that it's not connected by timeline or characters.
We end the interview by playing a little "Newlyweds" Co-Composer Edition! Matt and Dom are put to the test and see how much do they truly know about each other!
A Film.Music.Media Interview | Produced & Presented by Kaya Savas

Steve Jablonsky (Composer: Red Notice)

Composer Steve Jablonsky joins us once again for a new All Access interview. Steve recently re-teamed with director Rawson Marshall Thurber for Red Notice, which just recently became the biggest opening weekend ever for a film debut on Netflix.
We dive into Steve's score for Red Notice and talk about balancing tone to make sure the score is fun but still has weight and stakes. Steve talks about leaning into the genre of caper films and utilizing some elements in the score that give a great nod to the genre.
We also rewind the clocks a bit to discuss Steve's score to Bloodshot starring Vin Diesel, which came out right at the start of the pandemic.
Steve also shares his views about scoring a film for Netflix and what his take is on the debate of seeing films in a theater vs streaming at home.
A Film.Music.Media Interview | Produced & Presented by Kaya Savas

Gregory Tripi (Composer: Warning)

Composer Gregory Tripi takes some time to sit down for a fantastic All Access interview that explores his path to becoming a composer, working with composers like W. G. Snuffy Walden and Cliff Martinez, and taking us behind some of his most notable scores including his recent score to Warning.
Gregory explains his general approach to scoring, and what he loves about the collaborative process of filmmaking. We also chat about his two recent library music albums for Warner Chappell Music, and how the creative process differs when writing library music versus music direct to picture. We also discuss creating synth palettes and how Gregory envisions the sounds in his head no matter what instrument he's using.
A Film.Music.Media Interview | Produced & Presented by Kaya Savas