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World Soundtrack Awards Special 2020
FIL M FEST GE NT SPE CIA L
WORLD SOUNDTRACK AWARDS AT 20
Two decades orchestrating the foremost celebration of composers for screen
On the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the
WORLD SOUNDTRACK AWARDS
Film Fest Ghent devotes its annual film music album to all thirteen winners of the World Soundtrack Film Composer of the Year Award over the past two decades...
This special compilation album features newly recorded music, including previously unreleased pieces by Angelo Badalamenti, Nicholas Britell, Carter Burwell, Mychael Danna, Alexandre Desplat, Patrick Doyle, Michael Giacchino, Elliot Goldenthal, James Newton Howard, Alberto Iglesias, Jóhann Jóhannsson, John Williams and Gabriel Yared All tracks are performed by Brussels Philharmonic and conducted by Film Fest Ghent music director Dirk Brossé
The album is released on October 23 and can be pre-ordered from: shop.filmfestival.be and all good retailers
CONTACT
WORLD SOUNDTRACK AWARDS
Chorus of approval
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The talent behind the year’s most compelling music in film and television takes centre stage at the World Soundtrack Awards
EDITORIAL Editor Matt Mueller Supplement editor Nikki Baughan Americas editor Jeremy Kay Deputy editor Louise Tutt Reviews editor and chief film critic Fionnuala Halligan Asia editor Liz Shackleton Senior editor, online Orlando Parfitt Awards/box office editor Charles Gant Group head of production and art Mark Mowbray Group art director Peter Gingell Senior correspondent, Europe & Middle East Melanie Goodfellow Locations editor Chris Evans Reporter Ben Dalton Contributing editors Nikki Baughan, John Hazelton, Wendy Mitchell, Michael Rosser
n the 20 years since it was first founded, the World Soundtrack Awards (WSA) has showcased the art of music composition for the big and small screens, and celebrated the men and women who practice it to its highest standards. It has helped to shape and foster more awareness from audiences — and even within its own industry — that music created to accompany on-screen storytelling is as worthy of celebration and distinguished recognition as a great acting performance, a compelling script or magnificent direction. Held since the very beginning at Film Fest Gent in Belgium, which has been promoting music in film since the early 1980s, the WSA ranks as one of the world’s pre-eminent screen music events, every year attracting the leading lights of its profession. It is a place where screen composers can hear their music
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interpreted by the finest orchestras, conducted by the highly esteemed Dirk Brossé. The many renowned composers who have been honoured in Ghent over the years include Gabriel Yared, Alexandre Desplat (both being feted again this year), John Williams, Ryuichi Sakamoto and Hildur Gudnadottir, who last year won the WSA’s TV composer award for Chernobyl as well as the Oscar for Joker. This is, of course, a tricky year to be celebrating an anniversary, and like many other film and TV events in 2020 the WSA will be delivered online for the first time. But this also brings a silver lining — instead of 1,500 people in Ghent, the livestream on October 24 has the potential to reach many thousands more people all across the globe. It feels fitting the WSA has the opportunity to amplify its voice so proudly s in its 20th year. n Matt Mueller, editor
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02 Roaring twenty The World Soundtrack Awards celebrates two decades of musical excellence. 04 A vocal champion Film Fest Gent and its industry programme have become an essential fixture for those working in film music. 06 Meet the players The nominees for this year’s World Soundtrack Awards are an eclectic and international group.
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08 Soundtrack of our lives Guest of honour Alexandre Desplat has become one of the most celebrated, and prolific, modern composers. 09 In service of the story Lifetime achievement award recipient Gabriel Yared on what has shaped a 40-year career.
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11 Subject to change Positive action is being taken to attract diverse voices to composing for film and television. 12 Sound and vision Tamar-kali and Craig Armstrong — previous winners of the discovery of the year award — give an insight into their work and influences.
September 2020 | Screen International | screendaily.com
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IN FOCUS WORLD SOUNDTRACK AWARDS
Roaring twenty As the World Soundtrack Awards prepares to celebrate its 20th anniversary on October 24, Wendy Mitchell looks back over its two decades of musical excellence t was 2001, and Lebanese-French composer Gabriel Yared was celebrated at the first film music concert organised by the fledgling World Soundtrack Awards (WSA) in Ghent. His credits at the time included The English Patient and The Talented Mr. Ripley. Since then, the prolific Yared has scored a further 50 feature films and TV series. And he will return to Belgium this year to celebrate 20 years of the WSA and 20 more years of his own work, being honoured with the lifetime achievement award. Ghent-born composer and conductor Dirk Brossé was also there to conduct that concert in 2001, and has held the baton for all the editions since then. Brossé, who is now the music director at Film Fest Gent and chair of the WSA advisory board, remembers that first year with fondness. “We started quite innocent but with a big ambition,” he recalls. “We had no idea it would become a worldwide organisation that has grown so much.” There was already industry support for that inaugural event: John Williams accepted the composer of the year prize for A.I. Artificial Intelligence, while Craig Armstrong, still a rising talent, won the discovery award for his work on Kiss Of The Dragon and Moulin Rouge!.
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On a pedestal
The World Soundtrack Academy established the World Soundtrack Awards to fill a gap in the industry, becoming the first place where film music composers could take the spotlight and not be sidelined while the public and press fawned
over actors and directors. “In Ghent, with the WSA we were the first worldwide organisation that focused on film music,” Brossé says proudly. Film Fest Gent — or Flanders International Film Festival as it was then known — had been promoting music in film since 1985, but made it official in 2001, partly inspired by the success of a 2000 concert with Hans Zimmer. Twenty years later, there are many film music events around the globe — Krakow, Tenerife and Zurich to name a few. But the WSA, still held at Film Fest Gent, is seen as the gold standard.
‘When you take film music from the film, it can survive as an independent form of art’ Dirk Brossé, Film Fest Gent
It is also becoming popular for serious orchestras to play film music, which was not true back in 2001. “We wanted to show that film music, even when you take it from the film, can survive as an independent form of art,” says Brossé. “Now there is more awareness from composers that the music can have another life… they even write some cues that can be configured for a concert setting.” The WSA has grown in size as well as scope says Maggie Rodford, managing director of London and Los Angeles-based music company Air-Edel Group and a WSA advisory board member. “It has got big-
ger, but it’s also grown in its reach. Composers come in from all over the world now. It’s also grown in the amount of respect.” This is a challenging year to celebrate an anniversary. The awards and concert will be delivered online for the first time, livestreamed on October 24. This has a potential silver lining for Brossé: “Instead of the 1,500 people who usually come to Ghent, maybe now we can reach 1 million people online.” The concert — which will be pre-recorded without an audience — will include the compositions of last year’s discovery of the year recipient Michael Abels, followed by the work of Alexandre Desplat and Yared. Depending on travel restrictions, WSA organisers hope all three composers will be able to travel to Ghent. As usual, Brussels Philharmonic delivers the concert; this year, because of Covid-19 health measures, the number of musicians on stage will be capped at 50. “They are an amazing orchestra that really understands the language of film music,” Brossé says. “They play year after year with passion.” Brossé himself is also a selling point for the WSAs, says Rodford. “He brings such musicianship. It’s unique having a figurehead like that, who is respected by the composers. Many of these composers have never heard their music in a live setting, only a recording setting. Dirk manages to make them feel calm, has good suggestions and is always mindful of their creativity in their compositions.” As Yared has said, Brossé “is at the service of the composer and he does so wholeheartedly and most skilfully”.
September 2020 | Screen International | screendaily.com
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Luk Monsaert, Jeroen Willems
2 GUEST LIST WSA HIGHLIGHTS
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2017 Terence Blanchard performs his score for When The Levees Broke.
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2009 AR Rahman, recognised for Slumdog Millionaire, with lifetime achievement recipient Marvin Hamlisch.
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2011 Hans Zimmer and Johnny Marr perform music from Inception.
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2006 Evanthia Reboutsika, discovery of the year award winner for My Father & My Son.
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2013 Riz Ortolani, lifetime achievement award.
Brossé makes sure the composers receive the support they need, both logistically and emotionally. “We do everything for the composers. If they need a rare instrument we find it,” he says. “Ryuichi Sakamoto wanted to find original Chinese instruments — like an erhu and pipa — and we made it possible.” The home in Ghent, with its cobblestone medieval heart, is also very important for the friendly vibe of the WSA. “It’s a unique event because it’s on completely neutral ground, it’s not Hollywood or London,” notes Rodford. “It’s fantastic for the composers to have a forum to meet each other in a relaxed way. Even Brussels would feel too big.” As US composer Angelo Badalamenti has said of Ghent: “It is infused with an appreciation of culture and a wonderful human spirit.” Yet, this is a community that is not often brought together. As Rodford says: “It can be quite lonely for composers. People feel rejuvenated after having a conversation with someone they’ve always admired, or trading war stories.” Noteworthy moments
There have been many memorable occasions over the past 20 years. Badalamenti’s concert in 2008 was a personal highlight for Brossé. “At first it was difficult to convince him to come, but once we got him on stage, we couldn’t stop him playing the piano. He was moved to tears.” US trumpeter Terence Blanchard also delivered an emotional performance of his score to Spike Lee’s When The Levees Broke in 2017. “It was so moving hearing the score and also hearing him talk about his friends and family members who had suffered in the floods [of New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina in 2005],” says Brossé. Rodford suggests the newcomers can be just as impressive. Greek composer Evanthia Reboutsika won the discovery award in 2006 and came back in 2007 to perform on her violin. “Her performance was wonderful and wild, so full of energy. It was great to see her have
September 2020 | Screen International | screendaily.com
‘It can be lonely for composers. People feel rejuvenated after meeting someone here they admire’ Maggie Rodford, WSA advisory board member
that platform and be recognised more globally not just in Greece.” A key aim of the academy and awards is to support emerging talent. Michael Abels, who scored Get Out and Us for Jordan Peele, was named discovery of the year in 2019 and, as is custom, will return to Ghent this year to present a selection of his work. Past winners of the award include Nicholas Britell for Moonlight (2017) and Gustavo Santaolalla for 21 Grams (2004). The WSA also organises an annual composition contest for composers under the age of 36. The winner receives a cash prize and a professional recording of the composition, plus valuable exposure. This year’s competition received more than 100 submissions. The academy added the TV composer of the year award in 2016, conscious it must keep up with changes in the wider industry. The awards are voted on by more than 165 peers and are guided by the advisory board, which also includes experts such as music supervisor Randall Poster, WSA founders Marian Ponnet and Jacques Dubrulle, composer Michael A Levine, producer Robert Townson and more. Brossé knows the organisation can celebrate its 20th birthday while also looking ahead. “We have to open our minds and see what’s going on. If the focus is changing from writing for features to writing for TV, we can adapt. Netflix has fantastic scores, even with gaming there are wonderful scores. We will follow the new genres but we will s keep our own identity.” ■
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A vocal champion
Jeroen Willems
IN FOCUS FILM FEST GENT
Film Fest Gent has become an essential fixture for those working in film music. Geoffrey Macnab finds out why, and what the 2020 edition holds
4 Moonlight filmmaker Barry Jenkins (left) and his composer Nicholas Britell (centre) in conversation
he World Soundtrack Awards (WSA) may be celebrating its 20th anniversary this year but Film Fest Gent, which hosts the event, has been championing film music since the mid-1980s. “It all started there [at the festival], at a moment when there was no attention and no appreciation for the work of the composers of film music or the sound design of the film,” says Marijke Vandebuerie, general manager of the festival. “Composers were glad to be invited because normally they were in the shadows. They weren’t used to being invited to film festivals.” Film Fest Gent and the WSA have played a major part in pulling film music into the spotlight. From the earliest editions of the awards, legendary composers such as Elmer Bernstein and Maurice
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Jarre were lured to Ghent, along with key industry figures such as Laura Engel, co-owner of powerhouse music agency Kraft-Engel Management. “What people loved about it, and still love, is that it brings [together] film music fans and composers and professionals in the industry,” says Engel of the festival, which has been a regular fixture for many of her clients including Angelo Badalamenti, Michael Abels, Gabriel Yared and Alexandre Desplat — the latter two are both honoured here this year. Engel also pays tribute to Dirk Brossé, the musical director of the WSA, who conducts the concerts. “For a lot of the composers, especially in the earlier days, it might have been the first time they had heard their scores performed live in concert in front of a full audience with an orchestra.”
‘The festival brings together film music fans and composers and professionals in the industry’ Laura Engel, Kraft-Engel Management
Now, composers will regularly become members of the World Soundtrack Academy, which champions film music through cultural and educational activities. They, and their publicists and agents, have come to see Ghent as a chance to network. “For the longest time, it was the only peer-recognised awards [for film music],” Chandler Poling,
September 2020 | Screen International | screendaily.com
co-founder and president of Los Angeles-based White Bear PR, says of the WSA. “It was an opportunity for people in the industry, composers, agents, PR executives, who are part of the film music family, to get together and celebrate.” “It’s not just the awards show,” adds Thomas Mikusz, co-founder of White Bear. “It has panels; it brings together the film music community. It brings the studio executives to Ghent, the agents, the publicists, the composers. For people who spend their whole year working alone in a studio, it’s a great way to exchange [ideas].” For Shawn LeMone, senior vice president, film and TV music/new media at the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (Ascap), the WSA points to the “deeper appreciation in Europe of film music as an art form than we
An open industry
(Right) Nainita Desai will discuss writing music for documentaries and join the diversity panel
Composer Ryuichi Sakamoto in Ghent; (right) Hildur Gudnadottir
score, and Hildur Gudnadottir, who won the prize for TV composer of the year for Chernobyl in 2019, are becoming more prominent in the industry. “We see more women composers rising in the ranks and getting more visibility,” says Poling. The industry events still take place live and some will be broadcast on the festival’s streaming platform as a response to the global pandemic. The World Soundtrack Awards will livestream from the
‘We are a perfect platform to match composers and sound designers with filmmakers’ Marijke Vandebuerie, Film Fest Gent
FILM FEST GENT INDUSTRY PROGRAMME The 20th anniversary industry programme is as rich as ever. Guest of honour Gabriel Yared is holding a seminar during which he will discuss his career. There will also be a Q&A featuring Yared and fellow guest of honour Alexandre Desplat. Other confirmed names for masterclasses and panels include composers Christian Henson, who will give a masterclass on orchestral programming, and Alfonso G Aguilar. As Film Fest Gent places added emphasis on documentary and film music, it is fitting that Nainita Desai will discuss writing music for documentaries; For Sama, which she scored, screens at the festival. This year’s industry panel on composer diversity — with Desai confirmed as a participant — could not be more timely. Alongside France’s Festival International du Film d’Aubagne and Poland’s Krakow Film Music Festival, Ghent is part of the InMICS Composers Lab, through which students study for a two-year international masters degree in composition for the screen. The industry programme allows students to join networking events and participate in a showcase screening to present their work. To follow the WSA livestream and find out more
about this year’s industry activities, visit worldsoundtrackawards.com
September 2020 | Screen International | screendaily.com
Joanne Davidson/Shutterstock
One subject under discussion now in film music, as elsewhere, is diversity. A high percentage of composers are still white males, a state of affairs that Ghent organisers are looking to address. Poling and Mikusz have seats on the board of the Alliance For Women Film Composers. They note that female composers such as Tamar-kali, who was named discovery of the year in 2018 for her Mudbound
Michiel Devijver
have in America. That is evident in the concerts and the excitement and reverence from the audiences. “[WSA] has been a very important opportunity for us to network not only with people in Europe but people, ironically, in LA where we come from,” LeMone adds. “We go to concerts together, and dinners; we have a waffle and a Belgian beer… we have experiences we can never have in LA.” “Composers work alone,” says Engel. “They’re very isolated. There aren’t many social gatherings [for them].” It makes them appreciate the conviviality of Ghent all the more. As part of WSA’s industry programme (see boxout), established professionals meet emerging composers during a speed-dating session. Los Angeles agents and publicists have the chance to discover composers such as Joep Sporck, the Dutch talent who has written trailer music for Incredibles 2 and Dumbo. The event is well placed to benefit from a global film industry changed by the streaming era. “We are experiencing entertainment from all over the world more easily and freely,” LeMone observes. “If you look at who is being nominated for awards, many are from outside the States. The art form is becoming truly international, which is one reason why it is so important for executives from Ascap to be [at the WSA].”
Kinepolis Ghent, and feature a prerecorded concert with music from Desplat, Yared and Abels. “I feel I can almost speak for every composer we work with,” says Poling. “They cherish these moments because they work so hard on this music. To have it performed and appreciated by an audience in a concert hall is a dream come true.” Vandebuerie makes a distinction: “We are not a film music festival; we are a film festival that focuses on music. We are a perfect platform not only to bring the film composers and sound designers together but to match them with the filmmakers, which is very important.” Looking to the 2021 edition, Vandebuerie and her colleagues are planning a matchmaking programme, a coproduction event with a musical slant that will bring together filmmakers who have new projects and composers ready to score them. A further goal is to extend the WSA’s reach across Africa and Asia. The festival’s continuing success can be measured against the number of film music events that have sprung up in its wake, be it Krakow Film Music Festival, the Hollywood in Vienna symphonic gala concert or Soundtrack Cologne, a conference for music and sound in film, videogames and media launched in 2004. Meanwhile, top concert halls in the US and Europe now regularly programme film music alongside their other events. “I definitely think [Film Fest] Gent was at the start of all that,” says Poling, “and it s has spread worldwide.” ■
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WORLD SOUNDTRACK AWARDS 2020 NOMINEES
Meet the players The nominees for this year’s World Soundtrack Awards are an eclectic and international group. Profiles by Nikki Baughan Discovery of the year Previous emerging talents to have won this award include Craig Armstrong (Moulin Rouge!) and Michael Abels (Us). The recipient is invited back to Film Fest Gent the following year to perform their winning score. Dascha Dauenhauer (Russia) Berlin Alexanderplatz
Dauenhauer’s work on Burhan Qurbani’s Berlin Alexanderplatz was named best original film score at the German Film Awards. Bryce Dessner (US)
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The Two Popes
Dessner, a Grammy Award winner and founding member of rock band The National, has worked on films including The Revenant. Tom Howe (UK)
A Shaun The Sheep Movie: Farmageddon
UK composer Howe has scored TV shows such as The Great British Bake Off and features including Professor Marston And The Wonder Women and Early Man. Daniel Lopatin (US)
Uncut Gems
Best original composition by a young composer This award is arranged as a composition contest, with talents under the age of 36 invited to write a symphonic score for a selected film or TV series. The winner is chosen by a professional jury. Hamish Ander (Australia) Melbourne-based Ander cites John Williams, Alan Silvestri and James Newton Howard as his influences, and has a particular passion for composing for an orchestra.
Best original song This award recognises the best original song that has been used substantively in the body of the film, or as the first song in the end credits. The 2019 winner was ‘Shallow’ from A Star Is Born, written by Lady Gaga, Andrew Wyatt, Anthony Rossomando and Mark Ronson. Randy Newman (US)
‘I Can’t Let You Throw Yourself Away’ (Toy Story 4)
Lopatin (aka Oneohtrix Point Never) has scored features including the Safdie brothers’ Good Time, for which he received the best soundtrack award at Cannes 2017.
Oscar and Grammy winner Newman is a fixture on Pixar movies and was Oscar-nominated this year for this Toy Story 4 original song, as well as for his Marriage Story score.
Christopher Willis (UK)
Elton John & Bernard JP Taupin (UK)
The Personal History Of David Copperfield
Willis won the International Film Music Critics Association’s award for best original score (comedy) in 2017 with The Death Of Stalin.
‘(I’m Gonna) Love Me Again’ (Rocketman)
The UK powerhouse composing duo took home this year’s Oscar for best original song for this centre
Louis Edlinger (Germany) Having studied composition for film and theatre at Zurich University of the Arts, Munich-based Edlinger is now a freelance film composer and has most recently worked on TV shows The Unlisted and Itch. Ana Kasrashvili (Georgia) An attendee of the 2017 Ascap Film Scoring Workshop in LA, where she scored a three-minute orchestra cue for Doctor Strange, Kasrashvili has since composed for Veronika Kurz’s short film Flow and trailer music for Giga Agladze’s The Other Me.
piece to Dexter Fletcher’s Elton John biopic Rocketman. Kristen Anderson-Lopez & Robert Lopez (US)
‘Into The Unknown’ (Frozen II)
In 2014, this husband-and-wife composing team won the Oscar for best original song for ‘Let It Go’ from the original Frozen, and were nominated this year for this ditty from its celebrated sequel.
Film composer of the year This award is given to the composer considered to have created the best film music over the previous 12 months, either an individual score or a body of work. Last year’s winner was Nicholas Britell (If Beale Street Could Talk and Vice), who is this year nominated in the TV category for season two of Succession.
Alexandre Desplat
(France) Little Women; An Officer And A Spy; Adults In The Room
This year’s WSA guest of honour, the prolific Desplat is also nominated for his three most recent scores: Greta Gerwig’s Little Women, Roman Polanski’s An Officer And A Spy (J’Accuse) and Costa-Gavras’s Adults In The Room.
Regina Spektor (Russia) ‘One Little Soldier’ (Bombshell)
Russia-born Spektor has contributed songs to features including Kubo And The Two Strings and Bombshell, and TV shows such as Orange Is The New Black. Joshua Brian Campbell (US) & Cynthia Erivo (UK)
‘Stand Up’ (Harriet)
Campbell and Erivo were Oscar-nominated for this composition in Kasi Lemmons’ Harriet; Erivo also got a best actress nod.
September 2020 | Screen International | screendaily.com
Hildur Gudnadottir (Iceland) Joker
Having won the 2019 WSA award for TV composer of the year for her work on Chernobyl, Gudnadottir returns with a nomination in the film category for her Oscar-winning score on Todd Phillips’ Joker.
TV composer of the year
Thomas Newman (US) 1917
Nominated for 15 Academy Awards for such scores as The Shawshank Redemption (1995), Wall-E (2009) and 1917 (2020), Newman will next make music for Steven Soderbergh’s comedy Let Them All Talk.
Created in 2016, the WSA award for TV composer of the year recognises the craft of scoring for high-end episodic television. The inaugural winner was Jeff Beal for House Of Cards, and last year’s recipient was Hildur Gudnadottir for her work on Chernobyl. Lorne Balfe (UK)
His Dark Materials
UK-born Balfe has scored features including The Florida Project, Gemini Man and several Mission: Impossible films, and won a Grammy for his contribution to The Dark Knight soundtrack in 2009. A WSA discovery award nominee in 2009, Balfe is nominated this year for his work on the BBC fantasy drama His Dark Materials. Nathan Barr (US)
Benjamin Wallfisch (UK)
It Chapter Two; The Invisible Man
UK-born Wallfisch has become a go-to for US filmmakers, scoring features including It (2017) and its 2019 sequel, Shazam! (2019) and The Invisible Man (2020).
John Williams (US)
Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker
An icon in his field, Williams holds the record for most Oscar nominations for a living person (52), winning for Fiddler On The Roof (1972), Jaws (1975), Star Wars (1977), E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (1982) and Schindler’s List (1994).
The Great; Carnival Row; Hollywood
Barr’s credits include films such as Cabin Fever and The Last Exorcism, and TV shows True Blood and The Americans. He is nominated this year for Hulu’s The Great, Amazon Prime’s Carnival Row and Netflix’s Hollywood.
Nicholas Britell (US) Succession (season two)
A two-time Oscar nominee for his scores on Barry Jenkins’ Moonlight and follow-up If Beale Street Could Talk — which saw him named WSA discovery of the year and film composer of the year respectively — Britell also won a Primetime Emmy last year for his work on HBO’s Succession. Carter Burwell (US) The Morning Show
Oscar-nominated for his scores on Carol and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, Burwell has more than 100 composing credits to his name including In Bruges and Joel Coen’s upcoming Macbeth. He is nominated for his work on Apple TV’s inaugural drama The Morning Show. Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross (US) Watchmen
Nine Inch Nails duo Reznor and Ross have become in-demand composers for filmmakers as diverse as David Fincher (The Social Network, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, Gone Girl) and Susanne Bier (Birdbox). They are nominated for the score on HBO’s celebrated Watchmen.
Public choice award
Hannes De Maeyer
Film music fans from around the world are able to vote for the recipient of this award, with the winner being announced at the WSA ceremony. John Powell, who is nominated again this year, picked up the prize in 2019.
Alongside his nomination in the best original score for a Belgian production category (see above) for Torpedo, De Maeyer is also nominated for this year’s public choice award.
Alfonso G Aguilar (Spain) Klaus
Madrid-born Aguilar composed the score for Netflix’s Oscar and Bafta-nominated animated feature Klaus. His upcoming credits including the score for Carlos Saura’s musical film El Rey De Todo El Mundo.
(Belgium) Torpedo
John Powell (UK)
The Call Of The Wild
A 2011 Academy Award and Bafta nominee for How To Train Your Dragon and WSA public choice award winner in 2019 for How To Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World, Powell’s feature credits include Solo: A Star Wars Story and the Jason Bourne franchise.
September 2020 | Screen International | screendaily.com
Best original score for a Belgian production Recognising the growing popularity of Belgian cinema, this award is given to the composer of an original score for a major Belgian feature. Last year’s winner was Frédéric Vercheval for Olivier MassetDepasse’s Mother’s Instinct (Duelles). Vincent Cahay (Belgium) Adoration
A graduate of the Royal Conservatoire of Liege, Cahay is nominated for his score for Fabrice du Welz’s psychological drama Adoration. Hannes De Maeyer (Belgium) Torpedo
De Maeyer is a longtime collaborator of directing duo Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah (Bad Boys For Life), and created the symphonic score for Sven Huybrechts’ war epic Torpedo. Mauro Pawlowski (Belgium) Cleo
A key figure in the Belgian music scene, and the composer of music for theatre, dance, film and television, Pawlowski is nominated for his score for Eva Cools’ feature debut Cleo.
Lolita Ritmanis (US) Blizzard Of Souls
Ritmanis has received Emmy nominations for her work on animated TV projects including Justice League, winning a Daytime Emmy for Batman Beyond in 2000, and composed the symphonic score for 2019 Latvian drama Blizzard Of Souls. Joep Sporck (Netherlands)
Kruimeltje
Los Angeles-based Sporck studied at the Maastricht Academy of Music and has composed scores for Dutch and Belgian features including Diede in’t Veld’s Kriumeljte, as well as trailer music for Incredibles 2 and Dumbo.
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SPOTLIGHT WSA HONOREES
Soundtrack of our lives With multiple Oscar wins and awards under his belt, WSA guest of honour Alexandre Desplat has become one of the most celebrated, and prolific, modern composers. Dan Jolin reports
here can be few Hollywood composers who have worked harder this century than Alexandre Desplat. He has chalked up more than 160 scoring credits since the turn of the millennium, earning 11 Oscar nominations with wins for The Grand Budapest Hotel and The Shape Of Water. In a single year, he has been known to turn out as many as 10 scores. He is an artist who, it appears, is impossible to spread too thin. His achievements were apparent to the World Soundtrack Awards from early on, with Desplat given his first of five composer of the year prizes back in 2007 for Stephen Frears’ The Queen (a production Desplat joined at the last minute, having been parachuted in to replace its original composer). “I have been very lucky so far with the WSA,” he says, speaking from Spain, where he is working on George Clooney’s latest movie The Midnight Sky. “They’ve been very kind to me.” This year, as well as being a guest of honour for the WSA’s 20th anniversary edition, Desplat is nominated as composer of the year once more, for his work on three films: Greta Gerwig’s Little Women,, Roman Polanski’s An Officer And A J’Accuse) and CostaSpy (J’ Gavras’s Adults In The Room.. Three films that almost encapsulate Desplat himself. “You are right,” he says. “I hadn’t
Alexandre Desplat during sessions for Little Women
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David Giesbrecht
Alexandre Desplat
“a subconscious number of layers that built during my early years”. He cites as core inspirations listening to Mozart as a boy, watching Herbert von Karajan conducting on TV and seeing soprano Maria Callas perform with an orchestra. He also describes being overawed by the “incredible big scores” for Spartacus, Doctor Zhivago and Lawrence Of Arabia. “All these layers come together and you realise that’s what excites you,” he says. “The sound of the orchestra. The movements and the silhouette of the conductor. The blasting sound of the brass. The soft and tender sound of the strings. The distant sound of the flute. As well as the fact that when you watch movies, their music is always different. It could be jazz, it could be a full orchestra. I like that versatility.” Different beats
An Officer And A Spy
thought about it, but they capture who I am — half-French, half-Greek, with parents who gave me the values of America and the desire of becoming a Hollywood composer.” D e s p l a t ’s Greek mother and French father met at the University of Cal(Left) Saoirse Ronan in Greta Gerwig’s Little Women
‘American directors enjoy working with me because I have one foot in Europe and one in America’ Alexandre Desplat
ifornia and were married in San Francisco, before returning to Paris where their son was born in 1961. Desplat grew up on a staple diet of US cinema, playing piano from the age of five, then trumpet, then flute. The urge to focus his talents on cinema grew, he says, through
September 2020 | Screen International | screendaily.com
Desplat moves from US movies to European films, from intimate dramas to blockbusters, rarely pulling from the same bag of tricks more than once. “I think if I were giving a masterclass to a bunch of students, it would be fun to play one piece each from Little Women, J’Accuse and Adults In The Room and ask them who is the composer,” he laughs. “They’re so different. That’s what’s so fantastic about film composing.” After grabbing the attention of US filmmakers with the waltzes of 2003’s The Girl With The Pearl Earring, Desplat was treated in Hollywood like a hot new talent. However, by this point he had already worked on around 50 films in Europe. “I suppose that’s why American directors enjoy working with me, because they can see I have one foot in Europe and one foot in America,” he says.
SPOTLIGHT WSA HONOREES
‘My tendency is to take a step back and try to bring the invisible, not what is visible’ Alexandre Desplat
a step back and try to bring the invisible, not what is visible.” This approach — which Desplat insists must always start with images on the screen, rather than words in the script — has made him the go-to composer for some high-profile international filmmakers, including Wes Anderson, Guillermo del Toro, Stephen Frears and Clooney. “I am very lucky to have directors who I like come and ask me to write their scores because they think we can get along,” he says.
Much has changed in the industry since Desplat’s breakthrough in 2003. Yet he is nonplussed when asked how technological leaps or shifts in audience tastes have affected him. “Storytelling is as old as human beings,” he says, “and in 20 years I don’t think storytelling is much different. There might be more superhero movies, but there were moments in history when there were only westerns, or only science-fiction movies. When synthesisers arrived, people thought every score had to be electronic. And then orchestras came back. Trends come and go.” He insists he has never felt any pressure to change the way he works. “I do what I like to do, otherwise I would change jobs. I write music that I’m proud of, and I’m proud for the musicians to play.” When asked to choose a highlight from two decades of work, Desplat is unable to pick just one. “I could say that meeting John Williams was an incredible moment in my life,” he suggests. “Or winning my first Oscar. Or having Stephen Frears call me in 2007 for The Queen. Or Terrence Malick for The Tree Of Life. Or Roman Polanski for The Ghost Writer. There are all these people I’ve met who are great artists that I’m lucky to be working with. I couldn’t dream of a better s place to be.” n
Gabriel Yared
In service of the story WSA lifetime achievement award recipient Gabriel Yared tells Mark Salisbury that gut instinct and a traditional approach have been the bedrock of a 40-year career Gabriel Yared fter making his debut scoring JeanLuc Godard’s Every Man For Himself in 1980, French-Lebanese musician Gabriel Yared quickly established himself as one of Europe’s most versatile and in-demand film composers. “My musical language was, and still is, adapting to each film,” says the 70-year-old recipient of the World Soundtrack Awards’ lifetime achievement award. “I compose according to what I deem fitting and suitable. I don’t necessarily consider the taste of the audience, at least not consciously. I follow my musical instincts and feeling after reading the script and discussing intensively with the director.”
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Oscars.org
Desplat winning his first Oscar for 2014’s The Grand Budapest Hotel
Laurent Koffel
He elaborates: “In European cinema, the music is not meant to follow what is on screen. It’s meant to follow the psychology of the characters, or where the storyline is taking you. While in the past, American scores very much mimicked what was on screen. So by working on European movies, I have learned another way of doing that. Though I understand in some genres that I need to be more in synchronisation with the image, my tendency is still to take
September 2020 | Screen International | screendaily.com
Yared’s international breakthrough came in 1986 with his jazz-pop fusion for Jean-Jacques Beineix’s arthouse smash Betty Blue — a score that cost around $20,000 to produce. “I only had three musicians, plus myself, and the demos were shared with the actors and the rest of the crew,” Yared recalls. “Everybody knew my music by heart during the shooting and would hum along. It was a real work of love.” Hollywood then came calling, bringing with it increased budgets but also more demands. “I was used to working with a small budget, without a music editor,” he recalls. “The person who would determine whether my music was good or needed reworking was the director. In Hollywood, demos have to be approved not only by the director, but also by the producers and the
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SPOTLIGHT WSA HONOREES
(continued)
Jeroen Willems
Gabriel Yared
Gabriel Yared at the World Soundtrack Awards in 2014
distributor sometimes, unless the director and composer have a very close working relationship. In some way, the process becomes more industrial, as everybody has a say.” In 2004, Yared spent more than six months on Troy, recording his score with a 100-piece orchestra to the satisfaction of director Wolfgang Petersen and producers. But after a test audience said they did not like it, Yared was replaced. “I was upset and confused, as it was the first time it had happened to me,” he says. “I soon found out it was a common matter in Hollywood.” True collaborator
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When it comes to picking projects, Yared’s main criteria is “a mutual understanding and compatibility between me and the director. I write music mostly for the director rather than the film, so when there is harmony on a personal level, our professional collaboration can flourish.” His preference is to begin work before a frame of footage has been shot. “Godard didn’t want to show me any images, he simply told me the story. I soon realised this made sense and attempted to adapt it working with other directors. When I read a script or listen to the story, images appear and dance in my mind.” Yared’s working relationship with Anthony Minghella was one of the composer’s most rewarding. The pair met on a mobile-phone commercial in the early 1990s. “He was sitting there, looking like a little Bud-
dha, and we connected straight away,” recalls Yared. A few years later, Minghella called him about The English Patient. “He told me he was eager to work with me but the producer had other candidates in mind. Anthony came to see me, told me the whole story in great detail, and proposed I start writing a main theme.” The English Patient won both men Oscars, and their fruitful collaboration continued with The Talented Mr Ripley, Cold Mountain, Breaking And Entering and TV series The No.1 Ladies Detective Agency. “Anthony taught me how to appreciate and embrace film and cinema. He allowed me to adapt, be versatile, and explore many different styles.” Indeed, Yared’s versatility has seen him work in all genres, as well as animation, commercials, documentaries and TV. (Left) Ralph Fiennes in The English Patient, an early collaboration with Anthony Minghella
‘Technology is useful but should never replace the knowledge of proper music writing’ Gabriel Yared
“There’s no artistic differences,” he says. “I put all my skills and energy into my music even if writing for a 30-second ad. I love composing for documentaries, particularly those about nature.” Looking back at his 40 years in the business, Yared feels scores in general have become “less elaborate” because of the rush in which they are created, with composers having to write and record in a matter of weeks, often following a prescribed temp track. Yared still writes music the traditional way, “with pen and paper in order to visualise and develop the composition. Technology is extremely useful. However, it should never replace the knowledge of proper music writing. Music has evolved from the 16th to 20th centuries following the same rules of har-
September 2020 | Screen International | screendaily.com
mony, counterpoint and fugue, so there is no reason for me to ignore this writing film music.” A great score, he says, is the perfect combination of five things. The first is a strong and memorable theme — “If you imagine music as a body, then the theme is the face”. Next, a unique sound “[like] the balalaikas in Doctor Zhivago, the cithara in The Third Man”. Then, an embellishing, appropriate and engaging orchestration and a refined fusion of image and story, and finally a director who understands the importance of music and gives it the right space to breathe and express itself. Yared’s relationship with the World Soundtrack Awards dates back to its inception in 2001 and he praises its contribution in helping launch the careers of many young composers via its discovery award. And while he admits to being thrilled and delighted with his lifetime award, he adds: “It is important to remain humble and always push forward. I spend a lot of my time reading and playing Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Debussy, and this makes me feel I s have a long way to go.” n
IN FOCUS DIVERSITY
Subject to change The composing of film and television scores may have been a traditionally white male domain, but positive action is being taken to attract new voices to the mix. Wendy Ide reports
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Jeroen Willems
n accepting the Oscar for best original score for Joker earlier this year, Hildur Gudnadottir put out a call to other female composers. “To the girls, to the women, to the mothers, to the daughters who hear the music bubbling within, please speak up. We need to hear your voices.” And, she says, the industry is ready to listen. “It seems there is a real energy for change. Now people are actively asking for female composers.” The stark statistics behind her impressive awards haul for Joker helped open the eyes of the industry to the inequalities of gender representation. She was the first woman to win an Oscar for best original score, one of only seven to ever be nominated. WSA also named her TV composer of the year in 2019 for Chernobyl. Michael Abels, 2019 winner of the World Soundtrack Awards’ discovery of the year prize for Jordan Peele’s Us, concurs there has been an explosion of opportunities for film composers from racially diverse backgrounds. “Films like Get Out, Black Panther and Crazy Rich Asians have shown diversity can be one of the components of success,” Abels notes. “Also, all of the platforms we have now means there is an incredible demand for content. Out of that restructuring comes opportunity for people whose stories haven’t been told, whose music hasn’t been heard. That’s very different from when I was coming up.” Although Abels had always “responded to music as a form of storytelling” and felt that writing music for film was a natural progression, he had never managed to get any traction in the industry. But opportunity came in the shape of
Hildur Gudnadottir was named 2019 TV composer of the year for Chernobyl
Michael Abels with his 2019 discovery of the year award
‘It seems there is a real energy for change. People are actively asking for female composers’ Hildur Gudnadottir
Jordan Peele. “He was looking for a composer who understood the dissonant harmonic language of 20th century orchestral music, but who also might have come from a background where he might understand the lead character of Get Out,” says Abels. “Between my music and me, he saw someone who could help tell that story.” For Gudnadottir, the traditional lack of diversity in film music was more to do with risk averse productions than active discrimination. “With film music — especially big productions — there are a lot of
intense stress periods, especially towards the end. So you really feel productions are not willing to take a chance on someone who has not done a big production before. The vibe I got was, ‘Can she handle it?’” Role models
Both Abels and Gudnadottir have found their respective successes have been a catalyst that has prompted composers from similar backgrounds to reach out. Abels says: “I had young people write to me [following Get Out] and say, ‘I see you, and you are like me and you inspire me.’ These were gifts and opportunities I was being presented with — I needed to answer that.” This prompted him to co-found the Composers Diversity Collective (composersdiversitycollective.org), a database and resource for the film industry to draw on. “If Hollywood is willing to fix the doorbell and allow people in, we have to help fix
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‘Incredible demand for content brings opportunity for people whose stories haven’t been told’ Michael Abels
the pipeline,” says Abels. “We’re here to say, ‘Let us build up your contact list with lots of diverse people.’ Not just African American and black, but Latino, Asian, South Asian.” Gudnadottir takes a similar view. “That’s the best way to change anything — just to see it’s possible. There’s no reason why women shouldn’t do this work. I compare it to my grandmother, who was the first female doctor in Iceland. In a time when women weren’t supposed to be doctors, my grandmother said, ‘Fuck that, if I want to be a doctor, s I’m going to be a doctor.’” n
IN FOCUS DISCOVERY WINNERS
Sound and vision The discovery of the year award highlights exciting new composing talent. Previous winners Tamar-kali and Craig Armstrong give John Hazelton an insight into their work and influences
Bas Bogaerts
amed by the World Soundtrack Awards as the discovery of the year in 2018 for her work on Dee Rees’s rural drama Mudbound, Tamar-kali has since scored features including Kitty Green’s The Assistant (2019), Josephine Decker’s Shirley and Dawn Porter’s documentary John Lewis: Good Trouble (both 2020). Since winning the same prize in 2001 after Moulin Rouge!, Craig Armstrong has become one of the most in-demand modern composers, working on films as varied as Taylor Hackford’s Ray (2004), Louis Leterrier’s The Incredible Hulk (2008), Oliver Stone’s Snowden (2016) and, most recently, Thea Sharrock’s The One And Only Ivan (2020).
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Tamar-kali
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Tamar-kali Returning to [WSA host city] Ghent [in 2019] and having my work presented and played by the Brussels Philharmonic under the conduction of maestro Dirk Brossé. Being pretty much an independent-style composer, I’ve often done small chamber pieces with local musicians; being able to hear an orchestra of that quality play your music was very exciting. Outside of that, [a highlight has been] getting to know other soundtrack composers and fans. It’s a very humble community that is filled with a lot of love for the art itself. Craig Armstrong The highlights of my film career are from my times working with Baz Luhrmann on The Great Gatsby and Oliver Stone on World Trade Center. I also recently worked on a beautiful movie by Adrian Noble called Mrs Lowry & Son. Other highlights have been creating some of my solo albums, like ‘Sun On You’ with the Scottish Ensemble, and my new album ‘The Edge Of The Sea’. The ability to work in films which then allow me to fund artistic projects like these albums is very special. Who are your influences, and which composers do you admire?
T-k I’ve spent 20-plus years as a performing and recording artist, coming up through the New York punk rock and hardcore scene and also being a classical choral singer, so my influ-
Luk Monsaert
What have been the highlights of your career since winning the award?
CA My influences are varied. I studied classical music from 1977 to 1981 at the Royal Academy of Music and my professor was Cornelius Cardew, who was a very experimental composer at the time. While studying in London I would also check out movies like Death In Venice and Don’t Look Now. Musical influences range from electronic and avant garde to French romanticism, particularly Ravel and Debussy. Scores I admire include The Reader by [2009 WSA discovery winner] Nico Muhly, Revolutionary Road by Thomas Newman and In Bruges by Carter Burwell. On the other type of very crafted film music, John Williams of course. And Ennio Morricone’s Cinema Paradiso is one of my favourites. Name a favourite recent score, by yourself or others.
T-k I enjoyed what Daniel Pemberton did with Birds Of Prey, because there was some synchronicity going on between what you would expect to be needle drop and what you would expect to be score. CA I like the scores I wrote for Dirt Music, The Burnt Orange Heresy and Mrs Lowry & Son. How has soundtrack composition been evolving?
Craig Armstrong
ences range from Berlioz to Bad Brains! When I stepped into this world of composing for film, [standouts] to me included the work of Zbigniew Preisner [the Three Colours trilogy] and Ryuichi Sakamoto [The Last Emperor]. But the landscape at present is filled with so much goodness. I’m enjoying the work of [2019 WSA discovery winner] Michael Abels [Get Out], Mihaly Vig [The Turin Horse], Jonny Greenwood [The Master], Laura Karpman [Lovecraft Country], Hildur Gudnadottir [Joker], Nainita Desai [For Sama], Daniel Pemberton [Spider-Man: Into The Spiderverse]… there’s a lot going on.
T-k As a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, people are really leaning in, listening and being creative outside the context of their specific artistic discipline. I’m hoping that can transform how the business of making music is done, especially for someone like me who has opted to stay where I’m from [New York] as opposed to going to Hollywood. In certain industries there are ways [of working] that monopolise the structure and the culture. [The pandemic] has torn that asunder. And that’s important, because you need a diversity of ideas and methods to have things really stay alive and grow, not be stagnant. CA It’s much more competitive and budgets are smaller but, as a composer, you should stick to what you want to hear and what the director is s looking for and you can’t go far wrong. ■ To view previous discovery winners, visit worldsoundtrackawards.com
September 2020 | Screen International | screendaily.com
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© Jeroen Willems
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