The high notes

IN FOCUS WSA 2021 NOMINEES

This year, the WSA has opened four of its competition categories to documentary composers, and the nominees are a truly eclectic group. Nikki Baughan profiles the musicians in the running

TV composer of the year

Since it was established in 2016, this award has recognised the craft of scoring for high-end TV. Last year’s winner was Nicholas Britell for Succession; he is nominated again this year for The Underground Railroad and, alongside his fellow composers, for best original song for Cruella’s ‘Call Me Cruella’.

Christophe Beck (Canada)

WandaVision

Prolific Canadian composer Beck has created scores for films including Free Guy, Ant-Man and Frozen, and TV shows including Buffy The Vampire Slayer. He is nominated here for his WandaVision score, which also has a Primetime Emmy nomination.

Nicholas Britell (US)

The Underground Railroad

Britell — a WSA discovery of the year in 2017 — was Oscar-nominated for his scores for Barry Jenkins’ Moonlight and If Beale Street Could Talk, the latter of which combined with Vice to win him WSA film composer of the year in 2019. He is nominated here for his work on Jenkins’ The Underground Railroad, after winning last year for season two of Succession. Ludwig Göransson (Sweden)

The Mandalorian

Göransson’s collaborative relationship with director Ryan Coogler has resulted in scores for Fruitvale Station, Creed and Black Panther, for which the Swedish composer won an Oscar and a Grammy. After previously scoring features such as Christopher Nolan’s Tenet and TV shows including comedy New Girl, he is nominated here for his work on season two of Disney+’s The Mandalorian.

Natalie Holt (UK)

Loki

National Film and Television School-trained UK composer Holt has provided music for films including Pin Cushion and Journey’s End (which she co-scored with Hildur Gudnadottir) and TV shows such as Victoria (for which she was nominated, along with her co-composers, for a Primetime Emmy), Wallander and Deadwater Fell. She is nominated here for her score for Disney+’s Loki.

Carlos Rafael Rivera (US)

Hacks (season one); The Queen’s Gambit

Rivera’s score for Netflix hit The Queen’s Gambit secured him a Primetime Emmy nomination this year. It now joins his work on the first season of HBO Max drama Hacks to see him in the running for WSA TV composer of the year.

Film composer of the year

This award is given to the composer judged to have created the best film music in the last year, for feature or documentary, either as an individual score or a body of work. Last year’s winner was Hildur Gudnadottir for Joker.

Nainita Desai (UK)

American Murder: The Family Next Door; Persona: The Dark Truth Behind Personality Tests; The Reason I Jump

Documentary composer Desai (who scored the Oscar-nominated For Sama) is recognised for her work on a trio of non-fiction films, including Jerry Rothwell’s Sundance audience award winner The Reason I Jump. Desai is also nominated in the discovery of the year and public choice categories.

James Newton Howard

(US)

News Of The World; Raya And The Last Dragon

Having previously won the category in 2008 — when he was recognised for Charlie Wilson’s War, Michael Clayton and I Am Legend — Howard is this year nominated for his scores on two very different films: Paul Greengrass’s western News Of The World and Don Hall’s Disney animation Raya And The Last Dragon.

Emile Mosseri (US)

Kajillionaire; Minari

US composer Mosseri received an Oscar nomination for Lee Isaac Chung’s Minari, which is also recognised here alongside his work on Miranda July’s heist comedy Kajillionaire.

Daniel Pemberton (UK)

Enola Holmes; Rising Phoenix; The Trial Of The Chicago 7

Winner of the 2014 discovery of the year award, Pemberton’s score for Aaron Sorkin’s The Trial Of The Chicago 7 was nominated for an Oscar. It joins an impressive recent body of work, which has secured him a third WSA film composer of the year nomination.

Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross & Jon Batiste (US)

Soul

Nominated last year in the best TV composer category for their work on HBO’s Watchmen, Reznor and Ross now join Batiste in a nomination for their Oscar-winning soundtrack for Pixar’s Soul.

Public choice award

Film music fans vote for this award, which is now open to feature and documentary scores. Last year’s winner was Alfonso G Aguilar for Netflix animated feature Klaus.

Nainita Desai (UK)

The Reason I Jump

The first documentary composer to be nominated for WSA film composer of the year, Desai is also in the running for discovery of the year for this experimental score.

Susan DiBona (US) & Salvatore Sangiovanni

(Italy)

Bad Habits Die Hard

Collaborators DiBona and Sangiovanni are in the running for their score to Italian comedy Bad Habits Die Hard.

Benji Merrison (UK)

SAS: Red Notice

UK composer Merrison has worked on TV shows such as Tin Star and Victoria; his nod here is for his first feature, Netflix actioner SAS: Red Notice.

Amelia Warner (UK)

Wild Mountain Thyme

UK actor/musician Warner composed the score for Haifaa Al Mansour’s Mary Shelley, for which she was nominated for WSA discovery of the year. Her nod here is for John Patrick Shanley’s romantic comedy Wild Mountain Thyme.

Ralf Wengenmayr (Germany) & Marvin Miller

(Germany)

Jim Button And The Wild 13

Wengenmayr and Miller were also nominated for best score at the German Film Awards for this family adventure.

Best original song

This award recognises the best original song used in a film or TV series. The 2020 winner was ‘Stand Up’ from Harriet, by Joshuah Brian Campbell and Cynthia Erivo.

‘Call Me Cruella’ (Cruella) The title track for Disney’s Cruella is a collaboration between US songwriters Nicholas Britell, Steph Jones, Jordan Powers and Taura Stinson, and the UK’s Florence Welch.

‘Fight For You’

(Judas And The Black Messiah)

This collaboration between US songwriters H.E.R (Gabriella Sarmiento Wilson), Dernst Emile II and Tiara Thomas won the Oscar for best original song this year.

‘Hear My Voice’

(The Trial Of The Chicago 7)

This Oscar-nominated song is written by UK composer Daniel Pemberton — who is also nominated for film composer of the year — and US-UK singer-songwriter Celeste Waite, who performs the track.

‘Husavik (My Hometown)’

(Eurovision Song Contest: The Story Of Fire Saga)

This collaboration between US songwriter Savan Kotecha, Swedish composer Rickard Göransson and Fat Max Gsus is performed by star Will Ferrell and Molly Sanden (although Rachel McAdams appears to be singing on screen).

‘Loyal Brave True’ (Mulan) UK composers Jamie Hartman, Harry Gregson-Williams and Billy Crabtree team up with Israel’s Rosi Golan for this composition, performed by Christina Aguilera.

‘Rain Song’ (Minari) US composer Emile Mosseri was nominated for an Oscar for his score for Lee Isaac Chung’s Minari. He is also in the running for WSA film composer of the year.

Discovery of the year

This award goes to a composer who has had a breakthrough year on the international stage, and is now open to feature and documentary score composers. Previous winners include Bryce Dessner (The Two Popes) and Michael Abels (Us). The winner will be invited to perform their score at next year’s Film Fest Ghent.

Gavin Brivik (US)

Wild Indian

US composer Brivik won the WSA Sabam award for best original composition by a young composer in 2017. He is nominated here for his work on thriller Wild Indian, which premiered at Sundance in January.

Nainita Desai (UK)

The Reason I Jump

Desai, who has been composing for documentary film for several years, is nominated in this category for her experimental score for autism doc The Reason I Jump. She also receives nods in the film composer of the year and public choice categories.

Florencia Di Concilio

(Uruguay)

Calamity, A Childhood Of Martha Jane Cannary

Montevideo-born Di Concilio is nominated for her score on Rémi Chayé’s animated film, which won best feature at this year’s Annecy film festival.

Natalie Holt (UK)

Infidel

UK composer Holt is nominated here for her score on Infidel, and in the TV composer of the year category for Disney+’s Loki. She had a Primetime Emmy nod for TV series Victoria, and recently composed the score for Phyllida Lloyd’s feature Herself.

Anthony Willis (US)

Promising Young Woman

Willis also received a Bafta nod for Emerald Fennell’s revenge thriller. His credits include additional music for features including Solo: A Star Wars Story.

Best original composition by a young composer

The Sabam award is a composition contest, with talents under the age of 36 invited to write a symphonic score for an excerpt from a selected film or TV series. The winner is chosen by a professional jury headed by maestro and Film Fest Ghent music director Dirk Brossé.

Dougal Kemp (UK) London-born Kemp joined the Lyon National Superior Conservatory of Music and Dance in 2019 after achieving a film music master’s degree. He is interested in composing many different styles of music and for different film genres. Matthew Lucado-Donner (US) California-born Lucado-Donner originally wanted to be a singer, but turned his attention to composing after losing his singing voice to vocal nodules. Now pursuing a professional career in composition, he is particularly inspired by his longstanding passion for jazz.

Prokhor Protasov (Russia) Russia-born Protasov served as conductor-in-residence of the Vyatka Symphony Orchestra (2015-18), after studying choral conducting and composition at the Moscow State Tchaikovsky Conservatory. He was also awarded a Fulbright scholarship to study orchestral conducting at New York’s Bard College Conservatory of Music, and studied under renowned composer Christos Hatzis at the University of Toronto.