On October 30th, Snowstar Records will release a very special album by Remy van Kesteren. The renowned harpist composed and produced an alternative soundtrack to The Red Turtle – the 2016 movie from Studio Ghibli – made by Dutch animator, director and illustrator Michael Dudok de Wit. This album is the first solo harp album by Remy van Kesteren as well, and De Wit even made the artwork for the album and wrote liner notes specific to this release. Earlier this month, we spoke to Remy to get info and insight on his passion project. The album is a serene and hypnotic showcase of his talents which transport the listener…
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Interview…J.C. Chamboredon On the Legacy and Future of Milan Records
Founded over 40 years ago by Emmanuel Chamboredon, Milan Records has released the soundtracks to renowned and critically acclaimed classics such as Ghost and Backdraft. Scan your shelves – it’s a good bet that a sizeable chunk of titles bear the fanciful logo of the winged man with a heart-shaped head. Fitting image as that’s how I feel whenever I listen to a soundtrack. Since 2004, Jean-Christophe Chamboredon continues the legacy for his father who started Milan in 1978. In this week’s podcast, we got to speak with Chamboredon about the iconic company which was recently acquired by Sony Music Masterworks. This business venture offers even more opportunities to put…
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Interview…Genevieve Vincent on ‘The Broken Hearts Gallery’ and Charting Her Own Musical Course
Earlier this month, we got to have a wonderful chat with composer Genevieve Vincent about her work on film music, concert music, and as music producer. She most recently completed scoring the Sony romantic comedy The Broken Hearts Gallery and Moving Art “Hokkaido” for Netflix for which she wrote a Japanese inspired orchestral hybrid score. Born in Vancouver, BC, based in Los Angeles, Vincent studied the Suzuki violin method, and was a student of The Royal Conservatory of Music in Vancouver. She went on to attend Berklee College of Music where she graduated with a dual major in Film Scoring and Composition and studied privately under concert music composer Alla Elena…
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Interview…Alexander Bornstein on Transformers and the Sounds of Cybertron
Alexander Bornstein is an award-winning composer currently based in Los Angeles. His music can be currently heard in television, independent films, feature films, web series, and documentaries. Alexander has also been at the forefront of new multimedia platforms such as composing music for Doug Liman’s Invisible, one of the earliest series produced for virtual reality. Recent works include First to the Moon: The Journey of Apollo 8 and additional music for numerous TV series including The Boys and Lost in Space. He is currently scoring the upcoming Netflix Original Anime Series Transformers War for Cybertron Trilogy: Siege. Over the years, Alexander’s work has brought him through major music studios including…
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Interview…Blockbuster Podcast Team Takes A Deep Dive Into Season 2 and James Cameron
Over the years, one of the creatives we’ve been lucky enough to get to know is Matt Schrader. We first interviewed Matt back in 2016 while he was cooking up his first film – SCORE: A Film Music Documentary. This one-of-a-kind doc was quite the endeavor and Schrader made a lateral shift from his journalist background to take a big step into telling the story he wanted to tell. And, as score fans ourselves, we’re so glad he did! On the heels of that, and using the contacts made while filming the documentary, Schrader and team (which included Kenny Holmes and Robert Kraft) started SCORE: The Podcast to give composers…
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Interview…Tuppence Middleton on Method Acting, Taking Chances and Trusting Your Gut
In this severely pandemic-affected world, film fans can find solace and levity in films. And what a perfect time for a sweet-natured, feel-good comedy to come along. Now if you would’ve told me that I would fall head over heels for a film about, and I’m not kidding, a group of fishermen who sing shanties in their downtime, I’d have taken that bet. Well, blow me down, this is one cute film! Headlining Fisherman’s Friends, (the latest from Samuel Goldwyn Films), is British actress Tuppence Middleton. In the film, she plays James Purefoy’s daughter and the two have genuine (if commonplace) dynamic – him the protective father, her the young…
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Interview…Composer Joe Trapanese Talks Orchestration and Composition of Tron: Legacy, Oblivion, The Raid and Lady and the Tramp
This year, Tron: Legacy celebrates turns 10, and a huge part of that film was the amazing music from Daft Punk – it was the duo’s first film score and quite an endeavor for all involved. The combination of electronic and orchestral music seemed like a long shot, but if anyone could stick the landing, it was probably them. Truth be told, they had help from a young Joseph Trapanese and Bruce Broughton as well as two years to collaborate and work their magic. As far as we’re concerned, the world is a lot better with that music in it. So in this installment of our podcast series – one…
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Interview…Composer Paul Leonard-Morgan on High Energy, Cyberpunk, and Philip Glass
Over the years, we’ve spoken to lots of people in the entertainment business, and neither our good friend Bryan Kluger (of BoomStickComics) nor myself have met many individuals with the all-out energy and enthusiasm that Paul Leonard-Morgan exudes. No joke. The Scottish composer is a delight to speak with and you can tell he doesn’t just love his job…he realllly loves it and that comes through in how he describes his process (using analog synthesizers), his projects (Disney Test Track at Epcot Center and Limitless), and his collaborators (Alex Garland, Mark Romanek). He loves life, cares for everyone, has great taste in film and scores, and he even coined a catchphrase…
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Interview…Composer Joseph Stephens on Danny McBride, HBO’s The Righteous Gemstones, and “Misbehavin'”
This week, we got to hang out with North Carolina-based multi-instrumentalist, film score composer, and songwriter Joseph Stephens. He’s got a lot of experience in TV and film and one of the gems in Stephens’ in his crown is the a little ditty called “Misbehavin‘” otherwise known as the most unlikely of upbeat bangers featured in The Righteous Gemstones, HBO’s breakout series from series creator Danny McBride. Stephens is the composer behind the show and has worked with McBride many times; their relationship goes back to their college days. Stephens composed and co-wrote the original song with McBride and Edi Patterson (who both star in the series). The twangy, fun-loving song…
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Interview…Directors Jonathan Milott & Cary Murnion Discuss ‘Bushwick’ and ‘Becky’
Directing duo Jonathan Milott & Cary Murnion made quite the impression with their last two genre films. In 2014, they released Cooties – the Elijah Wood led film about a mysterious virus which hit an isolated elementary school, transforming the kids into a feral swarm of mass savages. It was the fun and absurd kind of ’80s style romp you’d see Joe Bob Briggs highlight on Drive-In Theater. Following that, the two made a statement with Bushwick. Based partly on thoughts and ideas from a post-9/11 New York, the themes seems darkly prophetic, if not a cautionary tale. Thankfully, it’s fiction, but what was true is the dynamic and amazing…
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Interview…Stephen McHattie Talks Career, Casting, and Dual Roles in Bruce McDonald’s ‘Dreamland’
Stephen McHattie is a prolific actor from Canada who started out in the theatre, moved to New York for acting school, and has been in over 200 feature films/television shows since 1970. His most recognized roles were in Pontypool, The Fountain, Watchmen, 300, Orphan Black, The Strain, Beverly Hill Cop 3, and even BASEketball. We’ve always been a fan of Stephen because of the roles he selects, the gravity he brings to each project, his thousand-yard stares, and that’s before he starts acting. His latest film (one of five released in 2019) is Dreamland. Bruce McDonald‘s nebulously dreamy hitman story is about as far from lucid as you can get.…
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Interview…Composer Mark Isham on Jazz, Frank Darabont, and ‘Little Fires Everywhere’
Seasoned composer Mark Isham (pronounced I-sham) has one of the most diverse and prolific careers in film and television. With a background in jazz, and proficiency with trumpet and piano, Isham has scored innumerable titles and given a incredible flair to each of his projects. His latest works graced with his musical muscle is Hulu’s familial drama Little Fires Everywhere. Taking inspiration from the narrative, Isham’s themes mirror the duality of the interweaving characters (from two vastly different worlds). Even the main theme represents the delicate and sometimes violent interactions between lead characters played by Reese Witherspoon and Kerry Washington – what starts out prim and proper soon segues into…
