For those of you new to modern electronic film scores, allow us to introduce you to Le Matos. A synthwave duo from Montreal, their musical style blends pop, dance, and melancholic melodies. Inspired by famous soundtrack composers of the ’80s (John Carpenter, Tangerine Dream, and Vangelis), Le Matos’ synth-heavy score for Summer of ’84 permeates throughout the film to transport audiences back to a timeless decade in cinema. They previously collaborated with RKSS on their Sundance breakout hit, Turbo Kid, and have acquired a massive following. In short, their music will change your life. Summer of ’84 itself is a throwback thriller, and one that stands out from the pack even if…
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Music Review…Mondo Records’ Stunning ‘Big Trouble In Little China’ 2XLP
For the first time in over 30 years, film fans around the globe are able to purchase the complete original soundtrack to John Carpenter’s ’80s classic Big Trouble In Little China on vinyl. If, like me, you’ve scoured Discogs and Ebay for a copy that A. doesn’t cost more than $100 and B. isn’t the Brazilian or German version, the news of this release is about as satisfying as finding a Chinese girl with green eyes. Yeah, it’s that big! Phantom City Creative has been very specific about the color palette of this release. Red is very important in Chinese culture, and so the packaging and vinyl prominently showcase it as…
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Interview… Reel FX’s Jose Sebastian Gomez on ATK PLN, Commercials and Creative Direction
If you live or work in the Dallas area, the fact that business is booming is probably not news to anyone. Yet, as much as the many cranes are putting up buildings and apartments at breakneck speed changing our skyline, you might be unaware of other trades hard at work to produce world-class products and adding to the notoriety and culture of the metroplex. One such company is Reel FX – Dallas’ own big-league animation studio. Now whether you knew what goes on in that non-descript red brick building in Deep Ellum or not, the caliber of digital wizardry therein produces commercial and feature length animation that sets the standard…
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Interview…Mondo’s Brock Otterbacher on Design, Collaboration and Pop-Culture
Growing up, I’m sure those of you in the design community (myself included) lived and breathed LEGOs, building blocks, or the various action figure play sets. Sure, they’re toys, but they probably were a catalyst (subconscious, maybe) to get myself and my coworkers into the industry we’re in today. As an Interior Designer, I now deal with actual buildings, materials, and components, but there are creatives who haven’t strayed too far from their childhood toy box. John Lasseter, and Jorge R. Gutierrez come to mind, but I recently spoke with an individual who is still pretty much a kid at heart. Brock Otterbacher is one of the Creative Directors at…
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[DIFF Video Interview]…Matt Schrader Screens ‘SCORE: A Film Music Documentary’ at the Dallas International Film Festival
The 2017 Dallas International Film Festival brought many amazing films and documentaries to DFW, but few hit as close to home (musically speaking) as Matt Schrader‘s feature, SCORE: A Film Music Documentary. Schrader’s film profiles various personalities and titans in the industry to chronicle the history of film music, reaffirm its importance in our culture, and attempt to explain why certain scores continue to resonate decades later. I can honestly say I’ve been a music fan longer than I’ve been a film fan, and as such, forgive the pun, this doc was music to my ears. We spoke to Schrader in 2015 while he was in the middle of interviewing the composers for…
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Music Review…Mondo Goes the Distance with Limited Edition ‘Creed’ 2XLP
There is a well-known proverb that states, “In the warrior’s code, there’s no surrender.” Is that aged wisdom from hundreds of years ago? Not at all. That’s from Rocky IV, and it’s worth noting that film marked the first time in the Rocky saga that a torch was passed to a new composer. The film was an entirely macho and pugilistic allegory of Cold War tensions, sure, but it was also pretty awesome from a musical sense, both score and song. Picking up on that departure, Ryan Coogler’s Creed is a fantastic step forward in the saga while also serving as a quasi-remake of the iconic 1976 property. The series may…
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Exclusive: Mondo Artist Rory Kurtz on ‘A Clockwork Orange’, ‘The Graduate’ and More at MondoCon 2016
In advance of MondoCon 2016, we got to speak to poster artist Rory Kurtz about his recent work for the Mondo label this year. Kurtz, a self-proclaimed “massive movie fan” (and he proves it, too, diving into his wealth of movies knowledge during our discussion) has such a unique style, and that makes him a perfect fit for the brand. He has four posters released in this calendar year, and two MondoCon exclusive prints. Kurtz’s background is in illustration and editorial layouts. His compositions are crisp, striking, and very inviting; he’s one of the most vibrant additions to the Mondo bullpen. We spent an hour with Kurtz and, really, we could have continued talking about…
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Exclusive: Mondo’s Creative Team Offers Details on Vinyl, Collectibles, and Posters at MondoCon 2016 and Beyond
MondoCon is a celebration of everything Mondo loves, including movies, art, comics, music, toys and food. It’s a weekend curated with fans in mind, featuring incredible artists & creators from around the world, panels, screenings, food trucks, live scores and interactive events. This year, these genre loving artistic wizards are excited to unveil the lineup of panels, artists, screenings, live music and more for MondoCon 2016 taking place October 22-23 in Austin, TX. The stellar schedule of panels will include sneak peaks at upcoming posters, toys & collectibles, and an in-depth discussion of soundtracks from Mondo Music Group and other leading labels (you can read find from the press release/schedule here). We’ve…
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Off the Shelf…Hollywood in Vienna: The World of James Horner
To anyone even remotely interested in film or film music, James Horner should be more than a household name. With over 130 original compositions for a variety of film and television productions, Horner has put an indelible stamp on the entertainment world and, as a result, pop culture in general. Horner’s work became so essential to the project that he was not merely a consultant to each production, it was the narrative, characters, and editing that needed to keep pace with and adapt to what he’d written. That’s an exaggeration, sure, but to film fans, it sure feels that way. Arguably the poster child for the profession, John Williams, will be remembered…
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Exclusive: Brock Otterbacher Unveils Hitchcock Figure and Discusses Toy Production at Mondo
There are but a few simple truths in this world consistent as gravity. Among them are the following: Darth Vader is Luke’s father, time travel is “heavy“, and Mondo is awesome. Previously we’ve talked to Rob Jones and Mitch Putnam about posters and Mo Shafeek shared stories about vinyl releases, but today we’ve got something extra special for those interested in toys and collectibles. Rounding out our trifecta of filmic interviews focusing on the personalities running Mondo (the Alamo Drafthouse’s boutique poster, toy, and music label) is our 90-minute sit down with Brock Otterbacher. Brock let us in on his day-to-day operations, and even gave us some exclusive first shots…
