Editor’s Note: This interview was originally published in March of this year. We have posted it again to coincide with the digital/Blu-Ray release of Gore Verbinski’s A Cure For Wellness on June 6. Golden Globe and Emmy nominee Benjamin Wallfisch is recognized as one of the leading film composers of his generation, with a career spanning over a decade and 60 feature films. He has composed music for such legendary film makers as Steven Spielberg, Rupert Wyatt, Gore Verbinksi and Lars von Trier, and has worked on scores that have been recognized with awards and nominations at the Academy Awards, BAFTAs and World Soundtrack Awards. Wallfisch fit us into his extremely…
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Home Grown Texas Talent Interview Series – Writer/Director Derek Presley Discusses ‘Cronus’
Local filmmaker, Derek Presley, is a great friend of the site, and we’re always excited to help spread the word about his latest projects. Filmed here in DFW, and featuring contributions of a number of area trades persons, Cronus was filmed and produced over the course of two years. It’s a film about a genius recluse with amnesia who awakens to find he has built a machine that extracts memories from the dead. He uses those memories to discover who he is and to rebuild a perfect past for himself. The practical effects, the music and the production design (not to mention acting from Joey Folsom and Ted Ferguson) are…
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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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Video Interview…Nacho Vigalondo On the Large and Small Themes of ‘Colossal’
For years, Fantastic Fest has been a venue for independent and auteur filmmakers to showcase their latest features. 2016 was no different, as we saw stellar debut efforts from some talented directors (Nicolas Pesce for instance) and welcomed back friends of the Fest. Chief among them is a genre filmmaker so famous and beloved, he has been dubbed the unofficial mascot of Fantastic Fest. I’m not sure that anyone ever sets out to be a “mascot”, but Nacho Vigalondo is happy to oblige…he’s even gotten two themed tattoos while at the Fest if that tells you anything. Vigalondo’s style has endeared himself to many a genre fan, but he’s also…
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Interview…Composer Carl Thiel Delves Into Docu-drama and TV Music
We recently reconnected with composer Carl Thiel, and realized that it’s been three years since we last chatted. At the time, he had completed recording the music for Sin City: A Dame to Kill For (with Robert Rodriguez), and was also about to begin work on the From Dusk Til Dawn TV series on the El Rey Network. In that time, Thiel continues to grow as an artist. Born in Mexico City, and after living in Canada for a while, Thiel now calls Austin home. He comes from a family of musicians, and has a lot of music he’s interested to work on away from projects under the Troublemaker Studios banner. As such,…
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Video Interview…Dax Shepard and Michael Peña Breathe New Life Into ‘CHIPS’
Dax Shepard and Michael Peña star in CHIPS, the hilarious new film from Warner Bros. While many TV properties make the jump to the big screen and become a parody of the source material, this film stays a little closer to the serious side. Sure, it’s irreverent and raunchy, but CHIPS also has some pretty spectacular action along with some good character building moments, and the film feels like an old-school, R-rated action/comedy. Earlier this month, we spoke to Shepard and Peña about the film – Shepard (taking on directing and writing duties) talks about the tone of the film as well as his love of motor sports, and Peña (who…
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Interview…Stephen Dorff on the Music & Songs of ‘Wheeler’
Ryan Ross’ Wheeler is a captivating film, one that really shines due to a trifecta of story, acting, and music. The baby of both Ross and Stephen Dorff (Blade, The Power of One, The Gate), this story follows a middle-aged musician trying to make a name for himself in Nashville. Only this isn’t a fictitious endeavor; Dorff becomes his character – the titular Wheeler Bryson – in this documentary style narrative and very few people know what’s happening. Each and every interaction caught on camera is legitimized by Dorff (under impressive prosthesis) as everyone he meets he wins over with his story, his persona, and some truly amazing “outlaw” Western songs. In…
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Interview…Guitarist Derek Mount (aka Brique A Braq) Talks Rocking Out, Giving Back, and Family Force 5
For more than a decade, Derek Mount has been shredding guitar and having a laugh with Family Force 5 (if you’ve never heard of them, really, go check them out). They are truly dynamic, and while you can liken their music to having an edge like 311, or Rage Against the Machine, these guys just have a lot more fun on the job. A bit of rap, a bit of metal, a whole lotta crazy, but it’s mixed together with that distinctive southern flair by those country gentlemen who can bring the goods. Mount may be the guitarist for Family Force 5, but he also composes, creates music libraries, records as a…
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Interview…David Wingo Trades Synths for Strings Composing Jeff Nichols’ ‘Loving’
In what some consider the start of awards season, November gives us the release of Jeff Nichols’ incredibly moving story, Loving, (about Mildred and Richard Loving) featuring the original score by David Wingo, as well as a new original song, “Loving,” by Ben Nichols of the band Lucero. The seasoned composer has been active with his band Ola Podrida since 2006, releasing three acclaimed full-length albums, and touring the U.S. and Europe multiple times. But Wingo has also been racking up a number of distinctive and high profile scores to celebrated features directed by some of this century’s most sophisticated independent filmmakers. Loving marks the fourth time he and director Jeff Nichols have…
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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…
