Last month, we had the great pleasure to speak with a team of composers we’ve admired for some time. Hailing from Montreal, Le Matos has found their way into the hearts of ‘80s fans around the globe with their energetic sound – one that is as catchy as it is perfect for the films to which the music is attached. From their debut album Join Us to the scores to Turbo Kid and Summer of 84, they continue to improve and expand their audio palette. If that wasn’t awesome enough, they’ve won tons of acclaim and scores of fans with their theme remixes from genre classics like Akira, Blade Runner…
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Interview…Nathan Johnson on the Lush Orchestral Score to ‘Knives Out’
One of our favorite composers, and one we’ve been fortunate enough to speak with several times over the years, is Nathan Johnson. With each film score, he’s continually gained an audience with a signature and stylistic approach to his work. That’s partly because he and his cousin are a package deal. Nathan and long time collaborator, Rian Johnson, go way back…even before Brick. The two grew up on the East Coast bringing their stories to life any way they could, hoping to one day break into the biz. Well, they did, and in a very big way. Thanks to titles like Looper, The Last Jedi, and now Knives Out, the…
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Interview…Giancarlo Vulcano on the Surrealism of USA’s ‘Briarpatch’
Composer Giancarlo Vulcano has years of experience in television writing music for long running series. The trick, so he tells us, is to have a system to getting his cues put together. As Michael Giacchino told us long ago, TV is a non-stop grind. Writing music for film can be a thankless job. Moreover, what Vulcano shared with us is that the perception of being a composer doesn’t exactly line up with the reality. It’s still difficult using music to convey emotion that the audience should feel while looking at moving images, but the most comforting aspect of our exchange was that the creative process can yield many answers to…
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Interview…David Wingo Discusses Patriotism in ‘The Report’ and Sound Design in HBO’s ‘Barry’
The last time we spoke with David Wingo, he was wrapping up work on Loving, the latest in a series of continuous collaborations with friend and director Jeff Nichols. Their relationship has resulted in some standout music in films like Take Shelter and Midnight Special. Since then, Wingo has taken a crack at TV shows. Musicians don’t like being pigeon-holed, and lucky for Wingo that Kidding and Barry couldn’t be any further removed from each other. Last month, Scott Z. Burns‘ film, The Report, hit theaters (and is now on Amazon Prime). It’s a riveting thriller (based on actual events) that follows idealistic Senate staffer Daniel J. Jones who, tasked…
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Interview…Composer Rendra Zawawi on the Emotion and Empowerment of ‘M for Malaysia’
Rendra Zawawi is an award-winning composer, songwriter and music producer. He composed the song “Arena Cahaya” for the 2016 Malaysian sports football film, Ola Bola, which won Best Film Song at the 2017 Malaysian Film Festival and a Golden Horse Award for Best OriginalTheme Song at the Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival. Rendra’s credits include working with Emmy-winning composer Mac Quayle on shows including Mr. Robot, FEUD: Bette and Joan, 9-1-1, FOX’s Scream Queens and Netflix’s The Politician. Rendra also contributed additional music to American Horror Story and American Crime Story: The Assassination of Gianni Versace. He most recently scored the drama documentary M for Malaysia, which was selected as…
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Interview…Michael Abbott Jr. on the Absurd Humor and Honest Characters in ‘The Death of Dick Long’
As far as actors go, Michael Abbott Jr. is as down to earth as they come. He’s a family man, a fine actor, and the kind of person you’d just enjoy having a beer with. He stars in Daniel Scheinert’s sophomore film, which, after Swiss Army Man, this is the only logical step for the director. Title notwithstanding, A24’s The Death of Dick Long is a strange film. It’s a crock pot full of themes and characters taking a swing at multiple genres – drama, noir, comedy – and knocking every pitch right out of the park. We spoke to Michael over the phone where he let on that the…
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[Fantastic Fest Interview]…’The Wave’ Director and Writer Discuss Time-travel and the Balance of the Universe
When we look to the stars, and wonder about our purpose on Earth, we probably ask the same things: Why are we here? What is it all about? Is there more to the day-in, day-out routine? Well, I’m sorry to say that I can’t answer that for you. However, director Gille Klabin and writer/producer Carl Lucas try their best to provide answers to those nebulous questions. Wait. How can they do that what Stephen Hawking and Carl Sagan couldn’t? Easy: they use time-travel and drugs. What a concept! In all seriousness, The Wave is a simple story about one man trying to find his place in the world and if…
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[Fantastic Fest Interview]…Director Martin Krejčí on ‘The True Adventures of Wolfboy’
While at Fantastic Fest, it’s not often you find feel-good, heart-warming yarns amid the plethora of films about yakuza, murderers, zombies or other genre staples. But The True Adventures of Wolfboy is as unexpected as it is honest, and it’s a wondrous take on the “it’s ok to be you” type of film. After all, would you have icons of the indie film scene like Chris Messina or John Turturro if it wasn’t a quality story? Didn’t think so. The film is about a 13 year-old boy, Paul (played by prolific young actor Jaeden Martell), who suffers from hypertrichosis — which covers him with animal-like fur. He knows he’s not…
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[Fantastic Fest Interview]…Alexandre O. Philippe on ‘Memory: The Origins of Alien’
For four decades, the world, characters and mythology of Alien have permeated the minds (and nightmares) of film fans across the globe. In his latest doc, director Alexandre O. Philippe looks at all the titles that influenced young Dan O’Bannon, scribe of the 1979 horro classic, and how the film forever captured and changed the mindset of the public. The documentary takes fans on an exploration of the mythical underpinnings of Alien. It is supported by exclusive behind-the-scenes footage, unearthing the largely untold origin story behind Ridley Scott‘s cinematic masterpiece, and reveals a treasure trove of never-before-seen materials from the archives of “Alien” creators Dan O’Bannon and H.R. Giger – including original story notes, rejected designs…
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Exclusive: Interview…Mac Quayle Brings Guitars and Gun Fighter Gusto to Netflix’s ‘The Politician’
Composer Mac Quayle is a musician we’ve followed for years. And if you’ve kept up with his output, he’s quite hard to keep track of. One thing is for sure: Mac is very busy and very much in demand. He’s recently worked on four seasons of American Horror Story, as well as Mr. Robot, Feud: Bette and Joan, Pose and now he’s venturing into Netflix territory. The common thread between him and his prolific output is the equally prolific Ryan Murphy. One thing Mac prides himself on is the distinctive palette he creates and brings to each project. In the case of a show like AHS, that palette changes from…
