Tunesat vs PROs - A Report

AFX Industrial (film scores)

Tunesat is a great idea http://www.tunesat.com but are the PROs ready to part with their money?  I recently took Tunesat for a 30 day spin, and this is what I found out ...

 

According to Tunesat a staggering 80% of the TV performance royalties generated by an artist's music never reaches the artist.  What happens to this money?  Well, unclaimed royalties undoubtedly languish in the PROs' bank accounts for as long as they can get away with it.  But eventually this money will be divided up among the major record labels - even if the artist has no connection with these labels.

This is an incredibly unfair and unregulated system especially as it relies on TV stations submitting (often physical) cue sheets.  Which according to Tunesat they fail to do around 80% of the time.

The cue sheet submission system has now reached saturation point, resulting in the PROs sitting on millions of dollars of 'unclaimed' artists money.  Thankfully one company has developed an incredible system to check and report on the usage of an artists repertoire.  That company are Tunesat.  Over the last month I've been testing Tunesat's TV channel analysis system, and the results have been very interesting indeed.

How does it work?

Tunesat call it 'digital fingerprinting'.  The audio waveform of every single piece of music submitted to them is unique unto itself and matched in real time by streaming and analyzing a large selection of major TV channels worldwide.  I would imagine that to pull off such a Herculean task requires some pretty robust software.  Which begs the question, if a small company like Tunesat can develop and launch such a groundbreaking analysis tool, then why haven't the PROs?  They could easily adopt Tunesat's model or (considering their level of income) develop one themselves.

The Test

Tunesat offered me a thirty day trial of their system, and as I'll explain, the results were empowering and damning at the same time.  I figured it would be more productive to concentrate on pieces from my catalog that I know are popular and used regularly ... So, after the audio fingerprints were finalized I waited for the results to stream back to me.  Sure enough, after a few days, usage was detected on major channels in the USA, Germany, France and various other countries.  One interesting and unique thing about the Tunesat model is their software automatically records each section of the program that contains your work.  And the system appears to be extremely accurate, even detecting music playing beneath dialogue and foley.  It also gives you the time of broadcast, the channel and the TV show your work appeared during.  You can actually hear each piece in place during the show.  Amazing!

"if a small company like Tunesat can develop and launch such a groundbreaking analysis tool, then why haven't the PROs adopted Tunesat's model?" 

 

 

The upside

Armed with this information, which is available as an XL spreadsheet, you can now approach your PRO and demand they add each usage to your royalty list!

The downside

Ahh, the downside.  Well after I had gathered a fair amount of data about one piece (which was used for a total duration of nine minutes) I approached my PRO and submitted a PDF of the data including the tunecode, time, channel, duration, show name ... And what was the response?

Well, the PRO that I sent it to (the PRS actually) finally responded (after I had emailed the information to them three times) and they didn't accept it.  The reason they gave was that the broadcaster should supply a cue sheet for each cue used.  But hadn't Tunesat already determined that 80% of these cue sheets are never filled in, let alone returned?  I did call the PRS to clarify the situation regarding accepting Tunesat data and again I got a conflicting response.  This time they said they did accept the data.  Worryingly, it seems it all depends on how knowledgeable the agent dealing with your submitted data is, as to how much attention they pay to it.  So, how many months do you leave it before you contact them to verify they have accepted the submitted information and investigated the claim?  It's a flawed system to say the least.

Where does this leave us?

In theory and even in practice Tunesat's software works.  And if Tunesat were offering this service for free (and frankly why should they) I would of course be happy to continue receiving usage reports.  But this service isn't free, there's a paid subscription which is dependent upon the size of the catalog you wish to submit.  For 100 fingerprinted pieces you are looking at a monthly subscription fee of around $300 which is a fairly substantial whack.  And, depending on the mood and staffing competency of your PRO you may never see a return on this investment.  It's a risk for sure.

I already know that I'm probably earning a lot less than I should, you only have to deal with the PRS for a few years to realize that.  But, paying Tunesat to continually tell me that I'm not getting paid for my work?  Hmm ...  Unfortunately, the only result I can see from this is the debiting of money from my account for information that only serves to wind me up and confuse the PROs even more!  Undoubtedly the information Tunesat provides is a useful business tool, but is it really worth paying for?  And, although I like the Tunesat model very, very much it still seems like another level of bureaucracy another middle man who wants paying for information that should be freely available.  If I were to list all of the middle men taking a cut from my music I think you would be very surprised ... It's 60% here and 10% there and to be honest Tunesat would be just another drain on this already dwindling income.

Unfortunately, many companies operating within the music industry prey on the vanity of musicians and composers, and the data Tunesat provides could be construed as more vanity oriented than anything else.  It should be my right to know where in the world my scores are being used and I shouldn't have to fight for royalty payments, but I also have to accept that as my scores are on sale internationally I'll never keep track of every single usage.  To think I can is simply naive.   

It seems reasonable to suggest that the PROs have failed to adopt this software because it will impact on their seemingly parasitical business practices.  I don't say this lightly, as without fail every time I contact the PRS I receive either incorrect or conflicting information, it's almost as if they deliberately train only half of their staff.  It may be cynical to imply that they rely on a certain level of confusion as part of their business model, but I'm yet to see consistency within the organization.  Naturally, after a while, you can't help but speculate about the real motives that drive them to run their company so erratically.


Tunesat, you rock!  It's simply everybody else that doesn't.

- David

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Why are you giving it away for free?

AFX Industrial (film scores)

Is the voracious demand for music that fits into a certain style or genre stifling the composition of more eclectic works?  Possibly.  And today I'll also be considering how the impact of giving it away for free may be devaluing music.

 

The Comfort Zone

This year I sold the same piece of music to TV companies over and over again, a piece called Cinematic Rock A1 you can click on the title to hear it.  I think I have sold that piece around thirty times to all sorts of different production companies and film projects, but is it any good?  I don't know, nobody has ever commented on it - it just sells.

Conversely, a piece of music I wrote that has sold only one time won the Editors Choice Award for from a well known Hollywood music library and you can hear that piece here: Visions Of Passacaglia

OK I know it's nothing new, that seemingly less popular works get all sorts of recognition, that doesn't surprise me too much it's a funny kind of paradox.  Composers can either write music that sells and make a humble living from it or they can write music that never sells and get all sorts of praise for it, I think many composers constantly walk a fine line between following their heart and following their head.  But, ultimately by pandering to popular demand are we not stifling the composition of more eclectic works?  I've even encountered people who don't think art, in any form should see its creators remunerated ... Unfortunately, there are also artists out there who are starting to believe this, and are devaluing their art by not pursuing payment for it.

Make Money, You Need It!

Music and money are two areas that, according to the continued actions of musicians, songwriters and composers, should never mix.  I don't believe this for one second, but then you probably know by now that I'm a composer and it's how I make a living - I have to mix music and money.  But what do I mean when I say the continued actions of musicians, songwriters and composers?  Well, nearly every day I get a Tweet from a band or an artist, with a link to download their new album or mixtape for free!  They often ask me for my opinion and my response is always to ask them a simple question:  'Why are you giving it away for free?'

Why are you giving it away for free?

If you're promoting your music on Twitter and Facebook then it sends out a certain message to the world, you are effectively telling us that you have something worth listening to - but whether the music you have created is 'good' or 'bad' is not relevant.  What is relevant and what concerns me most for my fellow artists and composers is remuneration.  Musicians spend thousands with manufacturers like Roland or Korg, but I doubt these companies ever Tweet at musicians offering them their latest synth for free.  So why shouldn't musicians be paid for operating, programming and playing these instruments?  After all, music doesn't just appear in the ether, composers don't simply insert a jack plug into the side of their head and let music dribble out in a long stream of consciousness directly into iTunes.

In reality, creating music, especially high quality music is an incredibly expensive business.  To start with you have to create a huge space, a hole in your life to simply have access to the time needed to write music - then you have to fill that hole with the expensive equipment needed to record it.  So, when I'm sent a free album download you can understand my question: 'Why are you giving it away for free?'

 

Using Library Music as Film Scores

Going back to my initial point, there is a high demand for music that fits into a certain style or genre  and composers are quite rightly exploiting those areas to pay their rent.  Rock music is one area (although seemingly over-saturated) that is always in demand and always sells well.  The down side of this is that directors are turning to music libraries to 'score' their film, without realizing that in doing so they are often being detrimental to their film's success.  OK so you may end up with a patchy, incoherent but adequate score, but is this really what you want?  After all the time you have spent making your film?

What I've been trying to illustrate here is that in my experience composers never write to the best of their abilities when writing library music, film scores always sound better when the composer is directly involved.  By not utilizing them (during your scoring process) you could be stifling the composition of a more eclectic score that may win your film more recognition and notoriety in the process.  It may be easy to pick a piece of library music to go under your favorite scene, but who said making great art is easy?  And, if you've struggled for years to crowd fund your movie, then your motives are obviously driven by artistic integrity rather than money.  You know that this is the film that will make or break your career!

In terms of how your film is received no matter how good it looks, the way it sounds is still recognized as fifty percent of the total package.  Ultimately, the way your film is scored and its overall EQ curve cannot be hidden from your audience, it definitely cannot be buried under a mountain of cheap reverb plug ins!  And, it's for these reasons that the audio track is probably the most painful part of the whole process.  But who said art was pain free? 

- David.

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Prometheus' Score - Familiarity is the Key.

AFX Industrial (film scores)

Today I'm going to take a brief look at the way highly repetitive scores (such as the recent Prometheus score) enhance an audience's enjoyment of a film.  It seems that repetition would bore the audience surely?  But no, in fact quite the opposite is true ...

 

Radio Repeats

How many times have you heard a song on the radio and thought to yourself:  'I never want to hear that song ever, ever again!'  I have.  In fact I often fantasize about waking up 200 years in the future and not recognizing ANY of the music - for a composer this scenario would be absolute bliss!  But I'm sure that even then, after a while I would still seek the comfort of a piece of music I knew.  If only to console me as I wept about it being 2212 ... and that everyone and everything I knew was now gone, forever.

Regarding radio play I do often wonder why a DJ voraciously repeats the same 30 year old pieces over and over again with no hint of irony.  Then I got to thinking that maybe I only started to like the tracks I heard on the radio through familiarity.  So did this mean I actually liked the music?  I mean the DJ chose the music it wasn't my choice.  And, if I did like the music (but only through familiarity) then that means I probably wouldn't have consciously chosen that music at all!  Which left me with a bigger question (go with me here) and that question was ... If I could chose the music I liked what music would I actually like?  Hmm.

Familiarity Within the Score

In a nutshell as a composer you have ninety minutes to make an impression on your audience, two hours if you are really lucky.  Effectively my audience are listening to radio Hëwitt for a couple of hours and I'm the DJ and I need them to like my score ... I also know that 80% of the audience would never normally listen to the genre of music they are hearing behind the film they are watching.  So I use the same weapon that the DJs use - familiarity.

For familiarity to have any effect a lot of repetition is needed.  Ennio Morricone, a master of this takes a simple theme, expands it, contracts it, has it playing as source music on a radio in a bar - anywhere he can get his theme screen time he does.  But, the art of scoring lies in disguising it so the audience are only overtly aware of the theme when the composer desires it.  Of course the antithesis of this is the 'iPod on shuffle' score, please see my thoughts on this in a recent blog here.

Familiarity within a score is the key to unlocking emotion within your audience.  You're passionate about your film right?  You want to make people feel something and remember something yes?  Well I can tell you from an audience point of view, random and disconnected pieces of music always fail to evoke emotion, I know this because I am the audience. 

Prometheus - The Horn Motif

So let's go back to the title of this blog and the Prometheus score.  If by the end of Prometheus every revelation and every epiphany wasn't punctuated by that horn motif, I would have felt emotionally short changed and left the cinema feeling unsatisfied.  It is exactly that constant repetition that sucks an audience in.  Conversely, unconsidered key changes or extraneous music can burst that bubble of satisfaction you have worked so hard to build, resulting in the audience detaching from your film.  For an in depth look at how this is handled please read my recent blog on music supervision. 

Ultimately, think about how much you like being at home, surrounded by all of those familiar things, in many cases you want to evoke this kind of feeling within your audience, not in a literal but in an applied sense.  For instance, the SAW series is highly repetitive in terms of its content and that is the main reason why audiences find it so satisfying  ... Of course I'm hoping it doesn't remind you too much of your own home ;0) that would be a little weird.  But, as a film maker you'll know that familiarity and the feeling of 'going home' are among the best emotions to constantly strive for within your cinematic language - and your score is a great place to start.

- David

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What is a Music Supervisor?

AFX Industrial (film scores)

Does your film need a music supervisor and if so why?  In this blog I'll be looking at the roll of the music supervisor, and how directors who take on the task of music supervision often wish they hadn't.  

 

 

Score or Soundtrack?

Technically, the score is original music that has been written specifically for a film.  The term soundtrack generally describes the songs that appear in a film.  These songs may already be in existence and are brought together to enhance the film, either commercially or aesthetically.

What does a music supervisor do? 

You may have already heard the term music supervisor used in relation to a film’s score or soundtrack - but what exactly does a music supervisor do?  Simply put, a music supervisor takes care of all of the musical cues in your film, but, as many films have extremely complicated musical requirements, there's a lot more to the job.

Complicated soundtracks

Soundtracks can often get very complicated.  For example, Marie Antoinette (starring Kirsten Dunst) used songs from The Strokes, New Order, The Cure and many others to enhance the film's appeal.  I imagine there were moments during the film where a standard orchestral score was also needed.  Along with a solo mandolin or a string quartet, (playing either a specific piece from the classical repertoire or a specially composed work to fit into a certain time period) it soon gets complex.  

On top of that, contemporary films often call on actors to mime to the backing tracks of professional singers.  Bollywood takes this to the extreme with Shah Rukh Khan having a different singing voice in each movie.  

Maybe there's a scene in your film where a live Jazz or Rock band is required and where timing is critical.  In fact, the musical requirements for a film are often so diverse it can quickly become an area where directors are out of their depth ... Cue the music supervisor!

Music clearance

So, you want to use music by The Strokes in your film?  Then it's down to the music supervisor to seek out a license to use their music.  Maybe you want your star to sing a cover version of 'My Heart Will Go On' by James Horner?  The music supervisor will secure a license to do this, and also find a high caliber band that can put the backing track together to a professional standard.  After all, you wouldn't want the music to sound like those cheap backing tracks the contestants use on the X Factor would you?

Music supervisors do all the mundane stuff, like ensuring the singers have the lyric sheets and the musicians have the music they require.  The music supervisor will also track down that solo lute player and arrange a recording session to capture their performance.  Music supervisors (in conjunction with the director) set up on screen timings for each piece of music, they will also rehearse the band/singer/soloist ready for either the on screen or studio performance ... Music supervisors are mostly trained musicians themselves and will have an intimate understanding of the nature and the mechanics of music.  The music supervisor will therefore ensure that all of the musical keys (C#/Fmin etc.) used within each piece are compatible with all of the instruments used.  They will also pay particular attention to finding the correct key for a singer's range.

'Music supervisors need to understand the complexities of copyright law, royalty distribution, publishing rights and public domain usage.' 

A music supervisor will work closely with your composer to ensure all of the musical parts that the orchestra require are printed up and readily available when the score is recorded.  Due to budgetary constraints it's not unusual for your composer to take on the role of a music supervisor.  Even though they may not seek a credit on the end of the film, many composers are required to step in and supervise the music - to ensure it's done correctly and legally.

Music supervisors need to understand the complexities of music copyright law, royalty distribution, publishing rights and public domain usage.  Without this legal documentation to back it up, your film could easily lose any performance or distribution rights until the soundtrack is verified.  Misunderstanding copyright law is all too easy and so many films are shelved because of this, the music supervisor will ensure all of these loose ends are tied.  The legal issues surrounding music are not an area the director should have to get involved with.  Equally, they are not an area amateur music makers should be dealing with at all.  Quite often the roles of music supervisor and composer are interchangeable and, as I mentioned earlier, a professional composer is increasingly expected to wear the music supervisor's hat during the score / soundtrack production stage.

Do I Need a Music Supervisor?

I know that many directors are control freaks and there's nothing wrong with that, in fact it's an important quality if you want to be a director.  But, music supervision can be an extremely grey area and it's very hard to control an area of film making that you are unfamiliar with.

I would say the more ambitious you are as a film maker then the more you'll need to employ a music supervisor.  And apart from all of the aspects I have discussed, music supervisors can bring ideas to the table that you may have never thought of.  Ultimately, professional directors like to leave the specialisms up to the specialists, it takes a huge weight off their shoulders and allows them to focus on the all important visual aspects of their film.

If we break film making down to an even more basic level, then there seems to be a direct correlation between the quality of the film and the amount of people that worked on it.  Last week I touched on IMBD credits and I always find it quite amusing when only one name appears in the cast and crew list, like this:

Directed by......Jim

Starring......Jim

Visual FX......Jim

Grip......Jim

2nd AD......Jim

Runner......Jim

Production designer......Jim

Music by......Jim

Sound department......Jim

Narrator......Jim

The best films arise from a collaborative effort between individuals who share a lot of different disciplines.  Of course, one individual with an unlimited amount of time and an inexhaustible amount of money could, in theory, create the best film we have ever seen.  But, in the real world, film makers never have access to those two luxuries ...

I suppose to be fair, one person with an unlimited amount of time and money could, hypothetically, create the ultimate film.  However, it's a bit like the old adage that a billion monkeys with a billion typewriters could create or surpass the works of Shakespeare!  As you know, a billion internet users with a billion keyboards have already disproved this theory ;0)

But still, there is one monkey you'll need to trust with a keyboard - and that's a music supervisor...

Remaking Planet of the Apes?  You'll need a monkey supervisor too!

- David

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Fake IMDB Credits ...

AFX Industrial (film scores)

IMDB Credits, everyone wants one but are all of them for real?

A long list of IMDB credits looks impressive and I used to think IMDB credits were really important.  I know that a lot of directors and producers tend to use them like a CV when they're deciding who to give a job to.  It can be a useful way to see what someone's worked on, but like anything on the internet they need to be taken with a rather large pinch of salt.  I'd like to share a story with you, about a director with a rather strange hobby ...

In 2009 I was invited to an interview for a film scoring job in a church hall, in inner city London.  It was a little strange to have a meeting in a church hall, as I usually get together with the director in my comfortable studio or we may meet up in a coffee shop.

I arrived on time but was kept waiting in the kitchen until Mr. Smith* (*this is a pseudonym ...) was ready to see me, hmm curious.  Finally I was allowed to enter the enormous 1970s type hall and directed to an empty desk slap-bang in the middle of it with Mr. Smith on one side and me on the other ... job interview style.  I'd brought my laptop (as I usually do when I have a meeting about a film) so we could go over a few ideas, you know, normal stuff.  But, unfortunately all of the plug sockets were 6 meters away, behind the plastic chairs that were stacked haphazardly around the sides of the hall.  And my power supply lead was only 1.5 meters long. It wasn't a great start and felt more like an interview the local benefits office might force a long-term unemployed person to attend.

I do remember Mr. Smith had set up the wooden table in such a way that the sun streamed through the plate glass windows behind him.  This slightly dazzled me, and as it was such a sunny day I could only see Mr. Smith in silhouette ... I needed my shades.

And people think meeting with me will be formal?

I couldn't really gauge how the rather stilted interview was going, and after a few uncomfortable questions Mr. Smith finally asked me what sort of music I would write for a film about the Church.  I didn't need to think about it, "I'd probably use the Church Modes", I replied.  These really exist by the way, they are simply scales used by the early Church, but I'm sure he thought I was being facetious.  It seemed he wanted to keep this formal and 'interview' like so I suggested that, having studied for my music degree in a theological college and minored in theology itself, I may be just the man for the job.  But I'm sure he thought I was being facetious again.  It was painful, and I could tell Mr. Smith was not interested.

It's just, well, if you're looking for a composer for a film about theological dilemmas and you don't want a composer who knows anything about music or theology then maybe your advert should read:


'Composer wanted for theologically based Feature Film - would be helpful if you didn't know anything about music or theology.'


The film has still not been made (and presumably hasn't been scored either), although Mr. Smith did advertise the same composing job a few more times. He also advertised again some weeks later for a cameraman ... I guess all the cameramen who turned up with previous experience of operating a camera were unsuitable too ;0)

So I moved on to the next project. 

Pretending to make films.

However, Mr. Smith's name kept cropping up. Months passed and I began to notice a curious pattern to his online adverts. He would advertise for various unpaid crew, cameramen and personnel for a film one week.  And then the next week he would advertise for unpaid crew for a different film but use the same plot description, as if he'd just copy-pasted it from the previous week.  Again, a couple of weeks would go by and then Mr. Smith would be looking for a composer for yet another different film with a different title but use the same copy-pasted plot description.  Curiouser and curiouser!

It was very intriguing ... almost like watching someone unravel mentally.  Mr. Smith had seemingly become addicted to creating fake movies to work on, but the most baffling thing about it was the identical plot line for each film.  I know that if I was preparing adverts to display the fact that I'd lost my mind I'd at least put a bit of thought into the storyline of each one.

A year went by, then out of the blue Mr. Smith sent me some test footage to pitch to ... It wasn't for the main feature film I had been interviewed for, but it was for a short film using the same plot description I had seen on all the other adverts.  Another new film with the same plot?  I decided to do the pitch and this time, I got the job - but he balked at paying me so I moved on.

You all know how long it takes to make a film, especially if there is zero budget.  But by now Mr. Smith was juggling at least a dozen different projects with no funding, no crew and no music.  But still, there was something quite compelling about the whole situation with Mr. Smith - his name even turned up on a few film making forums in the 'avoid' posts.  At least it wasn't just me who had noticed.  Meanwhile the adverts became more demanding, Mr. Smith even changed his name to disguise himself (and created some fake 'employees') - but the same plot line he cited for all of his films was a slight giveaway.

One advert read something like: 'composer to create 40 minute violin concerto in style of Mozart for short film - no pay.'  Mozart spent his entire life perfecting his concertos.  A violin concerto is not something composers generally rattle off in an afternoon (for free!) for some stranger on the internet.

But now, rather than leaving 'Mr. Smith' as his contact name he was asking the respondents to contact 'Anna' or 'Denise' and this time he was offering an IMDB credit as payment.  This piqued my interest so I checked Mr. Smith's IMDB page ...

Film makers all know how long it can take to make a film, especially if you have no money at all, but Mr. Smith had miraculously managed to complete at least a dozen in the space of six months!  And he had 'future' credits for films due to be completed in 2014, 2015 etc.  And, you know, the funniest thing of all was that a lot of the personnel and crew had the same names as the pseudonyms he had used to try and attract unpaid crew 'anonymously'.

I even clicked on some of these bogus crew members on the IMDB website and the only films they had worked on before were Mr. Smith's films and that was only in the last six months.  So, it seemed rather than actually making films, Mr. Smith had spent the last six months creating not only bogus film credits for himself but also IMDB pages for all of the fake crew he required.

You'll often see the same names cropping up continually in film making, but I was damned if I could find any external info for any of his crew ...

The film industry is small, and if you've somehow annoyed people to such an extent that your name is appearing in the 'avoid' forums, then you need to work hard to put that right - or quit.  I've seen the IMDB forms required to register film releases and believe me, filling them in takes a considerable amount of time and effort ... Falsifying IMDB credits will ensure you are never taken seriously again.

I have my own IMDB page and even films I've scored with known actors haven't appeared in my credit list yet, mainly because like any crew member, I'm reliant on other people to submit the data for the film.  I'm sure its not impossible to figure out a way of getting past the IMDB checks and fooling their system into thinking fake films are real ... But the burning question is why would people go to all this effort?

I had that question answered shortly afterwards by an industry guru from the 'old school'.  We were chatting over coffee in London one day - I wanted to know why one of my competitors 'Johnny X' had been given a job over me.  Even the industry guru admitted my scoring abilities were far superior to Johnny's ...

"Well then why?"  I asked.  "Well dear boy" the guru croaked "He's got an IMDB list as long as your arm!"




Your comments are always welcome.



- David.

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How To Talk To a Composer.

AFX Industrial (film scores)

'According to research 50% of the directors and producers out there admitted to finding the whole subject of film scoring rather tedious.'






I don't think they find music tedious, I think it's simply because music isn't an immediate, visual medium like film.  Conversely, all the directors I've spoken to agree that a score (and the way a film sounds) contributes to 50% of a film's success.  I feel some sort of paradox has just occurred, although to simplify lets just put it down to a lack of communication between the directors and composers.  He he.

Why is music a difficult subject to discuss?

I think music, especially orchestral or classical music is perceived as something much more high brow than it really is - but, like Spanish or Dutch, music is simply a language.  Are people who speak these languages high brow?  Of course they're not they just learned their language through study and that's exactly how you learn music.  It's a subject available for anyone to learn at any time in their life, that doesn't strike me as particularly high brow.

So, what is the mysticism surrounding music?  At what point does music become this 'anima' this self perpetuating entity that has a life of its own?  Consider this, are you (subconsciously) more in awe of Lady Ga Ga the Black Eyed Peas or Tchaikovsky?  It's usually Tchaikovsky for most, but why?  Well I'm not going to answer that question in this blog, no because today we are simply looking at how to talk to a composer.

Let's talk Music.

There you are in the composer's comfy studio and its time to talk music which, it seems for quite a lot of film makers is a bit like going to the dentist.

And this is how we discuss it ...

We talk about color, we talk about the point the music enters to the frame - because unlike real life your film can be broken down into 24 or 29fps, however in real life there are no simple subdivisions.  Scoring can be so precise that you could have a musical event on every frame if you wished, surely that quantifies the misconception that music is somehow 'random' and 'haphazard'.  It isn't.

We decide where the silence should be and why.  We discuss the overarching storyline.  We talk about the emotion of the scene and the underlying narrative and back story for each character.  We discuss favorite instruments from bongos to bassoons.  We look at suitable pieces to use to emulate music coming from a car radio or a CD player in a diner (known as source music).  We ponder on whether the film is 'big' enough to warrant a large orchestra - or would a more intimate ensemble do?

We discuss every scene in your film and decide when the music enters, what it does and when it leaves - just like an actor.  In fact it's very much like writing a part for a character in your film.  How exciting is that?  To have a brand new character in your film that you didn't even know was going to be in it?  But all this time have we really been discussing music?  Have I mentioned one overt musical utterance?  Well, no because discussing the very mechanics of music itself would only slow the process down.  A bit like me suddenly deciding to spend the rest of the spotting session talking in Dutch.

The Secret to a Great Score.

From a director's point of view the secret to a great score is to care about all of the above, it really is that simple - and as you can see no real knowledge of music is necessary.

The Secret to a Terrible Score.

According to almost every director's response, the way a film sounds and how well the music compliments the imagery contributes to the success of the film by a staggering 50%.  So, by ignoring this you are effectively giving your film 50% less chance of being distributed, sold or even liked ... There are a lot of films out there all vying for the same distribution deals as yours.  In fact there is so much competition to get into festivals and to get onto VOD platforms like Netfilx/Mubi/LoveFilm etc.  You really have to have a great product or it will fail.

I think today there is a tendency to shy away from the importance of great music in a film.  I can only put it down to there being a bit of a phobia about music in general ... Maybe, in the last couple of decades music has not been taught in schools adequately enough - I do know the education system's emphasis has been on science rather than art lately.  Could it be time to tip that balance in favor of the arts again?

'Imagine if you had no knowledge of the color BLUE what impact would that have on your film making?'   

 

 

Music is also one of those arts that is only appreciated to the extent of our own knowledge of it - and sadly an average person's encounter with orchestral or classical music only really takes place when they visit a movie theater.  Would those millions of people have felt the same way about a rubbery ET without John Williams' score?  Of course not.

To put this lack of musical knowledge into perspective just imagine for a moment that you had no knowledge of the color BLUE what impact would that have on your film making?  Similarly without an in depth knowledge of music how could you ever know what musical or orchestral colors were available to you?  You couldn't, but this is what a trained composer brings to your film, a set of sonic colors that you had no idea were available.

Music Only Affects Us in Real Time.

There is also another frustrating aspect of music that faces directors - it has to play back in real time to have the desired effect.  With a Quick Time video you could easily flick through and get the gist of what you see but a 12 minute Mahler movement only really makes sense in the final moments.  You can't just flick to the end of the Mahler and 'get it', no, unfortunately the whole 12 minutes has to be listened to in it's entirety ...

And that is kind of how music works it's cumulative.  The affect only really becomes apparent after a certain amount of time has elapsed ... Think of Ravel's Bolero.

There are certain techniques a composer can use to thrill and move an audience but these techniques can take a good 90 minutes to achieve, which is why better composers tend to chase feature films.  They know they simply cannot achieve these desirable musical effects within a short film.  Trying to prove you are a good composer over the course of a 3 minute film is impossible, this is also true for pitching (scoring a disconnected scene) to show your skills.  Some composers may feel relief that they don't have to focus on one thing for too long, but for a professional composer pitching is a stifling and uncomfortable procedure.

The Personal Aspect of Music - Letting Go.

Undoubtedly music is a very personal thing, I understand how directors feel about this.  In fact to some it's so personal that they want to create the music for their film with their own hands.  I can see the frustration.  I sympathize, I really do.  I often wish I could perform dentistry on myself, but no matter how personal my mouth is to me in the end I have to offer it up to a stranger in the dentist's chair.  And in a similar way you need to give up your film to a trained composer if they are to extract the odd musical tooth and perform fillings.  Letting go of a project that has been dear to your heart for so many years is hard but it's increasingly impossible to wear every hat, especially if you want a finely tuned, salable film at the end of it.

Patience is a Virtue.

Of course it is and if you are a film maker then you'll know that only too well.  But patience isn't just about waiting for things to happen, patience is also about seeing an idea through from start to finish.  Throwing a few pieces of music at your film in the last month of post-production is not exercising patience ... Back in the day composers would score scenes as they were shot, working hand in hand with the director's vision - patience.

Film, like any great art form is all about those wonderful lines and curves and arches, if everybody was in it for the long haul then that will show in the end result.  Film scoring and film making cannot be rushed they need to be practiced with the same people on board over a period of months even years.  More than anything great art needs to communicate with the audience it seeks and that will only happen if its creators have communicated unequivocally during the creative process.


- David.

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Your comments are always welcome.

Visit my website here: http://dchewitt.com










 

Why Getting Your Film's OST on iTunes Matters.

AFX Industrial (film scores)

If you follow me on Twitter you'll have seen my tweets about getting your film's official soundtrack (OST) onto iTunes and Amazon.   Today we'll look at how doing this can be very beneficial for your film, from boosted sales to heightened audience perception.

Marketing, the antithesis of art?

If you've just finished your film then you'll want as many people to read about it, talk about it and see it as possible.  But unfortunately, many low budget films fail because they never find adequate ways to market and distribute themselves.  I know from first hand experience that after funding, shooting, editing and grading their film many directors simply give up and fail to market it at all.

Of course, I totally understand that.  Being a composer I often felt that simply completing a musical work ought to be enough ... Well I used to feel that way.  Until I realized that if I didn't sell my 'works of art' he he, then I'd end up working in Macdonalds with no time to work on my art at all!  We must sell a piece of our work before we can invest in a new project - and unless it's a hobby for you then that is the nature of the game.  It's inevitable.

But marketing a film takes many shapes and forms, T-shirts, posters and of course the humble soundtrack CD.  And there it is.  It may seem humble until you realize how deeply companies like Amazon and iTunes penetrate this little planet we live on, then a globally released OST becomes a very desirable thing indeed.

'Imagine the soundtrack to your film available to billions of film and music lovers across the globe!' 

 

From Japan to India to Iceland to Brazil iTunes, Amazon (and many other online stores) now have total monopoly over CD sales.  My record label (Affex Records) now sells CDs and Mp3 albums in territories and cities I've never heard of ... There's a world of hungry consumers out there and they need feeding.

Imagine the soundtrack to your film being made available to literally billions of film and music lovers across the globe!  The CD cover alone is one hell of a great advert for your film!  And, if we consider the amount of people that hear a score before they see a film - it's a great way to market your movie.  But please don't think this kind of marketing is just reserved for blockbuster movies, we always include a global CD release as part of our standard scoring package.

However, I'm not writing this blog to plug what AFX can offer you, no I'm writing it to raise awareness of the marketing potential available to film makers.  With an OST release you can enjoy marketing that you probably never even considered.  It's this or MacDonalds right?  Right.  Just checking ;0)

'an OST release adds a whole new level of coolness and credibility to your film'.

 

The Kudos Factor

OK, marketing lesson over let's look at the inherent coolness of having your film's soundtrack on general release worldwide.

Soundtracks sell films, you only have to look at the popularity of Clint Mansell's Requiem for a Dream score to see that.  Used everywhere from the X Factor to the Olympics - its a global hit!  That weird little cult film was dragged from obscurity into the mainstream all because of Clint's stunningly poignant score.  I loved the whole film by the way, not just the Jennifer Connelly scene ;0)

As for how your film is perceived it goes without saying that having an OST release, either before or on the actual day of your film's release adds a whole new level of coolness and credibility to your film.  Don't you think?

Fans like paraphernalia

Yes they do!  I remember being obsessed with my favorite artist and never being able to find enough physical 'stuff' to possess that was attached to the artist.  Maybe you got old and cynical but real fans are often young and hungry for it - sell 'em stuff!  They want it!  Your film's OST CD could end up in cars (more advertising) on the radio (more advertising) on Mp3 players as shared files (more advertising).  And every time the soundtrack is mentioned, looked at or listened to the name of your film is what people will remember, not the composer not the distributor but the name of your film.  Priceless!

Isn't it complicated?

Well, yes I'd be lying if I said that planning your score from the very first note on paper to a bar-coded, globally available CD and Mp3 download is easy.  But at least you as the director don't have to worry about any of that stuff ... That's my job.

Of course having your OST available as a worldwide release will undoubtedly improve the image, notoriety and sales of your film.  But before you take this road you must be brutally honest with yourself ... Do you really want all the publicity and exposure this can bring?  Do you really want people to see your film?


- David.

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For more info email directly: mail@dchewitt.com

Visit AFX at Shepperton Film Studios

What is Temp Tracking?

AFX Industrial (film scores)

Today I'm looking at Temp Tracking a film, what it means and when / why you may need to do it.

The concept is easy -  'temp' stands for temporary and 'track' refers to the music track in a film, but why have a temporary music track at all?

 

Why original music isn't always better music.

In the 50s and 60s a lot of TV shows started using music from a common pool - a library of recorded music known then as 'mood music'.  This was primarily to avoid the cost incurred with hiring a composer and getting a bespoke piece recorded ... So, the producer would choose from a catalog of tunes on vinyl looking for something appropriate for the show.  Many of the pieces chosen went on to become minor hits of the time, especially the ones used for the opening and closing credits of the shows.  The audience loved them and often asked if they were available in their local record store - eventually the publishers saw the revenue potential and released the pieces.  Many of which had become theme tunes in their own right.  That's how it happened, music that started out as a temporary solution to the scoring problem just kinda stuck.

Fast forward to 2013 and we see this scoring solution being used more and more frequently.  Many Hollywood directors will temp track a film with their favorite composer's score, simply to give them a solid pulse to edit to.  Much like music, film making is all about the timing.

One of the most famous anecdotes stems from Jerry Goldsmith's score for the first Alien film.  Apparently they'd already temp tracked Alien with a score that Goldsmith had written for a previous film, even discarding his newer Alien score in favor of it.  Of course Jerry was hopping mad until they reminded him that it was still ALL his music.  I think when he realized they had chosen his own work over his own work it kinda negated the insult. 

But let's to get back to the point I made in the title, why original music isn't always better.  I deal with a lot of film makers on a lot of different levels, some want to talk to me about it and others simply can't be bothered to discuss music ... However the one thing I do come across repeatedly is the misconception (especially among amateur film makers) that specially written music is better at all costs.

In this hypothetical scenario I get a call from a low budget film production company who need a score in a few days (it happens frequently).  I explain there's a contract to sign and then the score needs to be written, but if you pay $X you will get my full attention ... Then I hear those immortal words 'we have no music budget at all'.  OK by now a day has passed so I have even less time.  I explain that in the best interests of the film, at least for now, it will have to be temp tracked with an existing score.  But they are adamant they want original music and now we have two days to go ...

So I'm a bit stuck here, they called because they had heard my work and love the quality of the music - good to know!  But when I try to explain that those scores were commissioned and the studio time was paid for and that much time was spent over the mix and production - and that is why they sound so good, it falls on deaf ears.  They don't want to pay a penny.

The pre-written scores were available for just a couple of hundred bucks even though thousands of dollars went into the initial production.  Ultimately it filters down to your audience.  Temp tracking means an audience gets to listen to really well recorded music on your film, while you pay a fraction of the music production costs.  Only you know it was music meant for another film.  Believe me, with the editing, pitch shifting and time stretching tools available today your audience will think it was specially written.  Plus it sounds great because someone else has already paid for it to sound great!

I hope you can see that quite often bespoke music or the idea of bespoke music can actually harm a movie, especially when it is a freebie and done in a rush ... The audience are your prime target and they really don't give a hoot if the music is original or not.  Making movies is about pleasing an audience if you are making movies for any other reason then sadly it may remain a hobby.  Of course, an audience is also made up of people like you and I - film nerds and fanatics, we need to please them as well!

In the end, a really well written and produced temp track score, that once had a lot of time and love lavished on it will please your audience.  It will definitely please them much more than one that's been thrown together in the last few hours of your post production sessions ...

So, if you've run out of time and need to score your film in a hurry consider temp tracking - it's a traditional, recognized and often better way to solve your scoring dilemma.  Your fans may eventually find out the score was a temporary solution, - but only after you release a coffee table book to celebrate the 30 year anniversary of your most successful film ;0)


- David.

iTunes

 Click images to Buy David's music from your favorite store!

Amazon

visit my site here: http://dchewitt.com