Ram Khatabakhsh (The Hunger Games Exhibition, Portals, Transformers Autobots) has signed on to score the upcoming thriller Alphas. The film is directed by Steven Quale (Into the Storm, Final Destination 5, Aliens of the Deep) and stars Sam Worthington as an environmentalist who is tasked with finding a natural solution to the shark problem after the local Great White population spirals out of control and must convince the owner of a killer whale sanctuary to unleash the orca that nearly killed her when she was attacked by the star of her own show. Frank Hannah (The Cooler) wrote the screenplay based on an original story by himself and Christopher Tuffin (Peppermint).
Category: Film Scoring Assignments
Netflix’s ‘A Week Away’ to Feature Original Songs by Adam Watts and Original Score by Benjamin Backus
Netflix announced today that the upcoming faith-based musical A Week Away will feature three original songs written by Adam Watts (High School Musical series). Watts also serves as the music producer of the movie, which also features reimagined songs from some of the biggest hits in Contemporary Christian Music history. Benjamin Backus is composing the project’s score. The film is directed by Roman White and stars Bailee Madison, Kevin Quinn, Sherri Shepherd, David Koechner, Jahbril Cook, Kat Conner Sterling and Iain Tucker. The drama follows a troubled teen who has a run-in with the law that puts him at an important crossroad: go to juvenile detention or attend a Christian summer camp.
Gustavo Santaolalla to Score Miguel Sapochnik’s ‘BIOS’
Academy Award winner Gustavo Santaolalla (Brokeback Mountain, Babel, 21 Grams, The Motorcycle Diaries, The Book of Life) has been tapped to score the upcoming sci-fi drama BIOS. The film is directed by Miguel Sapochnik (Game of Thrones, Repo Men) and stars Tom Hanks, Caleb Landry Jones, Samira Wiley, Laura Harrier and Skeet Ulrich. The movie is set in a post-apocalyptic world and follows an ailing inventor who builds a robot to keep his beloved dog safe and embarks upon an epic cross-country journey to teach his creation to become “human.” Craig Luck and Ivor Powell wrote the screenplay.
Kamasi Washington Scoring Nadia Hallgren’s Netflix Documentary ‘Becoming’
Jazz saxophonist Kamasi Washington has recently scored the new Netflix documentary Becoming. The film is directed by Nadia Hallgren (After Maria) and offers a look into the life of former First Lady Michelle Obama during a moment of profound change, not only for her personally but for the country she and her husband served over eight impactful years in the White House. The movie follows Obama as she embarks on a 34-city tour. Katy Chevigny (Dark Money, E-Team), Marilyn Ness (Cameraperson, Trapped) & Lauren Cioffi are producing the project for Big Mouth Productions.
Daft Punk to Compose Music for Dario Argento’s ‘Black Glasses’ (‘Occhiali Neri’)
Director Dario Argento (Suspiria, Inferno, Opera, Trauma) revealed in a recent interview with Repubblica (via The Film Stage) that the French electronic music duo Daft Punk are set to compose the music for his upcoming feature Black Glasses (Occhiali Neri). The movie will star Asia Argento and is being described as his return to crime films . No plot details have been announced yet. Argento also co-wrote the screenplay and Luciano Tovoli will serve as the director of photography, Daft Punk have made their scoring debut on 2010’s Tron: Legacy.
Marco Beltrami to Score Doug Liman’s ‘Chaos Walking’
Marco Beltrami (3:10 to Yuma, Logan, A Quiet Place, Ford v. Ferrari, The Hurt Locker, Scream, World War Z) has been hired to score the upcoming film adaptation of Patrick Ness’ Chaos Walking. The movie is directed by Doug Liman (The Bourne Identity, Edge of Tomorrow) and stars Tom Holland, Daisy Ridley, Mads Mikkelsen, Demián Bichir, Kurt Sutter, Nick Jonas, Cynthia Erivo and David Oyelowo. The movie is based on the novel The Knife of Never Letting Go, the first part of the Chaos Walking trilogy takes place in a world where all women have been killed by a germ and all living creatures can hear one another’s thoughts in a stream of images, words and sounds called The Noise.
Benson Taylor to Score Paul Leyden’s ‘Chick Fight’
Benson Taylor (London Fields, The Perfect Dictatorship) has been tapped to score the upcoming action comedy Chick Fight. The film is directed by Paul Leyden (Come Back to Me) and stars Malin Akerman, Alec Baldwin, Bella Thorne, Dulcé Sloan, Fortune Feimster and Alec Mapa. The movie follows a woman who hasn’t reconciled with the recent death of her adored mother, when she gets introduced to an an underground, all-female fight club in order to turn the mess of her life around. Joseph Downey wrote the screenplay. Akerman is also producing the project with Yale Productions’ Jordan Yale Levine (Jack Goes Home), Jordan Beckerman (Crypto) & Michael J. Rothstein (Burn, After Everything), Idiot Savant Pictures’ Anne Clements (StartUp, The Oath), as well as Ash Christian (Social Animals).
Geoff Barrow & Ben Salisbury to Score Paul Schrader’s ‘The Card Counter’
Director Paul Schrader has revealed in a recent interview with Vulture that Geoff Barrow is set to compose music for the upcoming thriller The Card Counter. It is expected that the composer will be teaming up with his regular collaborator Ben Salisbury (Annihilation, Ex Machina, Free Fire, Luce) to score the film written and directed by Schrader (First Reformed, Taxi Driver, Affliction) and starring Oscar Isaac, Tiffany Haddish, Tye Sheridan and Willem Dafoe. The movie revolves around a card player on the casino trail who sees a chance at redemption when he’s approached by a young man seeking help to execute his plan for revenge on a military colonel.
Atli Örvarsson Scoring David Dobkin’s Netflix Movie ‘Eurovision”
Atli Örvarsson (The Hitman’s Bodyguard, Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters, Vantage Point, The Edge of Seventeen, Rams) is composing the original score for the upcoming Netflix original film Eurovision. The movie is directed by David Dobkin (Wedding Crashers, The Judge) and stars Will Ferrell, Rachel McAdams, Pierce Brosnan, Dan Stevens and Demi Lovato. The comedy centers on two aspiring musicians who are given the opportunity of a lifetime to represent their country at the world’s biggest song competition, where they finally have a chance to prove that any dream worth having is a dream worth fighting.
Lorne Balfe to Score Paramount Animation’s & WWE Studios’ ‘Rumble’
Lorne Balfe has signed on to score the upcoming animated feature Rumble. The film is directed by Hamish Grieve and features the voices of Will Arnett, Terry Crews, Geraldine Viswanathan,Tony Danza, Joe “Roman Reigns” Anoa’i, Susan Kelechi Watson, Stephen A. Smith, Jimmy Tatro, Becky Lynch, Ben Schwartz and Michael Buffer.The movie is set in a world where monster wrestling is a global sport and monsters are superstar athletes, and follows a teenager as he seeks to follow in her father’s footsteps by coaching a loveable underdog monster into a champion. Mark Bakshi and Brad Booker (The Book of Life) are producing the WWE Studios and Paramount Animation production.