Rob Simonsen has been tapped to score the comedy drama The Spectacular Now. The film is directed by James Ponsoldt (Smashed) and stars Shailene Woodley, Miles Teller, Brie Larson, Kyle Chandler, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Bob Odenkirk and Andre Royo. The movie follows a high school senior and the mercurial introvert he attempts to “save” from life as a social outcast. The dramedy is based on a novel by Tim Tharp and has been adapted for the screen by Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber (500 Days of Summer, which Simonsen co-scored). Tom McNulty (Date Night) & Shawn Levy (A Night at the Museum), Michelle Krumm and Andrew Lauren are producing the 21 Laps, Global Produce and ALP production.
Category: Film Scoring Assignments
Mark Isham and Alicia Keys to Score ‘The Inevitable Defeat of Mister and Pete’
Mark Isham is teaming up with singer/songwriter Alicia Keys to score the upcoming drama The Inevitable Defeat of Mister and Pete. The film is directed by George Tillman Jr. and stars Jennifer Hudson, Jordin Sparks, Anthony Mackie, Jeffrey Wright, Skylan Brooks and Ethan Dizon. The movie follows two boys in Brooklyn who are left to fend for themselves over the summer after their mothers are taken away by the authorities. Keys is also executive producing the project. Michael Starrbury has written the screenplay and Jana Edelbaum (The Answer Man), Rachel Cohen (Dirty Girl) and Bob Teitel (Barbershop, Faster) are producing. Tillman Jr. has previously collaborated with Isham on the Robert De Niro-starring drama Men of Honor.
Graham Reynolds Scoring Richard Linklater’s ‘Before Midnight’
Graham Reynolds is reuniting with director Richard Linklater on the indie romance Before Midnight. The film stars Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy who reprise their roles as star-crossed lovers Jesse and Celine from the director’s Before Sunrise and Before Sunset. The film is set almost two decades since their couple’s first encounter on a train bound for Vienna and finds them in their early forties in Greece. Xenia Kalogeropoulou, Ariane Labed, Athina Rachel Tsangari and Seamus Davey-Fitzpatrick are co-starring. Linklater has also written the script with Hawke and Delpy and is producing the film with Christos V. Konstantakopoulos, Sara Woodhatch and Kostas Kefalas.
Nico Muhly Scoring ‘Kill Your Darlings’
Nico Muhly is the composer of the upcoming drama Kill Your Darlings. The film is directed by John Krokidas and stars Daniel Radcliffe, Elizabeth Olsen, Dane DeHaan, Ben Foster, Michael C. Hall, Kyra Sedgwick, Jennifer Jason Leigh and Jack Huston. The movie tells the previously untold story of murder that brought together a young Allen Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac and William Burroughs at Columbia University in 1944, providing the spark that would lead to the Beat Generation. Krokidas has also co-written the screenplay with Austin Bunn and is producing the Killer Films and Benaroya Pictures Pictures with Michael Benaroya (Margin Call, Lawless), Christine Vachon (Far from Heaven, Boys Don’t Cry) and Rose Ganguzza.
‘Afternoon Delight’ to Feature Music by Craig Wedren
Craig Wedren is composing the score for the indie comedy Afternoon Delight. The film is written and directed by Jill Soloway and stars Kathryn Hahn as a bored housewife who puts her idyllic hipster life in jeopardy when she tries to rescue a stripper by taking her in as a live-in nanny. Juno Temple, Josh Radnor and Jane Lynch are co-starring. Jen Chaiken (Big Eden) and Sebastian Dungan (Transamerica) are producing the project. Afternoon Delight is set to premiere in competition at the 2013 Sundance Film Premiere.
Ryan Miller to Score Lake Bell’s ‘In a World…’
Ryan Miller is scoring the upcoming indie comedy In a World…. The film marks the feature directorial debut of Lake Bell and stars herself as a struggling vocal coach who musters the courage to pursue her secret aspiration to be a voice-over star. Demetri Martin, Rob Corddry, Michaela Watkins, Ken Marino and Fred Melamed are co-starring. Bell has also written the screenplay and is producing the film with Mark Roberts, Jett Steiger (Goats) and Eddie Vaisman. Miller who is best known as the lead singer and principal songwriter for the alt-rock band Guster has previously scored a number of films, including this year’s critically acclaimed indie comedy Safety Not Guaranteed and the Patton Oswalt-starring comedy Nature Calls. In a World… will be premiering in competition at next year’s Sundance Film Festival.
Hans Zimmer to Score Gore Verbinski’s ‘The Lone Ranger’
According to the film’s latest trailer, Hans Zimmer has taken over scoring duties on Gore Verbinski’s upcoming western The Lone Ranger. The film stars Armie Hammer in the title role of the masked crime fighter and Johnny Depp as his Native American sidekick from the popular 1950s TV series. Helena Bonham Carter, Tom Wilkinson, William Fichtner and Barry Pepper are co-starring in the film produced by Jerry Bruckheimer. Justin Haythe (Revolutionary Road) has written the script with Terry Rossio & Ted Elliott (The Mask of Zorro). Zimmer has previously collaborated with Verbinski on the Pirates of the Caribbean films, The Ring and last year’s animated feature Rango. The composer is taking over for Jack White, lead guitarist and vocalist of the rock band White Stripes and member of the Raconteur and the Dead Weather, who was previously announced as the composer of the movie.
Christopher Gordon to Score Anne Fontaine’s ‘Two Mothers’
Christopher Gordon has been tapped to score the upcoming drama Two Mothers. The film is directed by Anne Fontaine and stars Naomi Watts and Robin Wright as two lifelong pals whose deep friendship is tested when they engage in affairs with each other’s sons. Ben Mendelsohn, Xavier Samuel, James Frecheville, Gary Sweet and Sophie Lowe are also starring. The movie is based on the novel by Doris Lessing (Memoirs of a Survivor) and was adapted for the screen by Christopher Hampton (Dangerous Liaisons, Atonement). Philippe Carcassonne (Coco Before Chanel) , Dominique Besnehard and Andrew Mason (Dark City, Tomorrow When the War Began) are producing the Cine@, MonVoisin and Hopscotch Features production.
Gustavo Santaolalla to Write Music for Guillermo del Toro’s ‘The Day of the Dead’ and ‘Pan’s Labyrinth’ Stage Musical
Deadline is reporting that Gustavo Santaolalla and Paul Williams are writing songs for Guillermo del Toro’s upcoming CG-animated film The Day of the Dead. The movie is directed and co-written by Jorge R. Gutierrez (El Tigre) and is being described as a “Romeo and Juliet-style love story set against a the Mexican holiday “Day of the Dead””. Del Toro is producing the Reel FX production with Aaron Berger and Carina Schulze. The project marks del Toro’s first Mexican film production in almost two decades. The Day of the Dead is targeting a release in the fall of 2014. Santaolalla who received two Academy Awards for his work on Brokeback Mountain and Babel is also composing the music for a stage version of Guillermo del Toro’s 2006 hit film Pan’s Labyrinth about a young stepdaughter of a sadistic army officer who finds refuge and terror in a fantasy world in 1944 Fascist Spain.
Julian Wass Scoring ‘The Pretty One’ and ‘Teddy Bears’
Julian Wass is scoring the upcoming indie comedy The Pretty One. The film is directed by Jenee LaMarque and stars Zoe Kazan as a young woman who is mistaken for her dead “perfect” identical twin and seizes the chance to masquerade as her sister. Jake Johnson (New Girl) and Ron Livingston are co-starring. The project marks the feature directorial debut of LaMarque who has also written the screenplay. Robin Schorr (Peaceful Warrior) is producing through RCR Pictures and Steven J. Berger is producing for Provenance Pictures. The Pretty One was shot this past summer in Los Angeles and is now in post-production.