John Debney has been tapped to score the upcoming indie drama The Cobbler. The film is written and directed by Tom McCarthy and stars Adam Sandler, Dan Stevens, Dustin Hoffman, Steve Buscemi, Melonie Diaz, Ellen Barkin and Method Man. The movie follows a fourth generation shoemaker who finds a magical sewing machine in the basement of his father that enables him to experience life as other people when he wears their shoes. McCarthy is also producing the project with Mary Jane Skalski (The Visitor, Mysterious Skin) and Voltage Pictures’ Nicolas Chartier (The Hurt Locker, The Company You Keep). The actor/writer/director has previously collaborated with composers Jan A.P. Kaczmarek (The Visitor), Stephen Trask (The Station Agent) and Lyle Workman (Win Win) on his previous directorial efforts.
Tag: John Debney
John Debney to Score History’s ‘Houdini’
John Debney has signed on to score the upcoming mini-series Houdini. The two-parter stars Adrian Brody as Harry Houdini and Kristen Connolly as his wife Bess. The four-hour series follows the magician as be finds fame, engages in espionage, battles spiritualists and encounters several U.S. presidents, as well as such personalities as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Grigori Rasputin. Uli Edel (The Baader Meinhof Complex) is directing the A + E Studios and Lionsgate Television production and Gerald W. Abrams (Nuremberg) and Andras Hamori (eXistenZ, Cheri) are executive producing the project. Nicolas Meyer (Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, Sommersby, Volunteers) has written the script. Debney has previously scored the mini-series Hatfields & McCoys and last year’s Bonnie & Clyde for A+E/History.
Weekly Film Music Roundup (May 2, 2014)
The only wide release this weekend is the superhero sequel The Amazing Spider-Man 2 directed by Marc Webb and starring Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Jamie Foxx and Dane DeHaan. The film’s original music is composed by Hans Zimmer and The Magnificent Six, which includes Pharrell Williams, Johnny Marr, Michael Einziger, Junkie XL, Andrew Kawczynski and Steve Mazzaro. Columbia Records and Madison Gate Records have released a soundtrack album featuring the score, as well as songs by Alicia Keys feat. Kendrick Lamar, Liz and more. For the full details, check out our previous article. Also click here to watch a live performance of the film’s music at the movie’s New York premiere.
Opening in limited release and on VOD is the comedy Walk of Shame directed by Steven Brill and starring Elizabeth Banks, James Marsden and Gillian Jacobs. The film’s original music is composed by John Debney (The Passion of the Christ, Elf, Iron Man 2). Lakeshore Records has released a soundtrack featuring the composer’s score. Click here to listen to audio clips and for the full album details. The label has also released a separate soundtrack featuring the film’s songs by artists including Dave Audé (featuring AKON & Luciana), Eli “Paperboy” Reed, Marcus Latief Scott (featuring John Costello), Brenna Bishop, Lux Lovell & more. For more information, check out our previous news article.
Weekly Film Music Roundup (April 11, 2014)
Three new movies are opening wide this weekend:
Opening in most theaters is the animated sequel Rio 2 directed by Carlinhos Brown and featuring the voices of Anne Hathaway, Jesse Eisenberg, will.i.am, Jemaine Clement, Rodrigo Santoro, Tracy Morgan, George Lopez, Leslie Mann, Jamie Foxx, Rita Moreno, Bruno Mars and Kristin Chenoweth. The film’s original’s music is composed by John Powell (How to Train Your Dragon) and Sergio Mendes serves as the film’s executive music producer. Atlantic Records has released a soundtrack album featuring the songs from the film. Check out our previous article for the full album details. Sony Classical has released a separate soundtrack featuring Powell’s score. Click here for the score album details and to listen to audio clips.
Also opening wide is the sports drama Draft Day directed by Ivan Reitman and starring Kevin Costner, Jennifer Garner, Denis Leary, Frank Langella, Sam Elliot, Sean Combs, Terry Crews, Ellen Burstyn and Chadwick Boseman. John Debney (The Passion of the Christ, Iron Man 2) has composed the film’s original music. Lakeshore Records has released a soundtrack album featuring the composer’s score earlier this week. For the full album details and to listen to audio clips, check out our soundtrack announcement.
‘Walk of Shame’ Soundtrack Announced
Lakeshore Records has announced the details of the soundtrack album for the comedy Walk of Shame. The album features the film’s original score composed by John Debney (The Passion of the Christ, Iron Man 2, Elf). The soundtrack will be released on April 15, 2014 and is now available for pre-order on Amazon. Check out audio clips after the jump. Walk of Shame is directed by Steven Brill and stars Elizabeth Banks, James Marsden and Gillian Jacobs. The movie follows an aspiring reporter whose dreams of becoming a network news anchor are compromised after one-night stand leaves her stranded in downtown LA. The comedy will be released on May 2 by Focus World.
‘Draft Day’ Soundtrack Details
Lakeshore Records will release a soundtrack album for the sports drama Draft Day. The album features the film’s original music written by Academy Award-nominated composer John Debney (The Passion of the Christ, Elf, Iron Man 2). The soundtrack will be released on April 1, 2014 and is now available for pre-order on Amazon. Check out audio clips after the jump. Draft Day is directed by Ivan Reitman (Ghostbusters) and stars Kevin Costner, Jennifer Garner, Denis Leary, Frank Langella, Sam Elliot, Sean Combs, Terry Crews, Ellen Burstyn and Chadwick Boseman. The movie follows the manager of the Cleveland Browns who struggles to acquire the top draft pick for his team on the day of the draft.
Weekly TV Music Roundup (February 9, 2014)
While no new TV shows are premiering this week, Amazon has made a number of new pilots available this past Thursday. Viewers will get to decide whether they want a full season by voting for the shows on the website.
One of Amazon’s drama pilots is the mystery drama The After created by Chris Carter (The X-Files, Millennium) and starring Sharon Lawrence, Jamie Kennedy, Aldis Hodge, Andrew Howard, Adrian Pasdar, Arielle Kebbel, Jaina Lee Ortiz and Louise Monot. John Debney (The Passion of the Christ, Iron Man 2, Elf) has composed the project’s original music. Check out our previous news article to learn more about the assigment. The After centers on eight strangers who are thrown together by mysterious forces and must help each other survive in a violent world that defies explanation. Click here to stream the pilot.
John Debney Scoring Chris Carter’s ‘The After’
John Debney revealed in a new interview with Soundtrax that has recently scored the pilot for the Amazon Studios mystery drama The After. The project is created by Chris Carter and stars Sharon Lawrence, Jamie Kennedy, Aldis Hodge, Andrew Howard, Jaina Lee Ortiz, Adrian Pasdar, Arielle Kebbel and Louise Monot. The drama follows eight strangers who are thrown together by mysterious forces and must help each other survive in a violent world that defies explanation. Carter has also directed the pilot episode and is executive producing the project with Marc Rosen of Georgeville Television. He has previously collaborated with Mark Snow on such shows as The X-Files, Millennium and The Lone Gunmen.
Varese Celebrates 35th Birthday with Holiday Concert Gala
This past Saturday evening, Varese Sarabande hosted their 35th Anniversary Holiday Gala at the Warner Grand Theatre in San Pedro, California. The concert was hosted and produced by Robert Townson and performed by the Golden State Pops Orchestra (GSPO) and Chorale. The event was highlighted by music from Jon Favreau’s Elf, which was performed for the first time with a full choir and orchestra and was guest conducted by the film’s composer John Debney (The Passion of the Christ, Iron Man 2). Also featured was a special performance of the holiday classic A Charlie Brown Christmas Classic prepared by composer and orchestrator William Ross (Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Ladder 49). Check out videos of both the Elf and Charlie Brown performances after the jump.
John Debney Honored at ETM-LA’s Annual Benefit Gala
This past Tuesday night, John Debney was honored at Education Through Music-Los Angeles’ (ETM-LA) 8th Annual Benefit Gala at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles. Director Tom Shadyac who worked with Debney on such films as Liar Liar, Bruce Almighty, Evan Almighty and Dragonfly presented the award to the Academy Award-nominated composer. He also presented a video, which featured many of Debney’s friends and collaborators, including Jon Favreau (Iron Man 2, Elf, Zathura) and Rob Cohen (Alex Cross, The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor), congratulating the composer on his honor. The music students of the ETM-LA program and David Starr Jordan Middle School performed Debney’s theme from the holiday comedy Elf, which director Jon Favreau singled out as his favorite score from any film he directed.