This year’s Tropfest will see the awarding of the “Tropscore” award. There are three nominees, all of whom are listed at the end of this article, alongside further information of the awards. To learn more from the horses mouth, however, we caught up with one of the judges of the award – Josh Fielder, and the winner of last year’s award – Zac Cranko, to find out what it’s all about.
JOSH FIELDER – TROPSCORE 2011 JUDGE
How would you define a “good film score”?
Good Film Score: Musical accompaniment to a moving picture narrative that both reflects and enhances the overall mood of the afore mentioned moving picture.
What do you think makes one more interesting than another?
The different approaches to the genre is always interesting to me. Some writers like to quietly reflect what is going on in the film and play an effective backseat role to the visuals. There are others that approach a more overt, and yet still effective and appropriate role to the film’s narrative. There’s a lot of the writer’s personality in their approach to a film score. That interests me.
What will you be looking for in particular in the Tropfest entries?
Personality. The originality of thier music will be what sticks out to me the most. I will be watching the same film many times over, after all, so the least obvious answer, as long as it still has some level of relevance will stand out the most for me.
What are 3 of your favourite film scores of all time?
3: Batman (The good one with Michael Keaton and Jack Nicholson): Dark and slightly humorous- like a crazy person with a half smile.
2: Jaws: The scariest use of the Tuba outside a Columbo episode. I believe Peter Falk actually auditioned for John Williams for this gig (don’t check that- trust me).
1: Requiem For a Dream: Truly harrowing movie, beautifully captured by this unresolved minor piece. Watch this movie- but with a box of tissues.
ZAC CRANKO – 2010 TROPSCORE WINNER
I understand you started composing when you were 13 – at what point did you say “I’d love to hear my compositions on the screen”?
Film music has always had a very strong influence on me ever since as a little kid watching episodes of Star Trek, there’s just something about the sound of an orchestra that I was really drawn to. And of course working in film is one of the few ways that you can go out and hire the best studio in town with all the best musicians to record your music. So I think it was that prospect more than anything else that drew me away from other styles of writing about 4 years ago when I made the decision to pursue film music professionally.
What difference has winning the award made for your career?
One of the biggest challenges as a film composer is getting yourself out of your studio. We spend all day indoors at our desks, working on these little dots on pieces of paper or flashing lights on mixing consoles and at some point it becomes a lot more attractive than socialising and all those other things that ‘normal human beings’ do. But an important distinction between film/tv and art composers is that we necessarily have to be personable and easy to work with. At the very least, Tropscore got me out of my bedroom and into the real industry for the very first time.
What projects do you have in the pipeline that you’d like to plug?
I’m just studying hard here in LA, but if there are any filmmakers or producers out there with a film they believe in and need of some audio to go along with their moving images… find me on the google.
What are 3 of your favourite film scores of all time?
I absolutely adore the work of Jerry Goldsmith, as I’ve already said I think his theme to the Star Trek: Motion Picture was the first piece of music that I really connected with. It’s really hard for me to pick favourites but I’ve also fallen in love with Prokofiev’s music for Liutenant Kijé and Barry’s music for The Black Hole – so a bit of a diverse selection there!
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SO… WHO’S NOMINATED IN 2011?
Mosman real estate agent Stephen Lindsay, Sam Wyatt – a keyboard session musician from Adelaide, and Jack Hookey a student from the small Victorian country town of Kooyong, have had their film scores voted top of the Trops for 2011 – successfully competing to be named finalists of Tropfest’s movie score competition Max Tropscore.
The three finalist scores will fight it out for the honour of performing their winning score on Sunday 20 February in front of a live crowd of hundreds of thousands of film fans at screenings right across the country; with hundreds of thousands more tuning in to Movie Extra’s live national broadcast to check out all the Tropfest action from home.
The competition is stiff. Lindsay not formally trained in music and one of only two new Australian composers to have their scores recorded by the London Philharmonic Orchestra at Abbey Road Studios (2007), is determined to bring home his next honour. Wyatt a keyboardist and previous Tropscore finalist is back on top and keen to take home the winning prize this time. And Hookey the country boy from a large family of musicians is itching to set the record straight at home with his singer/ songwriter brother who was recently awarded Telstra’s road to Tamworth prize.
“It’s definitely going to be tough pickings for these judges” says John Polson – Tropfest Founder and Director.
“I’m wishing our panel of judges – Clare Bowditch (Musician), Andrew Lancaster (Director and Musician), Joshua Fielder (Musician), Antony Partos (Composer), Ben Facey (Marketing Director – Music Channels, XYZnetworks) and Daniel Crichton-Rouse (National Arts Editor, Street Press Australia) the best of luck on this one,” he says.
The Max Tropscore winner performs their score at Movie Extra Tropfest 2011, and included on the 2011 Movie Extra Tropfest Finalist DVD distributed in The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age. Plus take home $5,000 cash courtesy of principal partner, MAX.
Tropscore entrants each created an original musical score or synch for a three minute short film produced by emerging Australian film-maker, David Hansen [an edited version of his 2010 Movie Extra Tropfest shortlisted film, Escalate].
View the Top 3’s entries at www.maxtv.com.au/tropscore.
MAX TROPSCORE is produced by Movie Extra Tropfest in association with principal partner MAX. The competition is supported by Street Press Australia.
For more information about Tropfest visit www.tropfest.com.au
