May 1, 2007 - Film Music Magazine

© VeVa Van sloun / internationaal FilmFestiVal Van Vlaanderen-Gent
Rachel Portman to write
major BBC Proms work
Rachel Portman, who won an Oscar
for her “Emma” score, is taking time
off film scoring to write a concert
piece for the BBC Proms – and a
stage musical based on “Little
House on the Prairie.”
SIGNINGS & PROJECTS
john Powell:
Stop Loss
n Stop Loss, a political drama
about a soldier who refuses to
return to battle in Iraq after returning
home from the war, will
get an original score composed
by John Powell. The film, which
will be released by Paramount on November 16,
is directed by Kimberly Peirce and stars Ruan
Phillippe, Channing Tatum, Timothy Olyphant,
Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Jay Hernandez. Director
Peirce previously made the very strong
drama Boys Don’t Cry, which had a score by
Nathan Larson. Powell, who is represented by
Kraft-Engel, also has the scores for The Bourne
Ultimatum and the animated feature Horton
Hears a Who and coming up.
trevor rabin:
Get Smart
n Trevor Rabin, whose latest
scores include The Guardian,
Snakes on a Plane, Gridiron
Gang and Flyboys, has been hired
to compose the music for Get
Smart, an action comedy directed
by Peter Segal (The Longest Yard) and starring
Anne Hathaway, Steve Carell and The Rock. It’s
Rachel Portman, one of
UK’s leading film composers,
is currently working
on a major concert work to
be premiered at this year’s
BBC Proms at the Royal
Albert Hall in London.
Portman, who is best known
for her sensitive scores to films
such as Chocolat, The Cider
House Rules and The Lake
House, is composing a work
entitled “The Water Diviner’s
Tale” in collaboration with poet
Owen Sheers. It tells the story
of a group of children who are
lost after a devastating storm,
inspired by the hurricane Katrina,
and tackles the subject
of global warming.
“I am very interested in
writing a piece about climate
change,” Rachel Portman commented
to Film Music Weekly,
and continued:
“It’s for full orchestra, five
soloists, large youth chorus, and
spoken storyteller with a children’s
chorus for which we are
holding open auditions shortly.”
Portman, whose latest film
score is The Feast of Love for
director Robert Benton, is
also working on a stage musical
based on the 1970s family
western TV series Little House
on the Prairie, entitled “Prairie”
and set to go into production
in the US next summer.
“Film scoring remains my
core writing however,” Rachel
Portman said to Film Music
Weekly. Portman won the 1997
Oscar for her Emma score and
she has worked with esteemed
directors such as Roman Polanski,
Jonathan Demme, Wayne
Wang, Mike Newell and Lasse
Hallström. mc
based on the 1960s CBS TV series that starred
Don Adams. Warner Bros will release the film
next summer.
chad fischer:
The Babysitters
n Chad Fischer, who is best
known for his music for the independent
hit Garden State, is doing
the music for the drama The
Babysitters, according to Fischer’s
agency, Gorfaine-Schwartz.
Starring Cynthia Nixon, John Leguizamo (who
is also producing) and Katherine Waterston,
the film is directed by David Ross who is making
his feature film helming debut.
tuomas kantelinen:
The Knight Templar
n Finnish composer Tuomas
Kantelinen, who was nominated
for the European Film Award
for Best Composer last year, has
been hired to compose the music
for The Knight Templar (original
title: Arn – Tempelriddaren), a Nordic co-production
which is a film version of Jan Guillou’s
best-selling medieaval adventure novel. The
film stars Joakim Netterqvist, Sofia Helin and
Tribute Film Classics
label announced
n John Morgan, Bill Stromberg and
Anna Bonn have announced the formation
of Tribute Film Classics, a new
record label that will focus on music
from silver age and golden age films.
Morgan said that the new company
hopes to continue in the tradition of
the Marco Polo (Naxos) label and will
re-record classic film scores that have
been either ignored or have survived
in less than pristine condition. Morgan
also said that the label plans to continue
to release complete renditions
whenever possible, including music
that may have been omitted or edited
in the final release of the film.
“Although we still plan on continuing
with Naxos, we feel there are so
many wonderful scores that need and
deserve restoration and recording that
by creating our own label we would
help get more recordings to the public,”
said Morgan.
The new label plans on doing two
albums in 2007 which they hope to
be ready by the summer, and will be
working with Screen Archives who
will produce the actual CDs. mn
Stellan Skarsgard among others, and it’s directed
by Danish helmer Peter Flinth (Eye of the
Eagle). Kantelinen, who has just finished work
on the animated feature Quest for a Heart, has
also been signed to compose the music for Russian
director Sergei Bodrov’s Mongol, a historic
drama about the early life of Genghis Khan.
Paul haslinger:
Gardener of Eden
n Paul Haslinger, whose recent
scores include horror films Turistas
and Vacancy, changes pace
with an independent drama comedy
entitled Gardener of Eden. The
film tells the story about a young
man whose life is changed when he captures a serial
rapist. Kevin Connolly directs, Leonardo Di-
Caprio produces and Lukas Haas, Giovanni Ribisi
and Erika Christensen star in the film. mc
Paul Haslinger, who is best
known for his horror scores,
is doing the music for the
independent drama comedy
“Gardener of Eden”.
FILM MUSIC weekly Issue 13 • MAy 1, 007 5