According to Cokemachineglow

Using the well-paced picture to make his debut for English-language cinema is composer Abel Korzeniowski, whose music, like its on-screen source material, is little short of shit-hot. Recorded and mixed at the Warner Brothers’ Scoring Stage by Steve Kempster and Joel Iwataki, the sonic nuances and scientific insight that drip from the screen are unlike any I’ve seen from Hollywood.

If anyone can play a man on the edge it’s Considine (tap up Dead Man’s Shoes on YouTube to see how petrifying he can become), and composer Korzeniowski supplies the character with cues worthy of the film’s stirring narrative. “Opening” begins like something from a savings commercial, the Soviet strings and Geiger counters quickly promising us characters and agony, and “Field” fleshes out the film’s recurring imagery of blue periwinkles with bobbing synths and plaintive violins. But it’s when the protagonist crosses paths with affable hood Shiv that things pick up on both screen and headphone.

Like Timofey, Shiv’s battling with turbulent elements, but the difference here is the absence of his counterpart’s integrity in the face of widespread rot. His goonish mischief is matched by Korzeniowski’s cheeky instrumentals; we’re shown the old side of New Russia that the gangsters would have you is gone. “Mobsters” is typical communist slapstick, all polka accordions and Tetris dancing, perfectly representing the brainless ineptitude of the film’s doltishly-dense bad guys.

The pads and glyphs of “Fireworks” soften the obligatory cold night with photons and “Harness”’s stern fiddles inject Considine’s character with resolve as his body decays in the face of poison with a 24,110 year half-life. If you don’t want to spoil the inevitable end to the story then skip tracks fifteen and sixteen, but “Ending”, which airs over the movie’s breathtaking denouement, has the necessary warmth and feedback picks to preserve the fates of those fortunate to survive. All that pain at last dissolves into angelic shoegaze, sweet to the point it’d make Sofia Coppola swivel with jealousy. The perfect close to a film as beautiful and ugly as the behaviour of all its disturbed particles.

George Bass

Read the whole article below or see it on THR.

Inside music composer agents

By Kevin Cassidy and Stephen Galloway
Aug 14, 2008, 03:55 PM ET

(ICM’s Tad Lumpkin)

A producer had asked Kraft’s composer client to write a “very Hitchcockian, Bernard Herrmann-type score” for his production, but the composer was leaning toward something sparser. The producer was adamant: “I want wall-to-wall music,” he said, “just like in ‘The Birds.’”

And there lay a snag. “He managed to pick the one Hitchcock film that had no music in it,” says Kraft.

By the time the agent had finessed the matter, it was too late: The producer realized music was the least of his problems and had to reshoot a good chunk of the picture.

Welcome to the world of the film music agent, a world that involves an unusual blend of knowledge and art, of cajoling and diplomacy.

It is work that differs subtly from that of other agents. Music agents tend to know far more about their clients’ art, they have operational skills that often resemble a producer’s, and they frequently develop intense relationships with their clients, much like managers.

While a number of gargantuan agencies are at the heart of the entertainment business as a whole, “the representation of film composers is dominated by smaller agencies who don’t represent a lot of other creative talent,” says Seth Kaplan of Evolution Music Partners. “The larger agencies may have a composer or two, but the dominant force in our little niche is the specialized agencies.”

Those specialized agencies include Kraft-Engel Management, First Artists Management, the Gorfaine/Schwartz Agency, Greenspan Kohan and Soundtrack Music Associates, among others. Their history is full of intertwined relationships, rivalries and conflicts — exacerbated by the narrow world in which they operate.

One agent dismisses two rivals by saying, “They’re both nuts”; he notes of a competing company, “They could be selling widgets.” Another agent is known to have sabotaged a former colleague by badmouthing him to all his clients. These agents may be friendly on the surface, but the competition between them is intense.

That’s partly because so many have worked together at different times. Take Kraft: Recognized as the most knowledgeable about music among his peers, he taught film music and worked for a soundtrack label before joining ICM in the 1980s. When ICM decided to exit the film composer business in the early 1990s, Kraft went out on his own.

Later, he was teamed in Blue Focus Management with veteran agent Vasi Vangelos, who then formed his own company, First Artists, in 2003.

You can’t make it as a flake or an egomaniac. There are enough flakes and egomaniacs in the business in general, and nobody’s going to let the composer or his agent be one of them. You want to be a narcissistic jerk? Take a number.”
– Richard Kraft, with Laura Engel, of Kraft- Engel Management

While these are the major players in film music, the big agencies still have plenty of clout. ICM is back in the game, and agent Tad Lumpkin — who represents a roster of writers, producers and directors, as well as such composers as Paul Cantelon (”The Diving Bell and the Butterfly”) and Mateo Messina (”Juno”) — says there are advantages to being with a powerhouse.

“At a full-service agency that represents all kinds of talent and filmmakers, you see projects move from idea to the finished phase,” he argues. “Being involved in a project that long really gives you (the chance) to get a composer an opportunity.”

If ICM and CAA are kingpins in the larger world, Gorfaine/Schwartz is the most prominent composers agency. But the company, which once stood unrivaled (rather like CAA in the ’90s), is facing greater competition today.

“There is more of a balance of power than there has been for a while,” one competitor notes. “Today they are the largest, but they’re not alone.”

Gorfaine/Schwartz’s strength has been bolstered by the fact that it represents Hans Zimmer, “the most important person in this business, without question,” according to one rival agent. “That is how Gorfaine/Schwartz maintains most of its power, because Zimmer uses a group of other composers to collaborate on the scores that he is doing and has a whole team of people that work for him,” and that in turn leads to a higher volume of business for the agency. (The agency’s Sam Schwartz declined to comment.)

Zimmer has not yet been “poached.” But agents are increasingly aware of how easy it is for their clients to be stolen.

“Any time one of my clients gets a major job, I can depend on the fact that (another agent) will be calling. Luckily our clients value our hard work and stay loyal,” Kaplan notes.

Kaplan’s partner, Christine Russell, says months of work can go into securing a big job.

“I worked for seven months to get Mark Kilian the job as composer on (Overture’s upcoming release) ‘Traitor,’” she says. “When he got it, I thought, ‘F***in’ A!’ When you know somebody’s really right for something, you do push harder, and sometimes you have an instinct that a certain client would work well with a particular director, even if there’s not a specific project at hand. In those cases, I will try to create an opportunity for those two people to meet. It always pays off.”

It also pays off these days to stand out as a composer, and the best way to do that, according to the Agency Group’s Linda Kordek, is to be willing — and able — to work in a broad range of styles.

When you know somebody’s really right for something, you do push harder, and sometimes you have an instinct that a certain client would work well with a particular director. In those cases, I will try to create an opportunity for those two people to meet. It always pays off.”
– Christine Russell, Evolution Music Partners

“It’s really critical right now that a composer have a signature sound,” says Kordek, whose roster includes Jonathan Goldsmith (”Away From Her”), Susan Marder (TNT’s “Saving Grace”) and songwriter Joe Jackson. “A film composer needs to be able to compose music in all genres and all styles — that’s part of the job description.”

Anita Greenspan of Greenspan Kohan Management adds that while talent and versatility are certainly vital, a strong head for business doesn’t hurt.

“The most successful composers in our business — and I’m not saying the most talented, I’m saying the most successful — are the ones who are good businessmen first,” she says. “That said, I love the tortured artist. I’ve got one guy who is outgoing, but the rest of them shy away from rooms full of people or act so bizarre they need their behavior explained. Sometimes I have to ask, ‘What the hell did you do that for?’ The one that’s the most unpredictable and the one you don’t want to let loose on a crowd of people is probably my husband (Mark Mothersbaugh)! But they all have to have at least some business acumen and not get their egos bruised. They have to remember it’s not personal.”

As for the economics of the boutique agencies, unlike the majors, which take a standard 10% of their clients’ income, music agents’ fees are individually negotiated and tend to range from 10%-15%, akin to managers’ fees. That is in part because their work covers an array of tasks not handled by regular agents.

Composers can be paid either a “package” fee or a simple “creative” fee for composing. The package fee covers the hiring of musicians and other producing aspects that agents often become involved with.

“We are very involved in the process of assisting composers in the booking of everything they need, so that the composer can concentrate on writing the music,” says Maggie Rodford, managing director of Air-Edel Associates. “With an actor’s agent, everything is taken care of by the production.”

“We’re full-service problem solvers, involved in every phase of the game,” adds Kraft’s partner Laura Engel. “You don’t just book a film for somebody and move on.”

That’s apparent from a glance at agent John Tempereau’s schedule this year. Tempereau, a senior partner with Soundtrack Music, has already been to Beijing — not because of the Olympics, but because three of his clients have been working there. “I was there to support (them),” he says.

The most successful composers in our business — and I’m not saying the most talented, I’m saying the most successful — are the ones who are good businessmen first. They all have to have at least some business acumen and not get their egos bruised.”
– Anita Greenspan, with Neil Kohan, of Greenspan Kohan Management

Evolution’s Kaplan showed the same kind of international reach when he first heard about composer Abel Korzeniowski.

Korzeniowski, while living in his native Poland, had heard about Kaplan and sent him a CD. When the agent listened to his music, he was stunned by its quality — but going from that to handling Korzeniowski as a client was a whole other matter.

“We had to get him a visa,” Kaplan recalls. “One of our clients was good enough to say he would give him work. But it took us eight months to get him out here.” Within weeks of his arrival in Los Angeles, Korzeniowski had his first American project, HBO’s “PU-239.”

If Kaplan and Tempereau are turning their attention overseas, that is no coincidence. Both are dealing with a business that is facing serious economic challenges as studios make fewer films and work for their clients becomes more scarce. Stagnating music budgets have radically changed the dealmaking dynamic.

“More than ever, it’s a battle,” says Robert Messinger of First Artists Management, whose clients include Michael Brook (”Into the Wild”), Philip Glass (”Notes on a Scandal”) and Gustavo Santaolalla (”Babel”). “It’s very tough right now to get fee increases. On some films it’s still possible. But on many the producer or the studio will just come to you and say, ‘This is what we have. Who will do it for this fee?’”

“There’s just not the negotiating that there has been in the past,” adds Greenspan. “It used to be that a studio would call and say, ‘We’re interested in so and so — what is his fee?’ You’d quote the fee, and hopefully you’d settle somewhere around there, a little higher than the last time the composer worked. Now we get the calls that say, ‘This is how much we have.’”

“There has been a 15%-20% downward turn (in fee amounts) over a five-year period,” notes Rodford, “and given that normally most things go up, that becomes quite an interesting conundrum.”

Rodford cites one recent indie film in the $15 million-$20 million budget zone as an example.

“In an ideal world, we would have wanted an overall (music) budget of $600,000,” she explains, “but the budget allocated was in the realm of $75,000. The producers sadly had been told they could get the music for that.”

If the difficulty of financing independent films has a direct impact on salaries, so does the reduced number of major studio films. In the not-too-distant past, it was standard for A-list talent on a blockbuster film to earn a creative fee of $1 million-$1.5 million, while the fee for a midrange major release might fall between $500,000 and $700,000. Not anymore.

More than ever, it’s a battle. It’s very tough right now to get fee increases. On some films it’s still possible. But on many the producer will just come to you and say, ‘This is what we have. Will you do it for this fee?’”
– Robert Messinger, First Artists Management

While top-echelon composers like Zimmer and James Newton Howard can still earn fees of up to $2 million for these pictures, many of the non-superstars are accepting pay cuts to keep working. That, in turn, is impacting the lesser-known composers on the tier below.

“It is more competitive,” says Kaplan. “A composer who has done his first or second studio movie and who is making $250,000-$500,000 on a picture is seeing all of these composers who were at a higher income level coming down and taking those films because there are fewer films available in the higher bracket.”

He adds, “People in the upper strata don’t have enough upper-strata movies to keep them busy, and that puts pressure on and limits the opportunities for up-and-coming composers.”

The pressure increased this year with the WGA strike, and it could get worse if the SAG also strikes. All this will not just impact composers: “It is hurting the music editors and postproduction people, too,” says Tempereau.

Fewer opportunities have led some agents to shed clients who are not working — though there is more work in certain areas, even if there is less in film.

“Television has remained healthy, and the rise of other markets such as video games has helped,” Tempereau says. “When the film business does come back, the good news is these other areas are still going to be there.”

Until then, the pressure on the agents is only going to increase. It is, as one agent says, a buyer’s market.

For any composer who thinks his agent can protect him — as Kraft did with the Hitchcock-loving producer — that may be wishful thinking. Now, for any prospective client, he has advice that is tougher than it might have been just a few years ago.

“You can’t make it as a flake or an egomaniac,” he says. “There are enough flakes and egomaniacs in the business in general, and nobody’s going to let the composer or his agent be one of them. You want to be a narcissistic jerk? Take a number.”

Chuck Crisafulli contributed to this report.

Jane McCoy, a recent college graduate, much to her parent’s dismay, decides to scrap her plans for law school to pursue an acting career full-time. Struggling to make ends meet, she meets a confident and persuasive friend who shows her the way to make extra money go-go dancing. What starts as just an “easy money” job, however, rapidly becomes an all-consuming activity that slowly pulls Jane from her acting classes, her relationships with her boyfriend and family, and, most importantly, from her true self.

Song Listing

Due to popular request, here’s a list of songs from this movie:

Marcus Brown: “Promises Promises”
Blazed Out Music: “Talk About It”
Silver Money: “Back Seat Taxi”
People People: “Do You Feel Love”
Pailboy: “Struttin’ ”
Fully Loaded: “Victim”
Dee: “Shooting Stars”
Casey McPherson: “Everytime You Turn”
Psideralic: “Something”
Premier Tracks: “Sold Again”
Kiss The Girl: “Alien Skin”
Kiss The Girl: “Sugar”
Jerome Dillon: “Straight to Nowhere”
Byrd Project: “Your Bitch”
Michal: “Perfect”
Late Tuesday: “I Can’t Get Over It”

On March 3, 1957, Rudolph Kasztner, a Hungarian Zionist, was assassinated on the streets of Tel Aviv for the choices he made while negotiating the rescue of 1,685 people on the notorious “Kasztner Train”. Fifty years later in the Catskills, one of those survivors and his fractured family are forced to unravel the mystery behind their own choices in relation to this historical event.

Mala (Evan Rachel Wood) is a precocious girl living on the beautiful planet Terra, a place where peace and tolerance are celebrated. Unbeknownst to Mala and her fellow Terrians, the last inhabitants of Earth have exhausted the resources of their planet and those of three others, and are now searching for a new home. This Earthforce has discovered that the use of a Terraformer will make Terra habitable for humans but poisonous for Terrians. When the Earthlings embark on a hostile invasion of Terra, Mala’s father, Roven (Dennis Quaid), is kidnapped. Hoping to save her father, Mala captures and hides a crashed human pilot named Jim (Luke Wilson). While Mala nurses Jim back to health, the two forge a friendship and a plan that could save both the human race and the planet of Terra. Soon, however, they realize that peace will not be secured unless they can combat both the Terraformer and dark political forces that will stop at nothing in their drive to achieve power for power’s sake.

While Terra’s message that peace is a question of free will and choice is a potent one, the exuberance of Mala and her young friends carries the film. Director Aristomenis Tsirbas paints a landscape of pastoral pleasure, and our admiration for Terra’s idyllic vistas is only heightened when they are invaded.

Synopsis

When a monthlong darkness sets in on the tiny Alaskan town of Barrow, the locals are visited by a flock of bloodthirsty vampires eager to take advantage of the no-sun zone. The town sheriff Eben Olemaun (Josh Hartnett) and his deputy and wife, Stella (Melissa George), must act fast to save the dark day. Based on a popular horror comic by Steve Niles, the film also stars Ben Foster and Danny Huston.

While staving off a power plant disaster, Russian worker Timofey (Paddy Considine) is exposed to radiation and blamed for the accident. With days to live, he steals some plutonium and tries to sell it on Moscow’s black market in an effort to provide for his family. Along the way, he gets help from a low-level thug, with whom he forges an unlikely connection. Radha Mitchell co-stars in this gripping HBO adaptation of Ken Kalfus’s short story.