When I first scored “The Case” short films for my friend, Chris Dufresne, I had one keyboard synthesizer, and no recording software with which to truly sync picture and music. That meant figuring out the timings for each cue by figuring out where music should be, when it should change, and basically hoping it would work out. It did, and I’m still quite pleased with those musical efforts.
“Player, PhD.” presented similar challenges when I first received the film to score. In addition to being an independent production, it’s also a Haitian production. The plan was to release two versions- one in Creole, and one in English. I was brought on to score the English version, although some of my pieces could be used in the Creole version. The Creole version is already online here; I had access to that one to watch, as well as a 40-minute rough cut of the English version. The Creole version runs around 80 minutes…and didn’t have subtitles. Challenge accepted.
Writer-director Brian Ackley had sent me the screenplay, but it’s difficult to compose to that when you don’t get a sense of the tone and energy of the performances and filmmaking. In addition to the language barrier, the Creole version, edited by executive producer Rene Leonard, offered a different approach to the material. Rather than a light romantic comedy, the Creole version is more serious, albeit with funny moments throughout. More than I probably expected, my first pass through the score was influenced by that tone, although I did work to play to the humor at times, which- despite its truncated runtime- was evident in the English-language footage Brian provided.
Uncertain final timings, tonal differences, the language barrier. This was unlike anything I’d ever dealt with before. That’s where having a strong collaborator helps immeasurably.
Throughout the process of the initial composition of the score in mid-April, I was able to go to Brian with whatever questions I had in terms of timings, while also trying to find the tone the score should operate in. Listening back to my initial pieces, I think the structure of some pieces were sometimes inspired by soundtrack albums as much as actual scores, and how they are used in the film. Comedy scores, especially modern ones, don’t often rely on long musical cues, but short bursts of emotion that accentuate the feeling in the moment. When I got the real rough cut of the film a few weeks later, with my score incorporated, I was reminded of this.
Film scoring is a collaborative experience. It’s not just the director and composer collaborating, but the composer collaborating with the images they’re presented, the performances in front of them, to capture the appropriate tone for the film. Sometimes, that means sharing the soundtrack with other musicians. At the outset, Brian informed me that some songs from the Haitian artist Maxson Gibbs (who plays the main character, Gabard, in the film) would be used on the soundtrack, but- in his email detailing how my music fit into scenes, and what worked and what didn’t- he also mentioned that there were other pieces he had received permission for that worked quite well for the film; all in all, about 10 minutes of the roughly 30 minutes I’d sent him made it’s way into the rough cut. To this day, I remember vividly the story of Alex North- not having heard the fate of his score for “2001: A Space Odyssey”– going to the premiere, and hearing how none of his music had been used by Kubrick. His score was eventually released separately, but imagine being one of the great film composers of the era, and nothing you wrote for the film was used, and not knowing? Rejected scores happen all the time, though; this process is not for fragile egos. Quality will trump quantity every time, so long as you’re helping tell the story.
As I began to finesse the score based on our discussions, and his notes, it’s closer to 15 minutes of music he used. Going through the film scenes, and moments, at a time, seeing what I could do to bring depth to what Brian liked in my score, some interesting things showed themselves. One was how much I was influenced by the tone of the Creole version; another was how Brian’s editing of some of my cues sometimes resulted in greater potential for emotional impact. There’s one particular scene, late in the movie, that is a moment of reckoning for Gabard. The cue I wrote, I thought, took us through the emotional trajectory of the scene well, but as I dove into figuring out Brian’s editing of the music, I felt he actually did a better job tracking the scene emotionally in how he “butchered” (in his words) my music than I did in composing it the first time. In moments like that, he probably saved me from the excesses that composing individual pieces sometimes allows us to indulge in.
Naturally, it would be a conflict of interest for me to properly review “Player, PhD.” as I have Brian’s previous films. One of the things I will say, though, is that it fits into the larger arc of people searching, and struggling, for connections that is all through his work, whether you’re discussing the 20-somethings of “Uptown”, the couple dealing with relationship issues during a remarkable event in “Alienated”, or the husband trying to understand what it’s like to have relationships serve different purposes in “2050”. While what Gabard is doing is malicious, he’s just someone who- given his station in life- struggles to see how anyone could love him for who he is, and sees lying as the only way he can be accepted. It’s not right, but that fundamental struggle is one which, I think, most of us can identify with; I know I have, at times. I’m pleased to say that I think my music added to the emotional connection audiences will feel with this story.
It’s been a long time coming for this to be announced, and I’m so excited to do so. As of today, pre-orders are now available for my original score album for “Player, PhD.”. It is available exclusively at Bandcamp, and will be officially released on Tuesday, November 22, 2022. If you pre-order below, you not only assure yourself of notification of when the album will be available for your download, but you’ll also receive two tracks early, “F.B.I. Con” and “Morning Coffee/”Intruders” Walking Up/Surprise Visitor/Leaving Abruptly (Original Version)”. In addition to the cues from the movie, you’ll also get to hear eleven tracks that are either first drafts of cues, ideas that were rejected, or cues that had ideas that the final score was inspired by, even if the cue itself didn’t fit for the film as a whole. You will also receive liner notes with my thoughts on writing my first film score.
All of my previous albums and EPs are now at Bandcamp. If you use the promo code “newbeginnings” from now until the end of 2022, you can get 15% off of your purchase, whether it’s just for “Player, PhD. – Original Score” or if you bundle any of my previous albums along with it.
We’re not far away from release, and I cannot wait to hit the finish line.
The Long Journey to Scoring “Player, PhD.”
Thanks for listening
Brian Skutle
www.sonic-cinema.com
brianskutle.bandcamp.com
“Creative Beginnings” at CDBaby
“Dark Experiments” at CDBaby
“Sonic Visions of a New Old West” at CDBaby
“Beyond the Infinite: A Musical Odyssey” at CDBaby
“Storytelling” at CDBaby
“Arpeggiations & Atmospheres” on BandCamp
“Classical Cinema” on BandCamp
