Original Air Date: January 11, 2011
This Episode: “2011 Pre-NAMM Episode”
Co-hosts: Deane Ogden and Brian Ralston
Guest Host: Richard Bellis
SCOREcast theme composed by: Jeroen “Kejero” Rogier
iTunes RSS Link

We’re ringing in the New Year with our 28th episode, and we’re mixing up the format… yet again! In this edition of SCOREcast Podcast, Deane and Brian welcome Emmy-winning composer Richard Bellis along for the ride to talk about the state of the industry, how the Academy decides eligibility for the Best Score Oscar®, and what emerging technologies are will carry forth into 2011 for media composers. Also, pay special attention for an “Easter Egg” in the final 1/3 of the show: A special shout-out to those of you attending the NAMM Show this week in Anaheim, California. We are just full of surprises today on this show, so sit back, relax, smoke a cigar, and enjoy. (Okay, don’t really smoke a cigar!)

TOPICAL LIST
1. The Re-Sophistication of the Craft
2. The Rise of “Celebrity Scores”
3. The Academy Award Nomination Process
4. Trending Technologies for Composers
5. “The Composer Census”

EPISODE No. 28—2011 Pre-NAMM Episode [ 1:40:09 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

DISCUSSION LINKS

“TOP PICKS” LINKS
Brian Ralston’s Top Picks

Richard Bellis’ Top Picks

Deane Ogden’s Top Picks

Original Air Date: December 12, 2010
This Episode: “The Long Winter”
Co-hosts: Deane Ogden and Brian Ralston
SCOREcast theme composed by: Jeroen “Kejero” Rogier (http://www.kejero.com)
iTunes RSS Link

The new dynamic duo of Deane Ogden and Brian Ralston will catch you up on all of the things that have taken place lately, including the winner of our SCOREcast Theme Contest from February 2010, the latest in film music news and events, an update on the proposed Composers Union, and a preview of the upcoming NAMM Show next month in Anaheim, CA. Get ready for an episode chock-full of goodies as we close an extremely busy 2010 and look forward to a full docket of SCOREcast episodes in 2011!

SCOREcast No. 27 – The Long Winter [ 41:45 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

EPISODE LINKS:

It was recently announced that Brian will be joining DEANE OGDEN (IMDb) as co-host for the successful and steadily growing SCOREcast Podcast. Brian has already been contributing articles to the scorecastonline.com website. SCOREcastonline.com is a working community of film and television professionals dedicated to providing relevant news, opinion, commentary, and editorial about our business to the professional film production community. It’s core aim is to inform and educate the film community on the re-sophistication of the business and craft of making music for film and television. Its team of contributing editors consists of working professional television and film composers, orchestrators, music editors, re-recording mixers, film music recordists, and composer assistants.

In addition to the website articles and information, DEANE OGDEN started a monthly podcast show in 2007. Ogden had enlisted the help of veteran film and television composer LEE SANDERS (IMDb) to co-host the SCOREcast podcast, and expand the SCOREcast reach to other forms of digital communication. After early integration into the iTunes family of podcasts, SCOREcast rapidly became one of the most listened-to film music-centric podcasts on the Internet. In August of 2007, after back-to-back turns on iTunes’ Featured Top 20 list, two of America’s top universities incorporated the SCOREcast podcast into the “recommended resources” for their film music certification program curricula. By January 2008, the SCOREcast listener base on iTunes reached upwards of 6,000 people worldwide. They have completed 26 podcast shows to date. Due to a busy and hectic schedule, Lee Sanders has stepped aside from his co-hosting responsibilities and Brian is thrilled and excited to be stepping in as the new co-host of the show with Deane.

Today, the SCORECAST podcast broadcasts regularly from iTunes, and is heard by tens of thousands of people worldwide. SCORECASTONLINE.COM serves as the main companion to the podcast, and has become the Internet’s leading hub of interactive discussion for the professional film and television music communities, with over 40,000 unique visits per day by people all around the globe.

Brian recently did a video interview with the UK based composer website composerfocus.com. In the interview, Brian talks about being a film composer in the industry, breaking into the industry, taking a score to the next level with live musicians, etc…

The interview lasts approximately 30 minutes and streams in flash. Check it out.

http://composerfocus.com/index.html/-/articles/interview-brian-ralston-r25

Brian’s story was featured today in a USC Daily Trojan column on Dreammaking. The article talks about Brian’s past with being an EMT and working toward a medical career before deciding to follow his passion in music. Check it out.

http://dailytrojan.com/2010/08/30/leaving-behind-medicine-for-music/

Brian recently wrote an article for SCOREcastonline.com. It is the first in a series of articles that will be written by Brian.

SCOREcast is an interactive news website that serves as a centralized hub of discussion and debate for all professional working members of the film music industry. It currently receives over 37,000 hits per day. The site is recognized as an official “film music news provider” by the Internet Movie Database (IMDb) and is a part of the National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) press core in 2010.

Check it out!

http://www.scorecastonline.com/2010/04/brian-ralston-10-lessons-on-breaking-in.html

Version 1.0 of Brian’s new FREE iPhone / iPod Touch App is now available for download at the Apple store.

In order to get the data to stream to your iPhone through the app, one does need to take a minute to sign up for a FREE account on InstantEncore.com to log into the app. But that has benefits too. They also do the free Apps for the NY Philharmonic, London Philharmonic Orchestra, etc…and there is a lot of cool free music available on those apps as well.

The first international trailer for DON’T FADE AWAY has been released by New Films International. This is the trailer that has been shown overseas for international territory rights. There will be a different trailer produced for the USA domestic campaign in the future.

According to The Hollywood Reporter on Feb. 10th, 2009, “‘Don’t Fade Away’ is materializing deals for New Films International. The drama, which stars Mischa Barton and Ryan Kwanten, has proven a strong seller for the company, which sold the movie to Falcon Films for Lebanon…”Fade” also was part of a two-title, all-rights deal the company signed with Kanal D/D Prods. in Turkey…The deals cap off a successful festival for New Films, which recently extended their output deal with MGM for all TV rights in all of Latin America for 3 more years.”

Brian just completed scoring the dramatic feature film DON’T FADE AWAY directed by Luke Kasdan. The film stars Mischa Barton, Ryan Kwanten, Ja Rule and Beau Bridges. The film currently is being represented by New Films International.

DON’T FADE AWAY Synopsis:

Life was easy for Jackson White. With looks, brains, and athletic ability, the world’s possibilities seemed limitless. But, when he came to New York City to pursue a career in the music industry, he was so seduced by money and status that he lost track of who he was. Now, with both his personal and professional lives on the edge of ruin, he’s been called home to care for his dying father. While in North Carolina, he’ll have to confront the friends he lost track of and the girl he never met.

Brian was brought in very late in the post process to score the film. In fact, Brian had only 5 days to write and record the score for the film. The film’s sound mix was completed this past week at the Wow & Flutter dub stage in Santa Monica, CA. Look for the film to hit the festival circuit later this year and probably see a commercial release in 2010.

Brian recently guest lectured at his alma mater to students in the Peter Stark Producing Program at the USC School of Cinematic Arts. The Peter Stark Producing Program is a two-year, full-time graduate program designed to prepare a select group of highly motivated, imaginative, students for careers as independent film and television producers or as executives. Brian’s lecture focused on discussing the process of creating music in film and the post-production process. Brian also discussed licensing music, the process of finding and hiring a composer, and budgeting for source music and score music in film.

From one of the most influential horror novels of all time … Lust. Power. Deception. And lots of labyrinthine plot twists.

Brian’s music returns to the stage this month for the stage play THE MONK at the Exit Theatre in San Francisco presented by NO NUDE MEN PRODUCTIONS. Brian last worked in theatre in 2003 on the staged musical SnEauX! – The SINsational Gothic Figure Skating Musical at the Matrix Theatre in Los Angeles where Brian served as the orchestrator and arranger for that musical.

For THE MONK, Brian was approached by longtime friend and collaborator Lisa Fowle (www.dragonflysound.com) about working with her on the music for the show. Lisa was already on board for the show’s sound design and music. Brian’s music is dark, classical and gothic inspired with a little inspiration from Enya and other celtic like qualities. (See the music page for show excerpts).

The play revolves around a Spanish monk, Ambrosio (Ryan Hayes), whose life is crossed by a pair of young women: the tragic nun Agnes (Lisa Swanson) and the impoverished aristocrat Antonia (Margery Fairchild), both of whom will be key in the arrogant cleric’s fall from grace. As Ambrosio is guided down a path of dissolution by a mysterious beauty named Matilda (Cassie Powell), the story weaves in and out of the quest for Antonia’s hand by the handsome cavalier Lorenzo (James Tinsley) and the desperate search by Don Raymond (Cordell Wesselink) for the missing mother of his child. Along the way, ghosts and demons intervene, bandits attempt murder on hapless travelers, and nothing short of the Spanish Inquisition turns up for the finale.

THE MONK will play at the Exit Theatre in downtown San Francisco Thursday Oct. 9th (preview) then Friday and Saturday nights thru NOV 22. Tickets: $10 first weekend, $15 – $20 subsequent performances. For reservations email ambrosioandmatilda@gmail.com or call 415-994-1367.

9/Tenths was released on August 28, 2008 on DVD in the Benelux territories including The Netherlands and Belgium. The title has been changed for those regions to “The Survivors“. Most likely due to the fact that the phrase “possession is nine tenths of the law”…where the film’s original USA title comes from…does not have the same meaning in other languages as it does in U.S. english.

Of Brian’s score, Dutch Filmworks says “The sizzling soundtrack by Brian Ralston makes ‘The Survivors’ an unusually nerve-racking film experience.”

GRADUATION will have its hi-definition television premiere this week on the HDNet Movies channel. HDNet Movies is usually a part of a high definition package on the various affiliates. So, you have to be subscribed with your cable or satellite provider to receive HD programming to receive the channel. (Note: “HDNet Movies” is a different channel than its sister channel “HD Net”). HDNet Movies is available in the US on AT&T, Bright House Networks, Charter Communications, DIRECTV (ch. 78) , DISH Network (ch. 9423), Insight, Mediacom, Time Warner Cable (ch. 1858), Verizon and more than 40 NCTC cable affiliate companies. The networks are available in Canada via Bell Express VU, Cogego, Shaw Cable, Star Choice and more. For more information visit www.hd.net.

The film will be broadcast twice in glorious 1080i HD with 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround on the evening of Wednesday, May 28th, 2008.

Air Dates:
Wed, May 28th – 9:00 PM ET / 6:00 PM PT
Wed, May 28th – 11:00 PM ET / 8:00 PM PT

So, mark your calendars and reserve a spot on the couch this wednesday night, as it is a chance to see GRADUATION presented looking better than the standard definition DVD and for the bargain price of free.

The GRADUATION DVD comes out in stores today. You should be able to find it at most Best Buy, Circuit City, Borders, Barnes & Noble, Wal-Mart and Target locations. It will also be available at Blockbuster Video, Hollywood Video and Netflix.com rental chains.