# Composers not working in the film/TV industry



## Simplesly (Mar 7, 2012)

I'm curious about what composers who don't derive most of their income from scoring film and TV stuff (and trailers) are doing to market themselves to potential clients. I'm particularly interested in hearing from people who write for advertising and gaming, two industries that have a strong presence in my area. I feel that I've exhausted the email marketing strategy (though I'd love to hear what people are doing in this area) and am sort of scratching my head as to where to go next. I know the potential for more income is there, but I feel that my entrepreneurial skills are lacking when it comes to reaching that potential. 

If I was still in LA there are plenty of people with whom I could have networked face to face, but I'm now on the other side of country and that's no longer as realistic as it used to be. 

thanks! 
np


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## wst3 (Mar 7, 2012)

it is difficult to best personal contact, but geography is becoming less of a barrier I think. Which doesn't mean there are no barriers<G>...

Advertising has always been a bit difficult - always in my case dating back to the late 1980s. At that time I worked as a broadcast engineer, and I was able to make connections through the radio station sales staff. 

Most, if not all of my successful connections were with the end users, not the local agencies. And, when I would make a successful pitch to an advertiser it was even odds that the agency would nix the idea. It was frustrating, and led me to abandon the chase for quite a while.

My wife's best friend's husband (I hate sentences that start like that) owns a small advertising agency. He and I have become good friends, and I find it impossible to lure him into a conversation about audio & music in advertising. In fairness, his agency has always been much more focused on print media, but I still find it odd.

Years ago it was largely that the agencies knew they could get away with using pop music, and many believed that they did not need to pay for, or even secure rights. So it was free music, and that meant they got to keep more of the fee.

Nowadays it has become 'common wisdom' that custom jingles and themes are unnecessary, and in fact popular music (which is at least properly licensed) is more effective. I don't think that's true, but without a lot of original themes out there it's difficult to make the case.

When I do talk to someone about the use of music in advertising it's always fun to hum an old jingle and watch the flash of recognition. 

Those jingles worked!!!!

So I've more-or-less passed on music for advertising for the moment. In my local market it is not very lucrative. That may change, and I do keep an eye on what the national ad agencies are up to, as well as an ear to the ground locally.

I have always loved the challenge of creating a 30 second spot that is memorable, hummable, and a complete musical statement. Then when you get to flesh it out to 60 seconds it seems like you have forever<G>!

Games intrigue me - there are some amazingly well done sound tracks. I had the opportunity to do sound design for one a long time ago, and it was fun, but MAN was it a lot of work.

The thing about music and sound for games is that it requires a whole 'nother set of skills, and some unusual tools. It is as much about programming the sound as it is about creating it.

There is an e-book called something like Game Audio 101 that I picked up recently, and I am fascinated. This is something I'd really like to learn more about.

As far as approach goes - I think when other projects are wrapped up I'm going to start spending time 'hanging out' with some local game folks, not just composers and sound designers, but the programmers and creators as well. 

I think I can learn a great deal about the process, and with any luck there will be opportunities for me to provide solutions for technical issues I've always found the best way to build relationships is to contribute<G>!

There are a couple of advantages to the game music marketplace...

first - it is booming. As games migrate to mobile platforms the demand increases, and the consoles continue to be more capable, increasing the demand for more complex soundtracks.

second - the game developer community is not nearly as limited to regions as most other endeavors. There are game developer communities everywhere. So you can start out on the internet, but you'll also be able to find local folks.

Caveat - having tried more than once to crack the music for advertising market I may be just a little jaded. Or, your local agencies may be more open. It's certainly still worth a shot.


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## Simplesly (Mar 7, 2012)

A lot of the creative agencies use mostly library music, but many need custom from time to time. Much of the work done by these companies is not necessarily national or even regional TV/radio spots - it's often customer reference videos and B2B content that the client just wants to have that custom polished feel. I've done stuff for IBM that will never make it to TV. 

Still not sure how to crack into the gaming industry - I was more looking for examples of things people have actually done that led to a meeting or being hired. As difficult as Hollywood is, you can be pretty well sure that most of the talent (and the people with whom you'd want to network) are in Los Angeles, thus the reason many people wanting to advance their composing career end up there. 

I guess I should expand this to ask anyone who's working outside LA to share their knowledge on how and to whom they marketed their skills..


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## Markus S (Mar 12, 2012)

This is a question quite often asked, the main answers are : You have to meet people, get out there, get up a website, do a client list, maybe cold calls, become friend with people, be the guy they talk to, don't count too much on emails, have references, refferals, present yourself professionally, sound top notch, be versatile, listen to people, but also opinioned and determined. All of it. But in the end of the day, it looks to me that it's kind of random, if you find work or not. You can be out there meeting people with all the references and best sounding demos, and still have no job, or be a complete novice, who happens to know someone who looks to hire a composer and get a great start there. So all this to say : I have no idea.  Even though I meet your criteria (work in the game business outside LA, met clients and network) - just do "something", whatever it is and hope for the best, but I think there is no real answer (in the veine of "do this or do that and you will find work") to this question.

Best of luck,


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## Simplesly (Mar 14, 2012)

Thanks for all your responses. I guess I'll just keep doing library stuff and trying to figure it out, though the amount of time that I have to do this before I need to pursue a more lucrative income stream gets continually less and less. 

I'm gonna get involved on some game developer forums and see what additional information I can discover. I'd still love to hear some personal breakthrough or "foot in the door" stories from people outside Hollywood though...


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## Mike Marino (Mar 14, 2012)

Neil,

I can't offer much useful advice on this topic. However, since you're looking at getting into audio for games I'd HIGHLY suggest you take a listen to the most recent episode of SCOREcast (Deane Ogden and Brian Ralston). Their latest episode is an hour long interview with composer Tom Salta. Tom talks about how he got into game music and offers some great information (inmho) for those seeking a break into game audio.

If you don't already listen to SCOREcast you can download the podcasts for free on iTunes or at their website: http://www.scorecastonline.com.

Hope that helps at least a little bit.

- Mike


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## Simplesly (Mar 14, 2012)

Hey Mike- 


Thanks for the link - I do check Scorecast from time to time, but I haven't seen this one yet. will definitely check it out.


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## MacQ (Mar 14, 2012)

Neil ...

I think that your best bet is to try and find a busy composer to apprentice with/for. You can do that remotely. There are lots of "bigger" guys who get offered small gigs that they turn down for budgetary reasons, but these are guys who might pass the gig on to you, either to ghost it as them, or for an "additional music" credit. This is how I started, working under an established composer. In 3 years I went from having literally NO music for picture credits to having scored 3 independent dramatic features and a feature-length doc.

If you have no reel, you have nothing. It doesn't matter if your demos are whiz-bang and feature only the finest sample libraries. It's not "what can you do" in this business, it's "what have you done already and how does that help with me monetize this terrible film?" No one gets hired for artistic considerations. At least, no one I know that's getting paid a lot. It's all about making other people money, and if you can demonstrate that ability you'll go a long way. Of course, that's not to say that you won't luck into something, but let's face it: in the indie world of micro-budget films (the ones you can actually aspire to getting), the sub-$1,000,000 budget is very tightly controlled. In these cases it's not about your relationship with the director. Hell, the director is probably getting crushed by the pressure of the producers, and it's the producers for whom you're working, and to whom you will ultimately have to answer.

Lastly, if you're not getting gigs or don't have a reel, find some student films, but don't expect to get paid for your time. Experience is the currency in the creative world, and often just getting a few films under your belt will pay dividends. You've already got a slick website with your Twitter/Facebook presence, so you're doing the right thing already on that end, and you're asking around here -- also a good thing to do. 

Anyway, that's my opinion. There are plenty of magnanimous composers who will happily pass along a gig if they get their name on the cue-sheets. 

~Stu


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## Leon Willett (Mar 14, 2012)

Simplesly @ Wed Mar 07 said:


> Still not sure how to crack into the gaming industry - I was more looking for examples of things people have actually done that led to a meeting or being hired.



Hey Simplesly, I wrote an article about that a few years ago. Hope it helps: 

http://leonwillett.com/leonwillett.com/ ... Games.html


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## Simplesly (Mar 14, 2012)

Stu- 

That's really interesting to know - I do know more than a few people in the LA film/tv music scene, but I have been wondering how to make good use of those relationships given I don't live there anymore. Doing remote ghost work is something that I should definitely be doing, or trying to do.. I chose to forgo a reel because I honestly didn't see the value in stringing together a collection of dry B2B customer reference vids and web spots. Whoever is watching would be asleep by :15... Will have some video for my site soon though (it's beyond my control at this moment.) Thanks for the suggestions - I think it's time I reach out to some people I know. 

Leon - 

thanks for the link. I've been laid up all week with the flu and it's the perfect time to do a little educational reading.


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## Peter Alexander (Mar 14, 2012)

I've done a whole course on this with good reviews from professionals who wished they had started here first:

http://alexanderpublishing.com/Products/Marketing-Your-Music-and-You-Level-1-Home-Study__AU-MYMY-Home-spc-Study.aspx (http://alexanderpublishing.com/Products ... Study.aspx)

The thing is, you have to be willing to look at yourself and present yourself differently. Like it or not, composers are entreprenuers, and that makes you the CEO of your own music production company.

Music in advertising goes in trends. For many years now, the trend is to find a pop song that supports the product or ad campaign in some way. Original music is less in demand. There are also jingle packages available through radio stations for long term commitments. Then there's library music. Then there's stuff on iStockphoto!


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## Rach (Apr 30, 2012)

Wow! Thanks to those who posted links on this thread. It has taught me more in 24 hours than I knew prior to April 29th. ...and Scorecast is awesome! Thanks for unknowingly helping this nubee. My brain's on fire! Time to mix strings w/ woodwinds w/ brass and have it actually sound good. Yum.


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