Magpie (2024) — Clip 1

My roles

Production Sound Mixer

Composer

More detail

Just as with my approach to sound effects editing, when it comes to creating music for films, I aim for my work to fit seamlessly into the narrative of the film along with the other elements. In the clip above from Magpie, I initially treated the score as a mind-numbing techno loop coming from another room in the building, to paint more detail about the environment the film opens in. This provides contextual information about the story-world for the audience, and also paves the way for an impactful change in the score as the shutter is slammed down and the title card appears.

I used a recording of the shutter as the snare-type sound that begins from that moment, as a means to create a further sense of cohesion between the score and the environment of the narrative. The rest of the music in this sequence was created using a Eurorack modular synth system.

Directors: Frankie Currie & Terri Silver

Sound Edit & Mix: Frankie Currie

Magpie (2024) — Clip 2

My roles

Production Sound Mixer

Composer

More detail

For this passage, Frankie and I wanted to get across something of the unpredictable and frenzied workings of the main character's (played by Terri Silver) mind. To do so, I used a bowed electric bass, which gave me a degree of gestural control that allowed me to create sudden and violent bursts of sound. To add an extra level of wildness to the sound, I ran the bass through a variety of resonant filters and distortions in the Eurorack modular system which I also used to create the other layers of the score.

It was really fun scoring this sequence. The experience helped me realise the similarities between Foley art and scoring. Both — as I've experienced them — involve closely following the movements and emotional tenor of onscreen characters in order to create sound that evokes meaning in the context of the narrative.

Directors: Frankie Currie & Terri Silver

Sound Edit & Mix: Frankie Currie