Though we now cover the whole swath of the film industry, film music got us started and is still something very much near and dear to our hearts. So put some headphones on and catch up on the latest scoring news.
First up, George Miller’s long-gestating “Mad Max: Fury Road”—with Tom Hardy filling in for Mel Gibson’s anti-hero—has finally locked down a composer. Manly Movie reports that Dutch electronic composer and producer Junkie XL—aka Tom Holkenborg—will be handling scoring duties on the long-awaited sequel. The Dutch musician teased a secret meeting in Sydney this past August before nonchalantly confirming it last week, tweeting “Great meetings with George Miller!! Work to do!!!! #filmscoring.” Holkenborg is no stranger to the film world, he previously collaborated with Hans Zimmer on “The Dark Knight Rises” and “Man Of Steel,” as well as handling scoring duties on his own on films like “Megamind” and this year’s “Paranoia.” The “Mad Max” sequel won’t be Holkenborg’s only score to grace our ears next year, he’s also composing music for the prequel “300: Rise of an Empire.”
The incredibly cinematic post-rock band Mogwai will be once again scoring a documentary, marking their return to the genre after 2006’s “Zidane: A 21st Century Portrait.” Mojo reports the Scottish band has been tapped to score the upcoming documentary, “The Hudson River Project,” which begins filming next year. The Antony Crook-helmed film will follow activist and adventurer James Bowthorpe as he “build[s] a boat out of recycled Manhattan waste, take[s] it to the source of the Hudson River, Lake Tear Of The Clouds high in the Adirondack Mountains, then row the boat back down the river to the city.” News of the project—including Mogwai’s connection—first surfaced last spring when a Kickstarter campaign was started to fund the project. The film likely won’t see the light of day until either at least another year but for now, here’s a teaser trailer featuring the band’s “I Know You Are But What Am I?” but don’t worry, the finished film will have all new tracks.