Over the past few years, Music Meets Film (MMF) has become a recognizable platform and a highly anticipated series of events. In 2023 MMF returned in a new format and will continue to provide the possibility of a meeting place for extending the film and film music professionals’ network but our focus will be on young new talent.
The program brings together composers and directors; from music and sound creatives to producers, agents, and the wider music and film industry. It aims to build bridges between creatives, grow as an interdisciplinary meeting place, and encourage new international collaborations between students and professionals.
Music Meets Film 2025 porgramme included lectures and masterclasses by award-winning professionals and industry-leading companies and partners that offer practical tools and guidance for the participants’ careers and help navigate the industry. The three-day programme presented a masterclass with BAFTA-winning and Emmy-nominated composer Atli Örvarsson that was moderated by Estonian composer Ardo Ran Varres and the Director-Composer Lab: Composing the Cut. The programme also hosted a panel on scoring for film and video games in collaboration with Tier Music Publishing.
CHECK THE SELECTED PARTICIPANTS OF MUSIC MEETS FILM 2025
Music Meets Film "Director-Composer Lab: Composing the Cut" Workshop Award
The award includes a two-hours career mentoring session by Miriam Cutler.
Winner: Nicolò Braghiroli
The jury included: George Christopoulos, Miriam Cutler
The jury commented: “The Music Meets Film Award, presented by OTICONS Film Music Agency, is given to an emerging composer who demonstrates outstanding creative skills and artistic promise during the workshop with Baltic Film, Media and Arts School “Director-Composer Lab: Composing the Cut”, led by renowned film composer Miriam Cutler. The combined skillset of a great film composer at work was showcased during the creative process, and that is how efficiently they collaborated with the director and how effectively they converted that collaboration into a score that worked with the narrative. That rare skillset is what makes this talent one to keep an eye on for the future. The award is presented by George Christopoulos, founder of OTICONS.”
Music Meets Film's main sponsor and partner is Tallinn UNESCO City of Music. Programme partners are Baltic Film, Media and Arts School (BFM), Orbital Vox Studios and Orchestral Tools.
The programme's highlights in 2024 included the panel discussion Co-Production Through Music: Estonia and Iceland based the two remarkable film ‘Driving Mum’ and ‘Smoke Sauna Sisterhood’, an practical lecture Navigating the Industry of Music and Film collaboration with Tier Music and Orchestral Tools, a practical Scoring for a Briefsession in Selektor Studio in Tallinn where participants were able to work together with renowned music supervisor followed by a one-to-one discussion between a film composer and an attorney-at-law explaining various legal do-s and don't-s regarding signing contracts.
Music Meets Film (MMF) returns with its 11th edition and is welcoming a new focus on young talent while continuing to provide the possibility of a meeting place for extending the film and film music professionals’ network.
The aim is to offer a highly practical program of lectures and masterclasses to young composers to provide realistic tools for their careers. These will encourage them and help them to navigate the industry in the filmmaking process with the whole team, knowing one’s intellectual and financial rights as well as how the creative process of composing for a film comes together.
The participants will be able to attend MMF's panels and masterclasses led by award-winning professionals and industry-leading companies and partners. From each session, the participants could gain precise practical knowledge and possible new connections to advance their careers. We will dive into the following:
Even more, the participants can also join other Discovery Campus’ open lectures and take part in speed meetings to connect with new friends and colleagues.
Discovery Campus’ leading idea this year is collaboration. With collaboration, we can expand our network, spark new ideas and get inspired, find new projects for the future and gain knowledge from others’ experiences.
This is all possible in November in Tallinn, where almost every film area representatives from all over the world come together. This is the place and chance to make your next step.
CHECK THE PROGRAMME OF MUSIC MEETS FILM
Masterclass by John Altman
What are the practicalities of film scoring, and how much creative freedom does a film composer have? Which creative languages are used in the filmmaking process, and which language are the characters responding in? Acclaimed composer, arranger and songwriter John Altman will lead the journey through these questions to address their answers in the case study of the Emmy-winning score of the film RKO 281 score (1999, dir. Benjamin Ross).
John Altman has composed, arranged, conducted, produced and directed countless music for television and film including Titanic, Little Voice, Goldeneye, Leon, Peake Practice and RKO 281 for which he won an Emmy. As an arranger and conductor he’s worked on hit records for artists including Rod Stewart, Diana Ross, Tina Turner, Roy Orbison, Simple Minds, George Michael. He has written, arranged and produced the music for over 4,000 commercials worldwide. He is an incredible saxophonist and has played or recorded with the likes of Little Richard, Prince, David Bowie, The Damned, Eric Clapton, Sting, Jimi Hendrix, Chet Baker, Bob Marley, Amy Winehouse, Muddy Waters, Phil Collins. The list is endless.
Scoring masterclass with Orchestral Tools
Within this masterclass, the participants will have a chance to create scores for a preselected film clip with Orchestral Tools’ virtual instruments. The scores will be created beforehand and during the masterclass they will be listened to and analyzed with the film’s director and composer. In this method young composers can get direct feedback to their music as well as see how the film can change through the hands of different composers and visions.
Panel discussion. The Art of Translation: Communication Between the Director and the Composer
In teamwork and in filmmaking, communication is the essence of collaboration and progress. This topic arises especially with situations where people who speak different languages come together. In our case it is so with directors and composers. How to understand each other and translate your craft to a language to explain your approach and ideas so that you still respect one’s professional boundaries and also maintain flexibility within the process of making a film? The art of translation is explaining your ideas and approach as a composer to a director who does not have a musical background. Similarly, it is the other way around: how do you understand the director’s vision and also trust them with the big picture and your creation within it?
How to explain your musical choices? What to do if the director crosses the line of their area of expertise? What is the role of a supervisor and how can it help understanding each other? Where does the line of flexibility and trust run between standing your ground? How to co-create the film in such an organic way that when the audience walks out of the screening, they won’t remember the score, but if they were to hear it again, it will take them back to the film?
The panelists include Nis Bøgvad, music supervisor, director Tanel Toom and a acknowledged composer (TBA)
Learn more about MMF’s past panels from here
If you have any related questions regarding MMF, feel free to contact the project manager Hanna-Greth Peetson hannagreth.peetson@poff.ee
Music Meets Film is proud to be sponsored by Orchestral Tools, a German-based sample library company, and Tallinn UNESCO City of Music.. Starting from 2022, Tallinn is part of UNESCO’s Creative Cities Network. The title "City of Music” gives strength to the future talents and offers opportunities for artists, musicians and organisers. It’s a badge of quality for Tallinn’s music scene and for the city as a whole.
In 2021 and 2022 MMF presented an initiative – The Music Meets Film Scoring Competition. It was launched to support and promote talented young composers.
Participants, anyone around the world, in the age of 30 years old or younger, were invited to compose an original soundtrack to a video clip, to demonstrate their composition skills and musical creativity.
The 2022 clip was kindly provided by the creators of Melchior the Apothecary (2022), directed by Elmo Nüganen.
Orchestral Tools promoted the initiative and awarded the winner with a prize of 2000 EUR as well as a package of Orchestral Tools’ virtual instruments including their acclaimed Tallinn collection.
The winner of the MMF Scoring Competition 2022 was selected by a jury of music and film professionals from Music Meets Film panelists, and announced on 22 November 2022 at the Music Meets Film Award.
Winner of MMF Award 2021: Jonas Tarm
