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Does anyone know how i can get ahold of of Danny Elfman?????? I am wanting to get into film scoring and i wanted to discuss with him different things.
Google is your friend. It took me 30 seconds to find out that Elfman’s agent is named Richard Kraft, and more than that, he represents several high-profile film composers. No sarcasm or disrespect intended, but seriously, it ain’t that tough to find the info you’re looking for.
You’re a human being, Future Film Composer – your species has split the atom, among other things…take advantage of that exceptional brain, y’know?
Burt
So how long would it take you to figure out how to post it here?
i dont think danny’s the one you want to talk to if you wanna get into film scoring. you should check out soundtrack.net…i think they have an interview with a filmmusic agent.
it might be helpful. the guy says it’d be a lot more useful to make friends with and know 10 directors or producers than it would to know 100 composers.I want to contact him, too.
I feel so sorry for every person who “dreams” of scoring films. Quit dreaming and wake up. You have better chances of being knighted than contacting Elfman, getting a response, and getting paid to score films.
Film scoring has got to be THE hardest thing to break into – way harder than acting.
Starting as a film composer is a very lowly thing – amateur films done on video tape (if that), using your own production equipment, doing very low budget everything. You’re not going to make any money the first 15-25 years you’re doing it. Heck…you could NEVER make money doing it! You’ve got to know know everything you possibly can about writing music, the orchestra, orchestration, and you’ve got to have talent. Money will get you decent samples and decent equipment. The rest is dependant upon who you know. You’ve got to “know” people who are high up. No one scores a film because they showed skill or merit – they scored it because they were the brother of the director or something (David Bell writes terrible stuff, writes the same thing every for every project, and steals stuff from other composers…but he’s got connections, so he remains employed).
Even after you’ve got all the right connections and skills, you’ve got to be able to spit out around 2 or 3 minutes of incredible music per day. You’ve got to do all your own orchestrations (unless you’re one of the top 13). You’ve got to know tons about recording. You need to be able to pull it all off by yourself and deliver the thing in about 3 to 4 weeks.
So, after you’ve done all that, you’ve written great stuff, and you think you’re done (or awful stuff), your stuff gets chewed to pieces by the editor. You get hammered by the producer. You get yelled at by the higher ups. You try so hard to just do the one thing that you do and you get torn apart. People hate the composer and the composer gets no respect. Your work must conform to everyone’s wishes in every way and if it doesn’t, you’re gone.
Now, does that sound fun? Wake up and face the reality of film scoring. It’s a “business”…cold, cruel, and political.
Plus, there’s a small catch. You must live in L.A.
And the point of all that was what? To make people feel better? To encourage those who have nothing but music and inspirations to do what makes them happy? I thought I was a pointless poster, but a pointless post told in a cruel demeanor with no intentions other than to make somebody feel bad for trying to do what they want…..well, that’s just a little stupid. Good luck in life, my friend.
Sorry about my previous post…I didn’t intend to be mean…I just think it’s a very dangerous thing for people to get enchanted with the business without knowing what it takes. One might be inclined to say that if one tries hard enough you can do anything, but reality is it will hurt…and it will hurt a lot.
Hey everyone, i would like to thank all of you who replied, even though some of which i simply ignore. For everyones information i do have great musical abilities and do currently have connections. I have just finished a scoring gig that is being sponsored by the Great Elmer Bernstein himself. I appreciate people trying to warn others of obstavles in life, hoever this is a discussion board of public use and everyoen needs to be careful of what they say becasue they could offend more than just the person indended. But those of you who have faith, thank you so much and god bless, you others that don’t belive in me…SEE YOU AT THE OSCARS!!!!!
I am also a person who wants to become a film composer, and when I read stuff like that, it scares the living **** out of me!
Reply to Mr. Dantz and everyone else
Look everywhere you go in life there are obstacles you must face. I feel that this is something i will enjoy doing the rest of my life and therefore will commit to the challenges and accept them, you have to do that no matter what you do. I just feel sorry for the people who really don’t know what film scoring is all about therefore knock it apart, its a fun but challenging experience and if you are truley commited, then you will not let a little owrk bother you. Keep up the work, and good luck.…I totally echo that. I, also, am an aspiring film composer. I’m always reading up about it, and I’ve got a good picture of what it’s probably gonna be like. I wanna leave as little surprises in my path as possible… gotta be prepared. So long as your head is screwed on, and you’re not a “dreamer” (although, to some extent, every composer’s gotta be a dreamer in one form or another
) then you’ll be ok. You can’t guarantee superstar success, but you can often guarantee getting a *chance* at taking the right path to make it. Hard work can get you a long way. Paying your dues… pays!>¦:o)
The J
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