INTERNATIONAL FILM MUSIC CRITICS ASSOCIATION AWARDS NOMINATIONS ANNOUNCED

The International Film Music Critics Association (IFMCA) announces its list of nominees for excellence in musical scoring in 2022, for the 19th annual IFMCA Awards. Composers Bear McCreary, Michael Giacchino, and Daniel Pemberton lead the list of composer nominees with eight, seven, and five nominations respectively, closely followed by Simon Franglen (4), Alexandre Desplat (3), and John Williams (3).

American composer McCreary’s nominations are for his work on the epic Amazon Prime television series The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power based on the classic fantasy writings of J.R.R. Tolkien; the animated comedy Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank, which is a re-imagining of the classic 1970s comedy Blazing Saddles; the epic video game God of War: Ragnarök; and for his continuing outstanding contributions to the most recent of TV series such as Outlander, See, The Serpent Queen, The Walking Dead, and The Witcher: Blood Origin. The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power received nominations for Score of the Year – the first television score nominated in that category in IFMCA history since the rule change to allow TV scores to be included was announced in 2022 – plus Best Television score, and for three different tracks in the Composition of the Year category, while McCreary himself was nominated for Composer of the Year.

IFMCA member James Southall called The Rings of Power “a real triumph, undoubtedly McCreary’s own career-defining moment,” and IFMCA member Conrado Xalabarder said that the score was “one of the best in the history of music for television series … a work made from intelligence, commitment and above all respect for Tolkien and the audience. All its central themes work impeccably, coherently, and they develop and interact with each other, creating first-rate narration and dramaturgy.” IFMCA member Jon Broxton similarly praised the score, saying “the level of research and intelligent design McCreary has done in terms of creating the musical structure of The Rings of Power is absolutely astonishing, and is probably unparalleled in the history of television music.”

American composer Giacchino’s nominations are for his work on several of 2022’s most popular and acclaimed films, including: The Batman, the latest re-imagining of the classic DC super hero starring Robert Pattinson as the dark knight; Jurassic World: Dominion, the most recent installment in the classic dinosaur action franchise which brings together the Chris Pratt-led cast of the new trilogy with the original 1993 cast including Sam Neill and Laura Dern; Lightyear, an animated spinoff of the Toy Story franchise, and Werewolf by Night, a beautiful black-and-white homage to classic creature features of the 1940s and 50s, which Giacchino also directed. The Batman is nominated for Score of the Year, Best Action/Adventure Score, and Composition of the Year for the title track, Jurassic World: Dominion is nominated for Best Fantasy/Science Fiction Score, Werewolf By Night is nominated for Best Horror/Thriller Score, Lightyear is nominated for Best Animation Score, and Giacchino is nominated for Composer of the Year.

IFMCA member James Southall praised The Batman for its “astonishingly brilliant” use of its central four-note main theme, and described its action music as “ferocious and colorful.” IFMCA member Jon

Broxton said that Lightyear was “a terrific achievement … Buzz’s theme is one of the catchiest in recent memory, Zurg’s theme is a bombastic over-the-top treat, and the relationship between the two themes is a clever reflection of the story. When you combine that with action music that recalls some of Giacchino’s best work on the Medal of Honor series, and some judicious and intentional homages to Giacchino’s favorite action and sci-fi scores and composers from when he was a kid, you get a score which entertains from beginning to end”. IFMCA member Florent Groult wrote that Werewolf By Night “had beautifully packaged Gothic scale for choir and orchestra” and described the score as “narratively stimulating”.

British composer Pemberton’s nominations span multiple genres and further enhance his reputation as one of the most versatile composers in film music today: Amsterdam, a star-studded drama caper set in the 1930s about a political conspiracy; See How They Run, a comedy murder mystery set in London’s theater world; Enola Holmes 2, the sequel to the popular 2022 film which sees Millie Bobbie Brown returning to play Sherlock Holmes’s younger sister in an all new adventure; and The Bad Guys, an animated heist comedy about a gang of anthropomorphic animal thieves who find it difficult to go straight. Each of the scores is nominated in their respective categories, and Pemberton is nominated for Composer of the Year.

IFMCA James Southall praised the thematic ideas in Amsterdam, describing them variously as “elegant and stately,” while also commending on the “percussive, slightly jazzy version which dominates: there’s a kind of nervous energy serving as an undercurrent to it which makes it absolutely compelling.” IFMCA member Florent Groult said that See How They Run was a “delightful groove from a composer who never misses an opportunity to have fun like a madman”. IFMCA member Jon Broxton described The Bad Guys as “a brilliant homage to the great jazz heist scores of the past, a combination of John Barry, Henry Mancini, Quincy Jones, David Shire, and Lalo Schifrin, plus his own score for The Man from UNCLE, turned up to the max.” IFMCA member Christian Clemmensen said that “the themes for Enola Holmes 2 represent an interesting extension of everything heard in the first score” and praised some of the massively tonal choral highlights, the character of Pemberton's instrumentation, and the rhythmic choices, concluding that “he continues to provide a unique spirit for this concept's music that balances period expectations with quirky enthusiasm”.

The other nominees for Score of the Year are Avatar: The Way of Water by British composer Simon Franglen, The Fabelmans by American composer John Williams, and Nope by American composer Michael Abels. Avatar: The Way of Water is the first sequel to director James Cameron’s 2009 blockbuster Avatar, and sends audiences back to the lush world of Pandora. The Fabelmans is director Steven Spielberg's intimate portrait of his own childhood, starring Michelle Williams and Paul Dano. Nope is the latest horror feature from director Jordan Peele, and follows a brother-sister duo of Hollywood horse breeders who discover some very peculiar occurrences on their ranch.

The other nominee for Composer of the Year is French composer Alexandre Desplat. Desplat’s work in 2022 is as rich and varied as always, and includes writing a charmingly whimsical and deeply emotional score – plus half-dozen original songs - for Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio, accompanying the wryly comic story of the efforts to locate the real-life remains of Richard III in The Lost King, adding to the drama and tension of the organized crime thriller The Outfit, and bringing a massive dose of kinetic energy to the French-language zombie action comedy Coupez.

Each year the IFMCA goes out of its way to recognize emerging talent in the film music world, and this year is no exception. The nominees in the Breakthrough Composer of the Year category are a diverse

group, spanning continents and styles. Belgian composer Michelino Bisceglia impressed with his beautiful scores for the animated biopic Charlotte and the intimate Irish-set romance My Sailor My Love. British composing duo Robin Carolan and Sebastian Gainsborough gave a powerful, dramatic, contemporary edge to the story of a Viking on a quest for revenge in The Northman. American composer Chanda Dancy wrote a large scale, expansive orchestral score for Korean War drama Devotion. Egyptian composer Hesham Nazih brought authentic sounds of the Middle East to the Marvel Universe with his score for the hit superhero TV show Moon Knight, and Turkish composer Batu Sener built on the style of his mentor, John Powell, for his score for the animated action comedy The Ice Age Adventures of Buck Wild, as well as it’s TV cousin Ice Age: Scrat Tales.

As it has in previous years, the IFMCA takes pride in honoring composers from across the film music world. In addition to the ones already mentioned, this year’s international nominees include: Finnish composer Panu Aaltio for the super hero hamster action comedy Supermarsu 2; Belgian composer Dirk Brossé, who is earning his first ever individual IFMCA nomination for his work on the nature documentary Onze Natuur; Argentine composer Federico Jusid for the expansive western TV series The English; and Dutch composer Matthijs Kieboom for his beautiful score for the nature documentary Wolf.

Other international composers honored by the IFMCA include: Polish composer Abel Korzeniowski for his stunning score for the literary biopic Emily; French composer Philippe Rombi for his gorgeous score for Le Temps des Secrets, director Christophe Barratier’s ode to childhood nostalgia; Turkish composer Pinar Toprak for her score for the fun and enthusiastic Sandra Bullock/Channing Tatum action comedy The Lost City; and Spanish composer Fernando Velázquez for the homicide thriller Los Renglones Torcidos de Dios.

Several composers are receiving their first ever IFMCA Award nominations this year in addition to the aforementioned newcomers; these are James Everingham (Frozen Planet II, Documentary), Kevin Kaska (The Orville, Television), Adam Lukas (Frozen Planet II, Documentary), Yōko Shimomura (Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope, Video Game), Colin Stetson (The Menu, Horror/Thriller), Alan Williams (Secrets of the Sea, Documentary), and Timothy Williams (Pearl, Horror/Thriller).

The International Film Music Critics Association will announce the winners of the 19th IFMCA Awards LIVE on the IFMCA YouTube channel on February 23, 2023.

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SCORE OF THE YEAR

• AVATAR: THE WAY OF WATER, music by Simon Franglen

• THE BATMAN, music by Michael Giacchino

• THE FABELMANS, music by John Williams

• THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RINGS OF POWER, music by Bear McCreary, theme by Howard Shore

• NOPE, music by Michael Abels

COMPOSER OF THE YEAR

• ALEXANDRE DESPLAT

• SIMON FRANGLEN

• MICHAEL GIACCHINO

• BEAR MCCREARY

• DANIEL PEMBERTON

BREAKTHROUGH COMPOSER OF THE YEAR

• MICHELINO BISCEGLIA

• ROBIN CAROLAN AND SEBASTIAN GAINSBOROUGH

• CHANDA DANCY

• HESHAM NAZIH

• BATU SENER

COMPOSITION OF THE YEAR

*Note: there are six nominees in this category due to a tie between the nominees in fifth

• “Galadriel” from THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RINGS OF POWER, music by Bear McCreary

• “Leaving Home (Hometree)” from AVATAR: THE WAY OF WATER, music by Simon Franglen

• “Mother and Son” from THE FABELMANS, music by John Williams

• “Númenor” from THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RINGS OF POWER, music by Bear McCreary

• “Sailing Into the Dawn” from THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RINGS OF POWER, music by Bear McCreary

• “The Batman” from THE BATMAN, music by Michael Giacchino

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR A DRAMA FILM

• AMSTERDAM, music by Daniel Pemberton

• BABYLON, music by Justin Hurwitz

• EMILY, music by Abel Korzeniowski

• THE FABELMANS, music by John Williams

• LE TEMPS DES SECRETS, music by Philippe Rombi

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR A COMEDY FILM

• GLASS ONION: A KNIVES OUT MYSTERY, music by Nathan Johnson

• THE LOST CITY, music by Pinar Toprak

• THE LOST KING, music by Alexandre Desplat

• A MAN CALLED OTTO, music by Thomas Newman

• SEE HOW THEY RUN, music by Daniel Pemberton

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR AN ACTION/ADVENTURE FILM

• THE BATMAN, music by Michael Giacchino

• ENOLA HOLMES 2, music by Daniel Pemberton

• THE NORTHMAN, music by Robin Carolan and Sebastian Gainsborough

• SUPERMARSU 2 [SUPER FURBALL SAVES THE FUTURE], music by Panu Aaltio

• VIOLENT NIGHT, music by Dominic Lewis

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR A FANTASY/SCIENCE FICTION FILM

• AVATAR: THE WAY OF WATER, music by Simon Franglen

• CRIMES OF THE FUTURE, music by Howard Shore

• DOCTOR STRANGE IN THE MULTIVERSE OF MADNESS, music by Danny Elfman

• FANTASTIC BEASTS: THE SECRETS OF DUMBLEDORE, music by James Newton Howard

• JURASSIC WORLD: DOMINION, music by Michael Giacchino

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR A HORROR/THRILLER FILM

• LOS RENGLONES TORCIDOS DE DIOS, music by Fernando Velázquez

• THE MENU, music by Colin Stetson

• NOPE, music by Michael Abels

• PEARL, music by Tyler Bates and Timothy Williams

• WEREWOLF BY NIGHT, music by Michael Giacchino

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR AN ANIMATED FILM

• THE BAD GUYS, music by Daniel Pemberton

• GUILLERMO DEL TORO'S PINOCCHIO, music by Alexandre Desplat

• LIGHTYEAR, music by Michael Giacchino

• PAWS OF FURY: THE LEGEND OF HANK, music by Bear McCreary

• STRANGE WORLD, music by Henry Jackman

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR A DOCUMENTARY

• FROZEN PLANET II, music by Hans Zimmer, Adam Lukas, and James Everingham

• ONZE NATUUR [OUR NATURE], music by Dirk Brossé

• POLAR BEAR, music by Harry Gregson-Williams

• SECRETS OF THE SEA, music by Alan Williams

• WOLF, music by Matthijs Kieboom

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR TELEVISION

• THE ENGLISH, music by Federico Jusid

• INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE, music by Daniel Hart

• THE LORD OF THE RINGS: THE RINGS OF POWER, music by Bear McCreary, theme by Howard Shore

• MOON KNIGHT, music by Hesham Nazih

• THE ORVILLE, music by John Debney, Joel McNeely, Andrew Cottee, and Kevin Kaska, theme by Bruce Broughton

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE FOR A VIDEO GAME OR INTERACTIVE MEDIA

• CAT BURGLAR, music by Christopher Willis

• THE FAITH OF THE THREE KINGDOMS, music by Shigeru Umebayashi and Chad Cannon

• GOD OF WAR: RAGNARÖK, music by Bear McCreary

• MARIO + RABBIDS: SPARKS OF HOPE, music by Yōko Shimomura, Grant Kirkhope, and Gareth Coker

• A PLAGUE TALE: REQUIEM, music by Olivier Derivière

BEST ARCHIVAL RELEASE

• AMISTAD, music by John Williams; album produced by Mike Matessino, liner notes by Jeff Bond, album art direction by Jim Titus (La-La Land)

• BLACK PATCH/THE MAN, music by Jerry Goldsmith; Royal Scottish National Orchestra cond. William Stromberg, album produced by Douglass Fake, liner notes by Frank K. DeWald and Douglass Fake, album art direction by Jim Titus (Intrada)

• FRENZY, music by Ron Goodwin and Henry Mancini; album produced by Mike Matessino, liner notes by Deniz Cordell, album art direction by Nacho B. Govantes (Quartet)

• THE GODFATHER, music by Nino Rota; album produced by Dan Goldwasser and Neil S. Bulk, liner notes by Tim Grieving, album art direction by Dan Goldwasser (La-La Land)

• GOLDSMITH AT 20TH, VOL 5: MUSIC FOR TELEVISION 1968-1975, music by Jerry Goldsmith; album produced by Mike Matessino and Neil S. Bulk, liner notes by Jon Burlingame, album art direction by Jim Titus (La-La Land)

• JOHN WILLIAMS: THE BERLIN CONCERT, music by John Williams; Berliner Philharmoniker cond. John Williams, album produced by Ute Fesquet, Christoph Franke, and Oliver Kreyssig, liner notes by Tobias Möller and Richard Evidon, album art direction by Eva Reisinger (Deutsche Grammophon)

• L. A. CONFIDENTIAL, music by Jerry Goldsmith; album produced by Mike Matessino and Neil S. Bulk, liner notes by Tim Greiving, album art direction by Mark Shoolery (Varese Sarabande)

• THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN COLLECTION, music by Elmer Bernstein; album produced by Chris Malone, liner notes by Frank K. DeWald, album art direction by Nacho B. Govantes and Jim Titus (Quartet)

• MARY, QUEEN OF SCOTS, music by John Barry; album produced by Mike Matessino and Neil S. Bulk, liner notes by Jon Burlingame, album art direction by Nacho B. Govantes (Quartet)

• WILLOW, music by James Horner; album produced by Douglass Fake, liner notes by Frank K. DeWald, album art direction by John Alvin and Kay Marshall (Intrada)

FILM MUSIC RECORD LABEL OF THE YEAR

• INTRADA RECORDS, Douglass Fake and Roger Feigelson

• LA-LA LAND RECORDS, MV Gerhard and Matt Verboys

• MOVIESCORE MEDIA, Mikael Carlsson

• MUSIC BOX RECORDS, Cyril Durand-Roger and Laurent Lafarge

• QUARTET RECORDS, Jose M. Benitez

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The International Film Music Critics Association (IFMCA) is an association of online, print and radio journalists who specialize in writing and broadcasting about original film, television and game music.

Since its inception the IFMCA has grown to comprise over 65 members from countries such as Australia, Belgium, Canada, China, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Iran, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America.

Previous IFMCA Score of the Year Awards have been awarded to Maurizio Malagnini’s Coppelia in 2021, Christopher Willis’s The Personal History of David Copperfield in 2020, John Williams’s Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker in 2019, John Powell’s Solo in 2018, Jonny Greenwood’s Phantom Thread in 2017, Jóhann Jóhannsson’s Arrival in 2016, John Williams’s Star Wars: The Force Awakens in 2015, Hans Zimmer’s Interstellar in 2014, Abel Korzeniowski’s Romeo & Juliet in 2013, Mychael Danna’s Life of Pi in 2012, John Williams’s War Horse in 2011, and John Powell’s How to Train Your Dragon in 2010.

For more information about the International Film Music Critics Association go to www.filmmusiccritics.org, visit our Facebook page, find us on YouTube, follow us on Twitter @ifmca, or contact us at press@filmmusiccritics.org.