Soundtracking with Edith Bowman

The big names just keep on coming to Soundtracking - and today we're over the moon to be joined by Guillermo Del Toro and Alexandre Desplat to discuss their wonderful collaboration on Guillermo's take on Pinocchio, which is streaming now on Netflix.Set against the backdrop of the emergence of Facism in Italy, this is a bittersweet tale of the challenges of the father-son relationship which has a deeply personal feel to it - and certainly got Edith and her 9-year-old talking about the many profound themes it raises.As you'd expect, Alexandre's score is magnificent, and there's plenty of that sprinkled throughout the conversation too.

It's our 350th birthday, and what a way to celebrate it - with another bonus episode in the company of the legend that is James Cameron. James was on sparkling form as he joined Edith to discuss the music of Avatar: The Way Of Water and the 25th anniversary re-release of Titanic. There's also a bit of a news line in here too, regarding plans for the subsequent films ...

Fresh off the back of its huge success at the Golden Globes - and multiple BAFTA nominations - we're delighted to welcome The Banshees Of Inisherin composer Carter Burwell back to Soundtracking. Little did we know when we recorded this interview at the end of last year that the film would win best picture in a musical or comedy AND best screenplay for Martin McDonagh, as well as a best actor gong for Colin Farrell. Carter was pipped in the Best Score category by our last guest on Soundtracking, Justin Hurwitz, but that takes nothing away from the excellence of his work on the project

We have a bonus episode for you today, as two friends of the podcast return (separately, we should say) to discuss their work together on the extraordinary Babylon.Director Damien Chazelle and composer Justin Hurwitz have worked their magic once again, bringing to life a tale of decadence, depravity, and outrageous excess in 1920s Hollywood.What we do is share the interview with Justin first, as that goes into great detail about the music; then we'll get an overview from Damien about the score and the movie as a whole.

We've got an incredible run of guests coming up with you over the next fortnight - so much so that we'll be doing a couple of bonus episodes. But what a treat we have to kick off with today.Cate Blanchett is magnificent in Todd Field's new film, Tár, which charts the downfall of the eponymous composer and conductor, Lydia Tar. We won't say too much more about it, except for the fact that Cate has real musical chops, and puts her heart an soul into her incredible performance, and that it is scored by the wonderful Hildur Guonadottir

This might be a first for Soundtracking, but if it isn't, it certainly doesn't happen very often. For in speaking to Bones And All script writer David Kajganich, we've now completed the triumvirate of director Luca Guadagnino and composers Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross.David is so insightful about the process, and also how music is fundamentally important to it. It's a fascinating listen.We're also giving away a pair of tickets to a screening of The Fabelmans in this episode - so have a listen to find out how to win!

Having chatted to Daniel Craig on the podcast a couple of weeks ago, we're delighted to share Edith's conversation with Rian Johnson, the writer and director of Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery.Rian is a great lover of music, and we'll hear about his thinking when it came to the sound of this film - both in terms of the needle drops and the score, which was provided by his cousin, Nathan Johnson.

Now, Christmas week is just about to get a whole lot cooler, as we welcome Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross to Soundtracking for a second timeEdith LOVES talking to this dynamic duo about film music, and the good news is we have two of their scores to unpack: the first being for Luca Guadagnino's Bones And All and the second for Sam Mendes' Empire Of Light.

If you harbour ambitions to write film scripts, you must listen to this - a very welcome return to the podcast to Krysty Wilson-Cairns, who joins us discuss her truly excellent Netflix vehicle, The Good Nurse.Starring Jessica Chastain and Eddie Redmayne, The Good Nurse tells the story of Amy Loughren, a night nurse who suspects that her co-worker is the serial killer Charles Cullen. Perhaps more importantly for our purposes, Krysty offers a truly fascinating insight into the creative workings of the screenwriter.Merry Christmas, everyone!!!

Bonus episodes of Soundtracking abound this festive season with so many great film offerings out there - one of which is Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery So it is that we welcome Daniel Craig to the podcast to discuss his relationship with music and his role as the returning master detective Benoit Blanc in Rian Johnson's smart comedic mystery - soon to be showing on Netflix We don't want to say too much about the plot, but suffice to say it has all the humour, twists and turns of the first film, with an incredible ensemble cast including Edward Norton, Janelle Monáe, Kathryn Hahn, Leslie Odom Jr., Jessica Henwick, Madelyn Cline, Kate Hudson, and Dave Bautista.

Very excited about our latest guest on Soundtracking - the Mexican filmmaker Alejandro González Iñárritu Alejandro's latest offering is Bardo: False Chronicle Of A Handful Of Truths - a semi-autobiographical tale that follows a journalist & documentarian who returns to his native country of Mexico and begins having an existential crisis in the form of dreamlike visions.As well as co-writing and directing the film, Alejandro also collaborated with friend of the pod Bryce Dessner on the score

There are so many cracking releases at the moment, we getting as much out to you as we can in something of a festive giveaway. We dropped Michael Giacchino earlier in the week, and now we bring you Frances O'Connor and Abel Korzeniowski, who joined me to discuss Emily. Frances wrote and directed the film, while Abel provided the score. It's a fictionalised version of the life of Emily Bronte, and concentrates on her romantic relationship with the curate William Weightman - there is no evidence that such a relationship ever occurred.

We are dropping two episodes of Soundtracking for you today - the first being with composer and director, Michael Giacchino Michael performed both duties for Marvel Studio's Werewolf By Night, which is a sly modern take on the classic monster movies of yesteryear. That's right. Directed. And scored. What a total dude. One of our favourite ever guests! And that hoodie ...

It's always lovely talking to actors on Soundtracking to get their perspective on music, and we have one for you in our latest episode in the shape of Violent Night star, David Harbour.Violent Night sees David star as a Father Christmas who is anything but the traditional image of cheery, rosy-cheeked, white bearded old man. David also discusses the distinctive sound of Stranger Things, and his fondness for Counting Crows, which is something of an embarrassment to him when he's hanging out with his cool East Village pals.

Last time we had our latest guest on the podcast was when he was kind enough to join Edith for a Soundtracking Live at the BFI on London's South Bank. That was more of a career retrospective; this time, Tim Burton is here to talk about Wednesday, his first foray into making a television series. As is so often the case with Tim's work, Wednesday is scored by the great Danny Elfman, ably supported by Chris Bacon. There are also a couple of delicious needle-drops up for discussion.

It's a welcome return to Soundtracking for Luca Guadagnino, a writer and director who always talks so eloquently and revealingly about the music in his films. His latest project is Bones And All. The ensemble cast features Timonthee Chalamet, Taylor Russell and Mark Rylance in what is part horror, part romantic road movie and part period drama. Bones and All is scored by Atticus Ross and Trent Reznor - or A & T as Luca describes them - who will themselves be joining us soon.

Thrilled to have another director / composer combo on Soundtracking this week in the shape of Sebastian Lelio and Matthew Herbert, who have joined forces on the Chilean writer/director's latest film, The Wonder. Starring Florence Pugh, it follows an English nurse sent to an Irish village in the 1860s to observe a young girl who is seemingly able to survive without eating. It's an amazing experience, narratively, visually and sonically, so we highly recommnend you dive in.

It's one of those episodes of Soundtracking which we love so much, in which Edith gets to pick the brains of an up-and-coming filmmaker who's just beginning their journey in the industry. Charlotte Wells's debut feature Aftersun is an absolutely beautiful piece of work, telling the story of Sophie as she reflects upon a holiday with her then young father they took together 20 years earlier. As well as containing countless fantastic needle drops, Aftersun is also expertly scored by Oliver Coates, who very kindly furnished us with cues from his as yet unreleased score. Cheers, Oliver!

Bonus episode time with Ryan Coogler, director of the new Black Panther film, Wakanda Forever. The film's release is obviously hugely bittersweet for all involved with the sad passing of Chadwick Boseman - but, boy, have Ryan and the exceptional cast done his memory proud. Here he discusses Chadwick's legacy and the tonal influence his death has had on narrative, as well as the excellent soundtrack and Ludwig Goransson's score.

Anyone who knows Edith knows she is a massive fan of what Disney + is doing with Star Wars world-building, from the Mandalorian to Obi Wan Kenobi.Andor is no exception, taking the franchise in an altogether new direction with its visual palate, narrative pacing and Orwellian undertones.So it was a genuine thrill to spend a bit of time with show creator, Tony Gilroy, who also co-wrote Rogue One.Andor is scored by our old friend Nicholas Britell, and you'll hear plenty of his music throughout the conversation.

We're celebrating some of the most iconic film music of all time this week, as Mat Whitecross and David Arnold join Edith to discuss Mat's excellent documentary, The Sound Of 007.It does exactly what it says on the tin, featuring contributions from many of the key players from the franchise's 60 year history.

It's a welcome return to Soundtracking for our guest this week, as Martin McDonagh joins us to discuss his new movie, The Banshees of InisherinStarring Brendan Gleeson, Colin Farrell, Kerry Condon and Barry Keoghan, it is set on a small Irish island in the 1920s and tells the story of a musician who suddenly ends his friendship with a lifelong drinking buddy. The Banshees of Inisherin sees Martin reunited with composer Carter Burwell, and you'll hear plenty of his score throughout the conversation.

This week's guest is a composer with a huge and varied body of work, who Edith regularly bumps into on the London screening circuit and has been trying to get on Soundtracking for some time.Nanita DesaI's work includes a remarkable number of TV shows - and films such as The Reason I Jump, For Sama and 14 Peaks: Nothing Is Impossible. The insight into the way she goes about her business is utterly fascinating.

Our guest this week is one of our favourite humans ever to interview - and someone who is in no small part the reason Soundtracking exists.David O'Russell's is an absolute master when it comes to using music in his films, as evidenced by his latest film Amsterdam, which is scored by our old friend, Daniel Pemberton.Try stopping Edith and him nattering at your peril!!!

We're discussing the music of a little gem of an Indie film today called It Is In Us All in the company of its director Antonia Campbell-Hughes and composer Tom Furse of The Horrors fame.Set in Donegal, It Is In Us All tells the story of Hamish, a Londoner who returns to his ancestral home of Donegal, and is drawn into the world of a boy who nearly kills him in a car crash. You can watch it right now on Curzon home cinema.Special thanks to Tom, who went to great and inconvenient lengths to provide us with cues from his score. Big ups!

We're really excited about our latest guest on Soundtracking, who has made an absolutely sensational film which you can watch right now on NetflixRomain Gavras's Athena explores, in electrifying fashion, the chaos that erupts in the eponymous French estate in the wake of a brutal killing. It really is jaw-dropping from the very opening scene, which is a work of art as and of itself.Athena is scored by Gener8ion, which is Romain's collaborative creative project with his friend, Benoit Heitz, aka Serkin, and we'll pepper plenty of the music throughout the conversation.

It's been over three decades since the original graphic novel was published, but 2022 is the year that finally sees Neil Gaiman's seminal comic book series The Sandman translated to the screen.To try and explain the premise and scope of the Netflix fantasy series in a sentence or two would, frankly, be futile - and an insult to the epic dimensions of Neil's imagination, and the work of the team that helped realise his vision for television.So you'll have to settle for one of said team instead - composer David Buckley - whose score is as complex, nuanced and varied as the narrative itself.

It's another of those episodes we enjoy so much on Soundtracking, in which Edith gets to speak to both a director and a composer about a film they've worked on togetherOn this occasion, it's Tom George and Daniel Pemberton, discussing Daniel's score for Tom's debut feature, See How They RunStarring Sam Rockwell, Saoirse Ronan, Adrien Brody, Ruth Wilson, Reece Shearsmith, Harris Dickinson, and David Oyelowo, See How They Run is a comedy whodunnit set in 50s London, which is in cinemas now.

Our latest guest on Soundtracking is a composer with a hugely diverse body of work - ranging from Big and Se7en to Ed Wood and Silence Of The Lambs.Howard Shore has collaborated with Martin Scorsese on numerous occasions, and famously scored Peter Jackson's Lord Of The Rings and Hobbit trilogies.He has also provided musical accompaniment to 16 of David Cronenberg's films, including his latest, Crimes Of The Future, which is what he joined Edith to discuss.

As regular listeners to the podcast know, we love it when we get to speak to directors and their composers at the same time, which is what we're doing with Emma Holly Jones and Amelia Warner in our latest episode.Emma enlisted Amelia for her debut feature film, Mr Malcolm's List, a period rom-com about two friends who plot revenge on the eponymous suitor for rejecting one of them as a bride.

We have a composer for you today who has been on our wish-list for a very long time. Benjamin Wallfisch has built up strong relationships in the industry, perhaps most notably with our old friend Hans Zimmer, with whom he has collaborated on several projects including Blade Runner 2049.Benjamin's latest outing is on Ron Howard's Thirteen Lives, which tells the miraculous true story of the boys and the football coach who were rescued from a Thai cave having been trapped by flooding.

We're such a fan of the movies of our latest guest on Soundtracking, the wonderful Jordan Peele.Following the critical and commercial success of Get Out and Us, Jordan goes fully widescreen with his sci-fi epic Nope, which sees ranch-owning siblings Daniel Kaluuya and Keke Palmer try to capture footage of an extraterrestrial spacecraft. We shall say no more than that ...As with Jordan's previous two movies, Nope is scored by Michael Abels, and we share plenty of his music from the film too.

Our latest guests on soundtracking are partners in both a personal and creative sense, whose latest collaboration sees them bring us the utterly wild Bullet Train. Husband and wife team of director David Leitch and producer Kelly McCormick have a lot of fun with a great cast to tell the story of a motley crew of rogues, who all mysteriously find themselves on the same Japanese train. We're not gonna lie, the results are bonkers - in a very entertaining way. As well as featuring an array of truly brilliant needle drops, Bullet Train is very deftly scored by Dominic Lewis.

Something a little different for you on our latest episode of Soundtracking, as Edith speaks to Baillie Walsh. Baillie is the director of the extraordinary virtual concert, ABBA Voyage, though to call it a virtual concert really doesn't begin to describe quite how spectacular it is. Made in conjunction with the band, it features incredible life sized avatars - or ABBAtars - a mind-blowing light show and sensational live band, and is a full-blown assault on the senses in the best possible way. As a show, it also raises questions about the future of gigs - and how big tours can be more sustainable.

We love the episodes of Soundtracking where we speak to both the director of the film and their composer, which is exactly what we're doing todayCharlotte Colbert and Clint Mansell have combined to great effect on She Will, Charlotte's unsettling little gem of a movie in which an ageing film star heads to retreat in the Scottish countryside and encounters mysterious forces emerging from the land ...

Not one, not two, but three utterly joyous guests for you on this week's episode of Soundtracking, all of whom are interpreting the work of a couple of very different types of genius.First, we bring you Barney Douglas and Felix White, who have formed a doubles pairing extraordinaire on McEnroe, a documentary which Barney directed and Felix scored about the legendary tennis champ. It's Wimbledon meets Michael Mann's Heat, and they've absolutely aced it.Then we have a first-time movie director who's been wowing theatre audiences for years - the delightful Carrie Cracknell - on her Netflix adaptation of Jane Austen's Persuasion.

We have such a treat for you this week, as the genius that is - and we don't throw that word around lightly - Taika Waititi returns to Soundtracking to discuss Thor: Love & Thunder. Expect music from Guns 'n' Roses, David Bowie, Led Zeppelin, Michael Giacchino and, um, The Muppets, as duetted by Edith and Taika.

So thrilled to be welcoming Natalie Holt back to Soundtracking - a composer who's doing great things, most recently in providing the score for Obi-Wan Kenobi on Disney +.Here she tells Edith about adding to the legendary musical landscape of the franchise, and meeting the man who's behind much of it, her idol John Williams.

Our guest this week is visionary filmmaker Baz Luhrmann, who Edith has been a huge fan of for many years. He always takes you on a journey with his storytelling, both visually and through the maverick nature of the way he uses music and sound. You might have even heard last week's guest, Lykke Li, referencing his Romeo & Juliet as a really seminal film for her. His latest film is the glorious, colourful and immersive Elvis, his interpretation of the life of the one and Elvis Presley - The King - who is played perfectly by Austin Butler.

Our latest guests on Soundtracking have combined to great effect on an audiovisual album that specifically set out to challenge the conventions of the traditional music video. Lykke Li enlisted the services of experimental filmmaker Theo Lindquist to shoot a series of one minute loops, which accompany the songs on her latest album EYEYE. The results are utterly hypnotic, beautiful and moving - as you can see for yourself online.

Our latest guest on Soundtracking is the man responsible for one of the blockbusting cinematic events of the summer. Colin Trevorrow has played a part in the last 3 Jurassic movies - World, Fallen Kingdom and now World Dominion, which he co-wrote and directed. The film is scored by friend of the show Michael Giacchino - and you'll hear plenty of his work throughout.

Our latest guest on Soundtracking is someone we've been trying to get on for a very long time. Anne Dudley made her name in Art Of Noise, and has since gone on to score numerous films, including The Full Monty, for which she won an Oscar. She's also collaborated with some of the biggest names in pop music, from Tina Turner and Elton John to George Michael and Liza Minelli.We also discuss her latest solo album, Crossing The Bar.

Now, as you're probably aware, Top Gun: Maverick has hit cinemas, a full 36 years after Mav, Goose, Iceman and co. first took to the skies.And to mark the occasion, we're rather giddy and excited to welcome director Joe Kosinski and the legend that is Jerry Bruckheimer to the podcast to discuss the iconic music of the original and how they retained the spirit of said music in the sequel. Suffice to say, they got a little help on that front from our old friends, Hans Zimmer & Lorne Balfe ...

Our latest guests on soundtracking are not only composers, but also brothers, who between them have built up an extraordinary body of work for both film and television.Indeed, it's on the small screen that Harry and Rupert Gregson-Williams have joined forces for only the second time, on Julian Fellowes' New York high society drama, The Gilded Age.We'll talk about that and several of the other projects they've been involved with, including Catch-22 for George Clooney.

We have an actor for you this week, who we think is about to go stratospheric. Jack Lowden should be the next James Bond, in Edith's opinion, but in the meantime you can watch him in Dunkirk, England Is Mine, Fighting With My Family, Slow Horses, and, as of this week, Benediction. He loves his music and also spins a great yarn - all of which makes for a very entertaining listen.

Something slightly different for you this week, as we reflect on a new documentary about the life of Ennio Morricone in the company of three admirers.The film is called Ennio, and features contributions from the man himself and the likes of Quentin Tarantino, John Williams, Clint Eastwood and Hans Zimmer, as well as one of of my guests today - director of The Mission, Roland JofféAlongside Roland are composer, Matthew Herbert, and music supervisor, Lucy Bright, in what's a really fascinating discussion

Our latest guest on soundtracking is a musician, artist, cultural icon and film, TV and video game composer - who's been plying his trade for 50-odd years.Among Mark Mothersbaugh's many credits are Rugrats, Thor Ragnarok, Lego movies and several Wes Anderson films - though you'd be reading this for about half an hour if we were to list every single one of the projects he's been involved with. Rest assure, we cover as much ground as we can!

Our latest guest on Soundtracking is a writer / director who made an extremely promising start to his career with acclaimed horrors The Witch and The Lighthouse - both of which Edith loves. Robert Eggers has followed these up with The Northman, a visceral Viking epic based on the Scandinavian legend of Amleth. The film is scored by Robin Carolan and Sebastian Gainsborough, and you'll hear plenty of their work and more music sprinkled throughout the conversation.

Our latest guest on Soundtracking is a man whose father, Alfred, blazed a trail for film scoring in Hollywood, while his brother, Thomas, has been nominated for 15 Oscars. Oh yes, and his cousin happens to be called Randy, which, when your surname is Newman, means you come from quite the musical dynasty ... David Newman is also a hugely respected composer, who joined Edith to discuss his work as an adapter and arranger on Steven Spielberg's glorious remake of West Side Story.

For the second week in a row, we welcome a female composer to Soundtracking, which is a delight, given the underrepresentation of women in the industry.Anne Nikitin's star is very much on the rise, after she made her big breakthrough working with Bart Layton on The Imposter and American Animals. She has several exciting projects on the go, including the prequel to Dangerous Liaisons.