The FIFA Files

24th August 2019

Director Will Smith won a Blue Arrow award for this short – I composed the music closely to picture.

Producers Betsy Works wanted some minimal but atmospheric electronic music to match the paranoia suffusing this story of high-tech journalism, made for the Sunday Times.

There are several cues, with elements from each section being drawn together towards the end. I worked on the music holistically – all in the same project – playing with tempos and timings to fit the music as closely as possible around the cut.

After I handed over my stems, a last-minute tweak for legal compliance and a last-second audio mix meant some of my sounds are a frame or two off, which I can’t help twitching about: I love it when picture and sound match perfectly, because details like that turn a piece into a seemless whole. But I’m being fussy – it won an award, and I loved spending time making music so closely to the picture.