Soundtracking With Edith Bowman

It's hard to think of a more iconic set of musical themes than those so thrillingly imagined by John Williams for Star Wars: A New Hope. 40 years on and that score still sounds as exhilarating as ever. Much then to discuss with Rian Johnson, the man who has written and directed the latest installment of the space opera, Star Wars: The Last Jedi. Up until this point, Rian has employed the services of his cousin Nathan to score his movies. And as we'll hear, he's done a fine job, from the DIY noir of Brick to the rich orchestration in The Brothers Bloom and layered synths of Looper. But when it came to the Star Wars: Last Jedi it could only be John, who delivered a suite retaining all the classic themes that we so associate with the saga while having very much its own identity ...

We don't just speak to directors, composers and producers on this show; actors are welcome too. And in Cillian Murphy, we not only have a man at the top of his game but also a genuine enthusiast for the sonic arts. Cillian has shone in a hugely diverse range of films, from blockbusters Dunkirk and The Dark Knight trilogy to indie flicks Disco Pigs and Breakfast on Pluto. He can currently be seen in BBC gangster epic Peaky Blinders, back for a fourth season having garnered an enormous fan-base and widespread critical acclaim. If you haven't seen Peaky, one has to wonder what you've been doing with your time. In a nutshell, Cillian stars as Tommy, the leader of the eponymous gang who are fighting for underworld supremacy in post World War I Birmingham. Among the show's many delights is the use of contemporary music as a counterpoise to the narrative, from Nick Cave and Warren Ellis (whose track Martha's Dream is playing now) to PJ Harvey, Savages, David Bowie and The White Stripes. You'll hear examples

We've already spoken to one legendary British producer on this show in the shape of Stephen Woolley. Now it's the turn of David Heyman. Like Stephen, David's CV is enviable. As well as producing all the of Harry Potter films and spin-off Fantastic Beasts, he's also the man behind The Light Between Oceans, Testament Of Youth and Gravity among many, many other celebrated movies. And as we'll discover, music very much falls under his remit. The list of composers David has worked with is mighty impressive, from John Williams and James Newton Howard to Steven Price, Max Richter and Dario Marianelli, who scored his latest project, the delightful Paddington 2. Perhaps surprisingly, David loves hip-hop, which informed his first movie as a producer, Juice, the 1992 thriller starring late rapper Tupac Shakur. And given that we kick off by playing tracks and a clip from the film, we should warn you that there's inevitably a fair bit of choice language in this episode ...

For the first time in 66 episodes, disaster struck as Edith's original interview with Val and Jon was corrupted. Thankfully, this delightful wife & husband team agreed to do it all over again 24 hours later and boy are we glad they did - so fantastic was their company on both occasions. Val and Jon cut their teeth making music videos, working with the likes of Jane's Addiction, The Red Hot Chilli Peppers and Smashing Pumpkins. They moved into feature films with the wonderful Little Miss Sunshine, which was scored by Davotchka and Mychael Danna and showcased tunes by Sufjan Stevens and Rick James. Their latest offering is Battle Of The Sexes. Starring Emma Stone and Steve Carrell, the plot is loosely based on the 1973 tennis match between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs. As well as including tracks from Elton John, Tommy James & The Shondells and a Sarah Bareilles original - the movie is scored by our old friend Nicholas Britell. You'll hear examples of all of these artists during the co

For a small nation, Scotland doesn't half punch hard when it comes to the arts. And like previous guest David Mackenzie, Paul McGuigan is a fine example of a Scottish director doing great things on a global stage. From gritty British crime drama Gangster No 1 to whip-smart Hollywood thriller Lucky Number Slevin, he's proved most versatile - also working on a string of TV hits such as Sherlock. Paul's latest film is Film Stars Don't Die In Liverpool. Based on the memoir by Peter Turner, it tells the story of his relationship with screen goddess Gloria Grahame while she was living in the city. Scored by Paul's friend J Ralph, it also features tracks by Elton John, A Taste Of Honey, Jose Feliciano and and an original composition from the one and only Elvis Costello. You will, of course, hear examples of all of these artists throughout the conversation - as well as David Ruskin's delightful love them for The Bad & The Beautiful, for which Gloria won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in 1952.

Though still a relative newcomer to the cinematic mainstream, Yorgos Lanthimos has already proved himself to be a filmmaker of wild originality and imagination. Following his breakthrough feature Dogtooth, which tells the story of children completely cut off from the outside world by their parents, he brought us The Lobster, a surreal tale about people who are turned into animals if they fail to find love. His latest offering is psychological revenge thriller, The Killing Of A Sacred Deer. Starring Barry Keoghan, Colin Farrell and Nicole Kidman, it follows a family forced into making a torturous decision having seemingly been cursed. Unsettling, unpredictable and gripping, it landed the best screenplay award at this year's Cannes. Though Yorgos hasn't worked with a composer on any of his films to date, the classical pieces he uses in The Lobster and Deer often serve a similar purpose. While the former features the work of Beethoven, Stravinsky, Strauss and Britten, the latter has a much more experimenta

If you like your movies lavish, dreamy and dripping in nostalgia, you could do a lot worse than turn to the work of Italian director Luca Guadagnino. Luca is a filmmaker with a sensitive touch - capable of making the very specific set of circumstances in the stories he tells seem personal and relevant to us all. Music, of course, has proved most useful in achieving this recurring tone - not least in A Bigger Splash, which starred Tilda Swinton as a world-fmaous rockstar and Ralph Feinnes as a larger-than-life record producer. His latest offering is Call Me By Your Name. Set in Italy, the film chronicles the relationship between 17-year-old Elio Perlman and his father's American student, Oliver, who spends a heady summer living with the family in 1983. Suffice to say Edith is not alone in loving it, with critics already bigging-up its chances come awards season. Luca tends not to use conventional composers in his work - though Sufjan Stevens has written two original cues for Call Me By Your Name. In

It’s always a pleasure to welcome a directorial debutant to Soundtracking – what with their entirely fresh take on the art of source music and score. Not that Andy Serkis is a novice when it comes to cinema. As an actor, he played Gollum in Lord Of The Rings and Caesar in the Planet Of The Apes franchise, with roles in the new Star Wars and Black Panther to come soon. He also brilliantly captured the essence of troubled troubadour Ian Dury in Sex & Drugs & Rock N Roll, which was directed by our good friend Mat Whitecross. Indeed it’s thanks to Mat you’ll get to hear Andy’s version of My Old Man from the film – after his editor Marc dug out a copy for us. Andy’s first major foray behind the camera is Breathe. Starring Andrew Garfield and Claire Foy, Breathe tells the story of Robin Cavendish, who was given three months to live after being paralysed from the neck down by polio at the age of 28. He became a pioneering advocate for the disabled and travelled the world with his wife, Diana Blacker, i

Of the many directors we've featured on this show, few can claim to have served up such a diverse body of work as Michael Winterbottom. Michaeal is one of Britain's most inventive and ground-breaking film-makers. From his 1995 debut Butterfly Kiss to controversial love story 9 Songs and gritty docu-drama Road To Guantanamo, he has consistently experimented with subject matter and form - often to critically-acclaimed & award-winning effect, There can be no finer example of his talents than bittersweet comedy The Trip - which starred Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon and was described by Richard Curtis as one of the greatest television programmes of all time. Rather like The Trip, his latest project On The Road blurs the line between fact and fiction. Ostensibly a documentary about a real tour by the band Wolf Alice, the narrative revolves around a relationship between two members of the crew, played by actors Leah Harvey and James McArdle. Though he tends to use source music over score, Michael has wor

It's high time we had a bit of Nordic Noir on this show, so it's an absolute pleasure to welcome rising Swedish star Tomas Alfredson to Soundtracking. Tomas made his name with Let The Right One In - which was scored by Johan Söderqvist, won numerous awards and was described by legendary critic Roger Ebert as the 'best modern Vampire movie'. He then took charge of the adaptation of John Le Carre's classic novel Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, for which he employed the services of Spanish composer Alberto Iglesias. Now he brings us another project based on a book in the shape of The Snowman, Jo Nesbo's dark, disturbing and thrilling international bestseller. Starring Michael Fassbender, Rebeccca Ferguson and Charlotte Gainsbourg. the film is scored by the ever reliable Marco Beltrami. Since the score is not commercially available yet, we owe a huge debt of gratitude to our friends at Back Lot Music for sending us all the cues in advance. You can get hold of them yourself in a week or so, but meantime you'll

Following our chat with Clint in episode 52, we had a little snippet left over in which he talked briefly about his score for Loving Vincent. And given that it's out this week, we thought we'd publish it now. The conversation is accompanied by two of his cues from the movie, Marguerite Gachet At The Piano and Wheatfield With Crows.

It's been a while since we can recall such a keenly anticipated cinematic event, or one that has then gone on to exceed all our wildest expectations. But that is what our guest this week Denis Villeneuve has achieved with Bladerunner 2049. We discuss taking on the legacy of Vangelis - plus his trio of films with composer Jóhann Jóhannsson: Prisoners, Sicario and Arrival

Given how tragically hard we've found it to speak to women on this show, it's a genuine delight to welcome writer, director and producer Nancy Meyers to Soundtracking. Nancy is one of the grand dames of Hollywood. Having earned an Oscar nomination for her original screenplay for Private Benjamin in 1980, she's since been responsible for a string of commercial smashes, including The Parent Trap, Something's Gotta Give and The Holiday. Indeed, her second film as director, What Women Want, was at one stage the most successful film ever directed by a woman, taking in $183 million in the United States alone. Her latest project is Home Again, for which she assumed the role of producer for her daughter Hallie. The film is scored by John Debney, who features prominently in the Jon Favreau episode too. What with being one of the undoubted queens of the Rom-Com, Nancy has worked with several legendary composers over the years - from Bill Conti and Alan Silvestri to the inimitable Hans Zimmer. You'll hear

As drummer for one of the world's most successful, respected and critically-acclaimed bands, he's thrilled music-lovers across the planet for a quarter of a century. Now Philip Selway of Radiohead has turned his hand to film scores - taking charge of the music for Polly Steele's debut feature, Let Me Go. Based on the memoir of Helga Schneider, Let Me Go tells the story of a woman who discovers her mother had strong ties with the Nazis many years after she was abandoned by her as a child. It features four incredibly strong and well-drawn female characters - which inspired Philip's compositions in all sorts of fascinating ways. Philip is the first of our guests who spends most of his time being a rock-star - albeit a particularly humble and unassuming one. As such, he and Edith not only explore the specifics of his score for Let Me Go, but also the different creative challenges it posed to those he encounters in his day job.

We've had several polymaths on this show, from Jon Favreau to Matt Ross and Warren Beatty - who are as at home in front of the camera as behind it. And Stanley Tucci certaininly falls into that category - an actor, writer and director who's been involved with countless critically acclaimed works of film and television. Stanley's latest project is Final Portrait. Starring the sensational Geoffrey Rush and Armie Hammer, it's based on the true story of the time American journalist James Lord sat for world-renowned artist, Alberto Giacometti. Critics agree it's a charming delight - as do we! Given the 1960s Parisian setting, there were plenty of opportunities to play around with the idiomatic French music of the era. But Stanley was keen to avoid cliche, complimenting the familiar sounds of accordions and chanteuses with Evan Lurie's whimsical score. You'll hear plenty of examples of music from the film, as well as bits and bobs from Stanley's other films.

Following a string of seasoned moviemakers such as Luc Besson, Doug Liman and Steven Soderbergh, we bring you a relative novice this week in the shape of Benedict Andrews. At least - a novice in cinematic terms. For Benedict is one of the world's foremost theatre and opera directors, who makes the transition to the screen with psychological thriller Una. Given this is Benedict's first film, much of the conversation focuses on the differences between the mediums in which he's worked. It also gives us an opportunity to play you examples of music from his stage productions, including extracts from Alex Baranowski's smoky, cinematic score for Streetcar Named Desire, which starred Gillian Anderson. But there's plenty to discuss when it come to Una too. Starring the ever excellent Rooney Mara and Ben Mendelsohn, the narrative centres on a woman confronting an older man about a illicit sexual relationship which took place in their past. The film is scored by Benedict's friend Jed Kurzel, whose work we discus

When Edith sat down with Steven Soderbergh, he immediately told her he'd been listening to our podcast by way of research. That unsettled her a little bit, but we hope you'll agree his homework served him well - such was the magnificence of his company! As a director, he's renowned for his expert use of both needle-drop and score - with Thomas Newman and Cliff Martinez two of his go-to composers. His latest project Logan Lucky sees him reunited with David Holmes, with whom he struck up a most fruitful relationship on Out Of Sight and the Ocean films. And it's with Logan Lucky we began - and David's Original Score Medley that features on the soundtrack to the film ...

From indie classics Swingers and Go to big budget blockbusters The Bourne Identity and Edge Of Tomorrow, Doug Liman is a director who makes a point of thrusting the viewer into the very heart of the action. His musical selections are central to the experience - as evidenced by the Oakenfold track which so memorably accompanied the exhilarating car chase in Bourne, and accompanies Edith's intro. Doug's latest film is American Made. It's based on the life of Barry Seal, a commercial pilot who became a drug smuggler in the 1980s and was recruited later on by the DEA to provide intelligence. The film is scored by Christophe Beck, who has very kindly sent us a couple of his cues from the film to exclusively feature in this episode. They're not available anywhere yet, so MASSIVE thanks to him. But as well as Christophe's original compositions, American Made also features a rip-roaring array of needle-drops from the 70s and 80s, including tracks by George Harrison, Talking Heads and the one which opens up th

It's fair to say Soundtracking might not exist without Clint. That's because the genesis of the idea formed when Edith saw him performing his film scores at the Largo in Los Angeles back in 2012. And 5 years later, here we all are! After his band Pop Will Eat Itself disbanded in 1996, Clint was introduced to the business when Darren Aronofsky asked him to score Pi. The pair have collaborated several times since - as part of total body of work comprising around 50 films. During the course of the conversation, you'll hear extended extracts of Clint's work on High Rise, Moon, Pi, Black Swan and Requiem For A Dream. But we begin in the iconic venue in which this interview took place - Air Studios in London - with the main theme from the very first score he recorded there ...

From short film Pioneer to romantic crime drama Ain't Them Bodies Saints and Disney epic Pete's Dragon, David Lowery has made a habit of examining the nature of identity, family and relationships from altogether sideways perspectives. It's an approach that's served him well - and one he uses to great effect again in his latest offering, A Ghost Story. A Ghost Story stars Casey Affleck as the spirit of a recently deceased man who remains in the house he shared with his wife, played by Rooney Mara. It's scored by Daniel Hart, who David has worked with on many occasions. Daniel's compositions for the film stemmed from a song he wrote for his band, Dark Rooms, and you'll hear plenty of it during the course of the conversation. Edith and David also discuss the music which inspired him as an aspiring director, and also what it's like to work with the great Robert Redford.