One of the problems with the original score was that it contained a number of pop songs from the era that he had originally purchased one-year festival licenses for. These needed to be replaced, not necessarily with different or newly composed songs, but instead by taking a different approach with the music for the film, filling it out more with thematic scoring cues that support and push the story forward rather than placed songs. We also decided that I would try composing an original early 60s era song with my wife Christine to use in some of the ways that the songs placed in the first version of the film were used. This was the approach we were going to take, so I began sketching some themes and emailing them to the director, gradually honing in on a sound.

As with most projects I’ve worked on, I wanted to first hone in on the sound of the film, which is often largely dictated by the instrumentation utilized. Due to the fact that this was a second pass on post-production, the budget was limited – we decided that a synthesized score would be the best option. At first, percussion and brass were some obvious ideas, but we actually settled on a modest, synthesized ensemble of woodwinds (primarily clarinet and bass clarinet), percussion (military snare, bass drum, xylophone and tam-tam), an engineered sine tone sound for Morse code-like rhythms, and various ambient textures derived from manipulations of sounds from the same ensemble.

Upon the director’s suggestion, we decided to weave some melodies and themes from various Navy-related tunes, such as “Anchor’s Aweigh,” “Blow the Man Down,” and “Drunken Sailor.” The tune “Anchor’s Aweigh” ended up being the original source material for most of the themes in the film, utilizing a variety of thematic metamorphosis techniques in order to derive new themes that don’t clearly connect to the original melody, but rather subconsciously hint at it. We came up with roughly five cues: one theme linked to the tense relationship between the protagonist and antagonist, two themes linked to the antagonist (one for each of his two distinct personality traits), one theme related to the communications/Morse code element of the story, and another general theme related to the island itself, which is called Holiday Beach by the characters in the film (this theme largely drew on part of the melody of “Anchor’s Aweigh”).

Because this was essentially a second take at post-production (including editing and color correction), the director was in no hurry to get this complete. He preferred that we took our time and got the results the film deserved. This allowed for plenty of time to write and rewrite, collect feedback, organize specific thematic arches, rewrite again, etc. over the course of many months (during which some extensive, meticulous color-correction was going on) – very much atypical for a film score. However, from my perspective, the enormous amount of time for composing was in some ways a challenge since it was difficult to keep focused and avoid going down a long, dead-end path. That is where the extended phone conversations, emails, and feedback from outside observers were very helpful. Some positives to having so much time was that by the time we did complete the score, we were completely satisfied that we put in as much as we could to get the score we wanted.

In addition to the score, I had the opportunity to compose an original song for the film with my wife, Christine. I composed music that hearkened back to songs of that era as well as subtly referencing the score, and my wife wrote lyrics that helped reinforce the feelings and moods of the young sailors who were far from home. She sang the lyrics for the recording, and the song is used as source music in several spots of the film, as well as in the end credits.

Reviewing our initial goals – a consistent, coherent score that supports the emotional arc of the film and an original song to help support the time and place – we feel very satisfied that we accomplished these. This was verified by collecting feedback from about a dozen outside viewers both in and out of the filmmaking community, who generally felt the score helped enhance the film. The original song for the film was well-received, several comments asking if it was a song from that time that they had forgotten about. Overall, it was a pleasure to have the opportunity to work on such a powerful film and collaborate with such talented individuals, and I wouldn’t hesitate to work with them again!

Testimonial by Steve Larson, director

As most filmmakers know, one of the most difficult areas of production is music/score.  Seldom do we filmmakers come from a background in music or sound design.  Rather, we come from writing or dramatic or technical backgrounds and our expertise/training/interest is in these areas.  So, once the film is written, then shot, then edited… we reach that point in time when a score is needed.  And it’s usually “oh oh!”  Not that we don’t know music or at the very least know what we like.  But scoring is this strange, seemingly unknowable, unfathomable thing.  It should complement, heighten, and push the story forward but yet not take over the film.

And like most good narratives, it isn’t something that just happens.  Scores need time to gestate.  But given the order of things in filmmaking, score is usually the last thing tackled and it happens at the time we filmmakers are staring at festival or screening deadlines.  Or have spent all of the budget.  Or have made promises to backers to have the film finished so they can start seeing a return on their money.

So, often the composer walks into a situation in which there is little time or budget.  At least that is the situation Ryan walked into when he took on my film Holiday Beach. In our particular case, we were working with a historically-based story set on an obscure 1960’s U.S. Navy radio base during the Cuban Missile Crisis.   A number of pop songs from the era had been used in our first attempt at scoring.   They were purchased on one-year festival licenses with the hope that once we sold the film, the buyer would purchase permanent rights.   Alas, this was not to be.  Given the economic temperature of the times, no buyer was willing to pay what would have amounted to a sizeable chunk of our entire film’s budget – and which, unfortunately, had already been spent.

And this is where Ryan came in.  I was mulling over what steps to next take when I came across Ryan’s website.  One of his sample pieces dealt with Lake Superior, which is where we had shot many of our exterior scenes for Holiday Beach.  I was drawn to this aural soundscape as there seemed a resonance with our film.  I contacted Ryan and almost immediately he started talking about possible thematic approaches to the score.   I was struck by his artistic/musical and intellectual agility.  We talked of the various themes running through what is a rather complicated story.  A week or so later after looking at our film, he sent me a music cue for our opening sequence.  As our previous cue had opened with one of the pop songs, it was a totally new direction, blending “Anchors Aweigh” with Morse code dit-dits over a haunting underpinning of ocean/exterior sound.  I thought it captured the mood and milieu of our film perfectly and asked him to work on the score, using as much or as little of the existing score as he so chose.

And here’s where I began to really appreciate Ryan.  It would’ve have been easy to:  1) denigrate the existing score so as to promote himself and his work; or 2) make cosmetic changes to the existing score so as to make his job easier.  Ryan took neither approach. Rather he explored various new themes, but was always cognizant of what seemed to be working in the old score and was respectful of it.   His efforts were tireless – most of the time I liked the cues but when the direction went awry, Ryan always took the criticism in a positive and professional manner.  For a composer new to the field, he seemed to have an old pro’s demeanor.  It was always about the score and the film, never about him.  Over time, the score began to deepen and take some surprising turns.  Some of my preconceptions about the film got turned around.  Ryan’s score challenged the film as much as the film challenged the score.   Finally, we had a completed score.  It ended up taking longer than either of us had anticipated, but this was not due to any fault of Ryan. Sometimes it just takes that long.  And never once did Ryan complain, never once did I hear requests for additional money.  Again, it was always about the score and the film.  In short, Ryan was (and is) a true professional.   More than that, he is a true artist.  If or when I do another film — Ryan Rapsys is the only composer I would consider working with!

The next couple months will be filled with housekeeping of sorts. Back-ups, clean-ups, installations and upgrades. Then it will be time to begin the next leg of the journey.