IFMCA Award Winners 2011

JOHN WILLIAMS WINS FIVE AWARDS FROM THE INTERNATIONAL FILM MUSIC CRITICS INCLUDING SCORE OF THE YEAR FOR “WAR HORSE”

FEBRUARY 23, 2012 – The International Film Music Critics Association announces the winners of its eighth annual awards for excellence in musical scoring in 2011 with John Williams’ score for Steven Spielberg’s WAR HORSE topping the list, winning Film Score of the Year, Best Score for a Drama Film and Individual Cue for “The Homecoming.” Williams also wins Composer of the Year and Best Score for an Animated Film for THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN: THE SECRET OF THE UNICORN. French composer Ludovic Bource wins Breakout Composer of the Year for his score to THE ARTIST.

Cliff Martinez wins Best Score for an Action/Adventure/Thriller Film for Nicolas Winding Refn’s DRIVE. Best Score for a Comedy Film is given to THE RUM DIARY by Christopher Young. Michael Giacchino wins his 11th career award for JJ Abrams’ SUPER 8 in the Best Score for a Fantasy/Science Fiction/Horror Film category. Turkish composer Pinar Toprak wins Best Score for a Documentary Film for her score to THE WIND GODS.

In the non-film categories, Arnau Bataller wins Best Score for a Television Series for the Spanish telenovela ERMESSENDA. Veteran Japanese composer Joe Hisaishi wins Best Score for a Video Game or Interactive Media for the Level-5 / Studio Ghibli game NI NO KUNI: WRATH OF THE WHITE WITCH.

The Best Archival Release goes to the massive Warner Bros sixteen-disc, retrospective box-set THE DANNY ELFMAN & TIM BURTON 25TH ANNIVERSARY MUSIC BOX, which was housed in a Zoetrope box and included an exclusive historical book. The winner of Best Archival Re-recording goes to conductor William Stromberg and the Moscow Symphony Orchestra for their re-recording of Bernard Herrmann’s THE BATTLE OF NERETVA and THE NAKED AND THE DEAD. Best Record Label of the Year goes to La-La Land Records, their second win in a row in this category, for such notable 2011 expanded release soundtracks as 1941, SPACE ABOVE AND BEYOND, FAT MAN AND LITTLE BOY, COMMANDO and STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION COLLECTION VOLUME 1.

The Association is also bestowing a Special Award to SYMPHONY OF HOPE: THE HAITI PROJECT, a benefit recording collaboration between 25 film and TV composers, including John Debney, Christopher Young, Dave Grusin, Marvin Hamlisch, and Christopher Lennertz who produced with Steve Schnur. The recording is available as a download on itunes and Amazon among other outlets with proceeds going to Haiti Earthquake Relief. More information can be found at www.haitisymphony.com.

IFMCA Award Nominations 2011 have been announced

JOHN WILLIAMS RECEIVES 7 INTERNATIONAL FILM MUSIC CRITICS’ 2011 AWARD NOMINATIONS, INCLUDING TWO FOR FILM SCORE OF THE YEAR

FEBRUARY 9, 2012 – The International Film Music Critics Association announces its list of nominees for excellence in musical scoring in 2011 with veteran composer John Williams leading the field with 7 nods including WAR HORSE (3 nominations) and THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN: THE SECRET OF THE UNICORN (3 nominations) for Film Score of the Year. Also nominated in this category are Ludovic Bource’s THE ARTIST (3 nominations), Mark McKenzie’s score to THE GREATEST MIRACLE (2 nominations) and Howard Shore’s HUGO (2 nominations).

Williams is short-listed for Film Composer of the Year along with Bource; last year’s winner, Alexandre Desplat (whose many scores include HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS PART 2, THE TREE OF LIFE, EXTREMELY LOUD AND INCREDIBLY CLOSE, THE IDES OF MARCH, A BETTER LIFE); Michael Giacchino (SUPER 8, MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: GHOST PROTOCOL, 50/50, MONTE CARLO, CARS 2) and Alberto Iglesias (TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY, LA PIEL QUE HABITO (THE SKIN I LIVE IN), TAMBIÉN LA LLUVIA, LE MOINE).

French composer Ludovic Bource has the rare distinction of also being nominated for Breakout Composer of the Year for Michel Hazanavicius’ silent film, THE ARTIST. The category has an international flair with nominations for Ireland’s Brian Byrne, recognized for his score to ALBERT NOBBS; the British electronic duo of Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons aka The Chemical Brothers for HANNA; British composer Michael Richard Plowman for A LONELY PLACE TO DIE, AGE OF HEROES and TREASURE GUARDS and Spanish Lucas Vidal for MIENTRAS DUERMES.

The British dominate the TV Score category with the popular ITV/PBS series DOWNTON ABBEY (John Lunn) nominated alongside DOCTOR WHO (Murray Gold) and SHERLOCK (David Arnold and Michael Price). Rounding out the category are the Spanish series ERMESSENDA (Arnau Bataller) and the American HBO series GAME OF THRONES (Ramin Djawadi).

The International Film Music Critics will announce the winners of its Eighth Annual Awards on February 23, 2012.