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Composing Soundtracks for Horror Films: My Story

 

It was 2016. The idea of creating Ships Fly Up was still about a year away. Suddenly, I received an email from a director who, together with his brother, was making short horror films. Everything was in place: a script, actors, production, and so on — with just one caveat: they were from Malaysia, and communication was in English (thankfully, there was an online translator).

 

They needed a composer for several films they were working on — not just any composer, but a “golden” one: in addition to writing music, I’d also have to create sound effects. Somehow, these guys in Malaysia had heard about me and my modest talents, and they offered me the position of that very composer. To be honest, I’ve never been to Malaysia — not even close. However, I did get to appreciate the colourful style of their films: quite specific and dramatic. Without much hesitation, I accepted this opportunity.

 

This was my first experience of the kind. They sent me the filmed scenes with the characters’ lines. The music had to be pure horror, with all the genre’s typical attributes, so that the future audience could fully immerse themselves in the atmosphere of what was happening on screen. And I must say, what was happening could sometimes evoke contradictory feelings.

 

Before this, although I’d created a lot of music, it had all followed what you might call a fairly linear pattern, with a clear structure. Here, the task was more complex (film composers will understand): the music had to be precisely timed, fully dependent on the events unfolding on screen.

 

For example, if a heroine is slowly walking through a hotel room late at night, the music should have a correspondingly gloomy yet subtle tone. But if suddenly some Malaysian bogeyman runs past behind her back — something meant to shock an unprepared viewer — then the music must gradually become more aggressive and intense, while still keeping its eerie elements.

 

And it’s not always possible to simply write two separate tracks — one for the character’s calm state and another for their fear — and just place them one after another. No. Here, it had to be a single track that flexibly and seamlessly shifts from one mood to another, all in sync with the actors’ actions.

 

My responsibilities also included creating sound effects — a bit easier, but still requiring unconventional approaches if you want a truly interesting result. By sound effects, I don’t mean the sound of a door opening or the noise of rain — that wasn’t part of my duties. I mean proper horror effects: all those “booms” and “bangs” that suddenly make the viewer jump in fear, as well as mystical howls and creaks. I created them by experimenting with various virtual synthesizers. This required imagination, patience, and plenty of knobs to twist however your heart desires.

 

I remember spending many hours on the debut film during the first few days — working late into the night, or even almost until morning. But the result came together. The guys from Malaysia were happy (I hope), and so were the viewers. After the first film, they invited me to work as composer on their next pictures — which I did.

As you might guess, these films didn’t win any awards at Cannes or the Oscars. But I don’t regret it, because I still gained a real portion of valuable experience. And I learned where Malaysia is.