8DIO: Interview with Richard Marvin
by Jan Hoeglund and Troels Folmann
December 2012
Richard Marvin is a American film and television composer whose line of work includes hit shows like Grimm (NBC), Six Feet Under (HBO), In Treatment (HBO), The O.C (FOX) and movies like The Surrogates, u571 and over 40 other TV-shows, movies etc...
... Q: What’s it like working on popular TV shows like Grimm or The O.C. or Six Feet Under? And where are deadlines worse, Film or TV?
Richard Marvin: "For sure, the TV schedules are much shorter. On Grimm, I compose about 35 minutes of score every week. There was much less music in The OC and Without A Trace, but still it was an episode a week. Six Feet Under and In Treatment were much more relaxed in terms of the schedule. Usually I would have at least two weeks to score an episode, and there was very little music per episode. The real test is when a composer is juggling multiple TV shows and films at the same time... That’s when it gets a little crazy. When scoring a film, it really depends on the particular film in terms of how long you have to complete the score. Generally though, I’ve had one to six months to score a film.
Q: What changes do you foresee in the world of Movie/TV/Game Music within the next 10 years? Where are we going stylistically?
Richard Marvin: "Mmmmm, crystal ball time… I think the art of scoring is currently in a very stagnant time. There aren’t many scores that stand out to me as fresh or creative. I think mostly that’s because of producers, directors and studios all wanting music that is like the “last hit.” The temping and research screening process already is so confining to a composer. That’s what I’m really enjoying about Grimm. The powers that be are letting me in large part write what I think is best for the show. There is very little direction coming from the producers or the studio. It’s sort of what scoring used to be like in the early days of scoring: let the composer write the music that he/she thinks will enhance the story..."
Grimm season 2.5 premieres on Friday, March 8, 2013 at 9/8C on NBC.
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