The News

Jasmine to Screen in LA & New Zealand

Jasmine has been named an Official Selection at the Los Angeles Independent Film Festival, and will also screen in competition at the Auckland International Film Festival in New Zealand.

A year after his wife’s murder, once-successful Hong Kong businessman Leonard To (Jason Tobin) is still reeling from the tragedy. Having lost his job, friends and all sense of order in his life, Leonard becomes obsessed with a mysterious stranger he sees at his wife’s grave, believing him to be responsible for her death.

Jasmine Accepted to More Film Festivals, and Earns Another Nomination

Continuing its successful run in the film festival circuit, Jasmine has been nominated for Best Narrative Feature at DC Chinese Film Festival, where it will screen on September 20th, 2016. The film has also been invited to screen at the Laughlin International Film Festival in October.

A year after his wife’s murder, once-successful Hong Kong businessman Leonard To (Jason Tobin) is still reeling from the tragedy. Having lost his job, friends and all sense of order in his life, Leonard becomes obsessed with a mysterious stranger he sees at his wife’s grave, believing him to be responsible for her death.

Jasmine Earns More Awards

Continuing its successful run in the film festival circuit, Jasmine won Special Mention for Best Feature Film from the Miami Independent Film Festival as well as taking 2nd place in the Best Narrative Feature competition at the Knoxville Film Festival.

A year after his wife’s murder, once-successful Hong Kong businessman Leonard To (Jason Tobin) is still reeling from the tragedy. Having lost his job, friends and all sense of order in his life, Leonard becomes obsessed with a mysterious stranger he sees at his wife’s grave, believing him to be responsible for her death.

Jasmine Earns 10 Nominations at Glendale Film Fest

The Glendale International Film Festival has nominated Jasmine, the psychological thriller scored by Shie, in ten categories: Best Narrative Feature, Best Director (Dax Phelan), Best Actor (Jason Tobin), Best Actress (Li Qi Eug) Best Cinematography (Guy Livneh), Best Editing (Chris Chan Lee), Best Screenplay (Dax Phelan), Best Sound (Erick Jolley, Lisa K. Fowle), Best Make Up (Hiromi Nakashimax Brown), and Best Trailer (Chancler Haynes, Edy Enriquez).

A year after his wife’s murder, once-successful Hong Kong businessman Leonard To (Jason Tobin) is still reeling from the tragedy. Having lost his job, friends and all sense of order in his life, Leonard becomes obsessed with a mysterious stranger he sees at his wife’s grave, believing him to be responsible for her death.

Amernet String Quartet in Pix ‘N Music Concert on September 13 at National Opera Center in New York, New York

August 22, 2016
For Immediate Release
Contact: Jeffrey James Arts Consulting
516-586-3433 or jamesarts@att.net 

Amernet String Quartet in Pix ‘N Music Concert on September 13 at National Opera Center in New York, New York

What: Amernet String Quartet Pix ‘N Music Concert
When: Tuesday, September 13 at 8:30 PM
Where: National Opera Center, 330 Seventh Avenue in Manhattan
URL: http://chamberplayersinternational.org/

New York, NY – The Amernet String Quartet will be in concert on Tuesday, September 13 at 8:30 PM at National Opera Center, 330 Seventh Avenue, between 28^th and 29^th Streets in Manhattan, performing the inaugural Pix ‘N Music concert, presented by Chamber Players International and Jeffrey James Arts Consulting.

CPI and Jamesarts are proud to announce this new and unique series, Pix ‘N Music, featuring today’s top film and media composers in concert. The series features the music of media composers whose classical works will be performed live in concert, synchronized to film, video, animation and/or digitally conceived visual elements.

The September 13, 2016 inaugural event will feature The Amernet String Quartet performing premieres of “music to picture” works by Steve Horowitz, Nataliya Medvedovskaya, Adam Reifsteck, Rolando Gori, Christopher Kaufman and Shie Rozow. The Quartet will also perform Frederic Kaufman’s String Quartet No. 6. Each of the “music to picture” works will run between five and eight minutes in length and feature real-time synchronization between the Amernet Quartet and the visual components. Additionally, each performance will be live-streamed via the internet as a means of connecting with international audiences. The composers will be present to speak about their respective works and how they were conceived.

Praised for their “intelligence” and “immensely satisfying” playing by the New York Times, the Amernet String Quartet are Ensemble-in-Residence at Florida International University in Miami. Strad Magazine described the Amernet as “…a group of exceptional technical ability.” The Amernet’s performance schedule has taken the quartet across the Americas and to Asia, Europe, and the Middle East.  They have collaborated with many of today’s most prominent artists and ensembles including the Tokyo and Ying quartets as well as Shmuel Ashkenasi, Robert deMaine, Roberto Diaz, Gary Hoffman, Ida Kavafian, Anthony McGill, Sherrill Milnes and Michael Tree. Visit them at http://amernetquartet.com/.

Tickets are $20 and can be ordered by calling 877-444-4488 or visiting http://chamberplayersinternational.org/.

Chamber Players International is a major regional performing arts organization presenting between 25 and 30 concert events serving the entire New York metropolitan area. Its artistic mission is to bring chamber music and chamber orchestra performances of the highest artistic quality to audiences throughout the area including world-renowned guest ensembles such as the International Chamber Orchestra of Rome, The World Youth Alliance Chamber Orchestra of the U.N. New York. Core ensemble members include violinists Emil Chudnovsky, Bela Horvath, Anastasia Khitruk, violists Mialtin Zhezha and Cong Wu, cellists Andrey Tchekmazov, Adrian Daurov and pianists Yoni Levyatov, Svetlana Smolina and Julia Zilberquit. Visit them online at http://chamberplayersinternational.org/.

For more information about Chamber Players International, please contact Jeffrey James Arts Consulting at 516-586-3433 or jamesarts@att.net.

Shie Interviewed in PERSPECTIVE: A FORUM FOR FILM, TV, AND MEDIA COMPOSERS

We are very excited to continue our mini interview series with music editor/composer extraordinaire Shie Rozow. Shie came to the U.S from Israel exactly 21 years ago and he has risen to the top of the film music profession.
There’s a goldmine of information here folks!

1) SHIE, YOU ARE AN ESTABLISHED MUSIC EDITOR WITH CREDITS RANGING FROM BLOCKBUSTERS TO INDIES TO EPISODIC TV. CAN YOU DESCRIBE SOME OF YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES WHILE BEING INVOLVED IN SUCH DIVERSE JOBS?

As a music editor there can be many different aspects to the job depending on the project and the circumstances. This could take a while, so I’ll try to bullet-point the various aspects of the job as I’ve experienced them. Responsibilities can include cutting temp scores; attending spotting sessions where I’m responsible for the spotting notes and am often part of the discussion, which affects how the film is spotted; updating spotting notes as new picture versions come in; cutting songs, sometimes I’m the one helping find the songs, too; on musicals I’ve had to prepare sessions for the singers (sometimes it’s the actors, sometimes professional singers the actors lip sync to); when working with composers there can be a plethora of tasks leading up to the scoring session from liaising with the cutting room to preparing Quicktime videos for presentations, to attending meetings and presentations with the director and/or producers, to preparing the pre-record sessions, to coordinating with orchestrators the recording and mixing studios, the engineers, and on and on.
During scoring sessions I’m an extra pair of ears, mainly focusing on ensuring the sync looks right; I keep track of the best takes for each cue; I’m ultimately responsible for cutting these takes to get the best possible performance for mix (though often the recordists do this these days); if we’re doing a remote recording I’m responsible for making sure the logistics are all in place to get the files to and from the remote location and that the remote link is setup correctly; at the music mix I’m coordinating with the mixing engineer to make sure I get the kinds of stems I need for the dub and in the correct format; I build the sessions for the dub stage, which often includes conforming mixes to new picture; at the dub I’m the composer’s representative and am responsible for protecting the music, while serving the film, including handling any changes that are requested by the filmmakers; finally I’m responsible for creating cue sheets and deliverables to the production company.

With every project come new challenges and needs and I’m sure I’ve tackled a million things that I didn’t mention above. That’s the fun of it – each project is different with its own needs, dynamics, personalities and requirements. It’s what makes it exciting.

2) YOU HAVE SUCCESSFULLY CROWDFUNDED A CD RELEASE OF YOUR OWN MUSIC. CAN YOU TELL US A FEW THINGS ABOUT THE WHOLE EXPERIENCE?

Last year I marked 20 years since moving to the United States and realized that I’ve spent my entire career working on music for other people. Whether I’m music editing or even composing my own scores, it’s always to serve someone else, so I wanted to do something for myself – music for the sake of music. Once I decided to go for it I researched the costs involved, created a budget and lined up the musicians that would play on the album. I then researched crowd funding as much as I could. I read articles online, I asked friends who have been through it (I’m very grateful to Penka D Kouneva who was especially helpful having successfully crowd-funded her own project not to long before I did mine), and I was very meticulous about coming up with a plan for the campaign. Once I had all my ducks in a row, I went for it.

The experience was very nerve wracking for me. I found it difficult to reach out to friends and colleagues and ask for money, it’s just not in my nature. I was very disciplined about how many emails, phone calls and Facebook messages I sent daily and kept close track of it all. It was a lot harder than I anticipated, and there was a lot of anxiety, as I didn’t reach my goal until less than 24 hours before the deadline, and I only just surpassed my goal by a little bit. It was quite an emotional rollercoaster. It was also incredibly emotional to realize how many people participated – how many people actually stepped up to help me achieve a personal dream. Over 200 people pledged towards the making of my album and I’m very humbled and touched by their generosity.

Getting to make the album itself was a wonderful experience, and again very emotional. I wrote the final track on the album for my friend Brian O’Connor who was an incredible session French horn player. Sadly his recording of my piece would be his last and a few months later he lost his battle with brain cancer. The album was released on May 20th and sadly Brian was already gone, so that makes the album even more special to me than it was when I embarked on the project.

3) WHAT ADVICE CAN YOU OFFER TO COMPOSERS WHO WANT TO MOVE TO LOS ANGELES? YOU WERE BORN AND RAISED IN ISRAEL!

I think the advice is essentially the same whether you’re moving here from another city, another state or another country. One of the first questions I ask students and young graduates who reach out to me is “can you imagine yourself doing anything else and being TRULY happy?” If the answer is yes then I suggest they go do that. I think to make it in our business you need to be one of those people who simply cannot imagine him or herself doing anything else. I think you need to be someone for whom this isn’t a choice, but a calling. Next I ask them how they feel about the word “no” and explain that if they can’t handle rejection and hearing it an awful lot, this is not for them. I don’t say this to try to scare anyone away, but rather to make sure they have the dedication for it and a real understanding of what they’re going to experience. After all, even if you’re super-successful, the focus is always about what’s NOT working rather than what is. You rarely get that much praise for writing a wonderful cue or making a great edit. It gets approved, that’s the praise. Most of the focus is on the things that aren’t working and what is needed to fix them. Even when things are good, there’s a lot of “no.”

I also like to talk to people about money management, which is a topic that in my experience very few people discuss. This is show BUSINESS, being a composer or orchestrator or music editor or supervisor or copyist or whatever you are is a business, and you must be prepared to be a businessperson as well as an artist. And it’s a freelance business, which means there will be times where it feels like money is just being thrown at you, and other times where there is quite literally no income whatsoever. It’s important to save – I recommend building up a savings of at least 1 year of living expenses before making any significant costly changes to one’s lifestyle. And when you get there and it’s time for the bigger apartment, or house, or the new car and now your monthly expenses are higher than they used to be, make sure you’re adding to those savings so they add up to a year’s worth again, because the business is filled with ups and downs. But if you have those savings you can navigate the downs much better.

I also encourage everyone to find his or her own voice and style. Don’t try to be someone you’re not, don’t try to be someone else. Be yourself, develop relationships with people who can appreciate you for who you are. Not everybody is going to like you, and that’s OK. But if you’re genuine and true to yourself then the people who like you will LOVE you and come back to you over and over and enthusiastically recommend you to their friends and colleagues. If you’re not genuine, If you’re trying to be someone you’re not, it comes through and in my experience it is a turn off.

Finally for those who are coming from outside of the US, get a good immigration lawyer as soon as possible and figure out a strategy to take care of your legal status – for people like us that often means an Artist visa (O-1). One of the things you’ll need for your O-1 visa is recommendation letters, so develop relationships with people that can provide them. I’m happy to recommend my lawyer who has done a great job for me and many others. If you need a recommendation reach out and I’ll be happy to get you her info.

4) THERE IS A DEBATE GOING ON ABOUT THE USEFULNESS OF ATTENDING MUSIC COLLEGES FOR FILM SCORING. AS A BERKLEE GRADUATE, WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THAT?

I got a lot out of going to Berklee. But I also put a lot into it. I had classmates who didn’t and accordingly didn’t get much out of it. I think no matter what you’re studying or where, you can only get out of it what you’re willing to put into it. I think an education can help a lot for a variety of reasons. But as a Berklee grad I think the biggest advantage is that there is a very strong alumni presence here and the school works very hard to help new graduates meet working alums such as myself (I probably meet 10 or so students or recent grads a year). I believe USC and UCLA have a similar advantage.

That said, I don’t think a formal education is a must. Talent, hard work and the right attitude are a must. Everything else can be learned as you go. I think depending on where you go to school it can be more or less helpful depending on how good the program is, how much you put into it, and the strength of the alumni network. It can be very advantageous and I’m extremely grateful for my Berklee education, but I don’t think it’s absolutely essential. One can still make it even without a film scoring degree.

5) YOU ARE A PARENT AND A CONSUMMATE PROFESSIONAL. HOW DO YOU BALANCE THE TWO?

Thank you for the kind words. Balance? What’s that? I think first and foremost I married an amazing woman who somehow puts up with me and the crazy schedules and the uncertainty and everything else. I don’t know how it is for anyone else, but I’ve long since given up on the idea of balance on a day to day basis. When I’m working, work comes first (barring any family emergencies), and that’s just the way it is. For me a short workweek is 60 hours. 100+ hours and 7-day weeks aren’t uncommon. There’s nothing balanced about it. But I try to be home whenever I can to tuck my kids in to bed at night. When I’m in crazy work mode I try to find a few minutes to spend with each of them and my wife, if not in person then by phone.

Also when working from home, often things are needed by a deadline. It doesn’t matter if I do them in the morning, afternoon or evening, it just matters that they’re ready when they are needed. So if I can afford the time, I’ll try to take a break for a few hours in the afternoon/evening to have dinner with the family and spend some time with the kids, but then after they go to bed I go back to my home studio and work until midnight or later.

When I’m not working I’m 100% theirs. They get my full attention and nothing else is more important. I try to catch up on my honey-do list and be as involved in their lives as I possibly can. For example, I just finished a couple of projects right as my eldest son entered his final week of 1st grade, so that final week I volunteered in his classroom every day. My boys are on summer vacation and I had a few weeks off between projects so I spent as much time as I possibly could with them. We just got back from a family vacation. And when I’m with them, I put the cellphone away, I turn the computer off and I’m just there with them, focused on them. And when work starts up again, it’s back to work mode.

So I don’t really have much balance on a daily basis, or even a weekly basis. But thanks to my incredible family who is so amazingly supportive and understanding it works. I guess balance for me is over the span of several months or a year rather than daily.

Jasmine Takes Top Prizes at Chautauqua International Film Festival

Continuing its winning streak, Jasmine took home awards for Best Thriller, Best Actor and Best Screenplay at the 2016 Chautauqua International Film Festival in New York.

Jasmine Wins Best Narrative Feature at Macon Film Festival

Jasmine had a very good night at the Macon Film Festival in Georgia where it took home the award for Best Narrative Feature.

Shie Joins Crew of Rebel

Shie joins the crew of John Singleton’s Rebel for BET. Rebel is an extraordinary take on the seminal police drama that examines the unique and conflicted relationship officers of color have with their jobs – at a time when police forces are rife with brutality and misconduct. Oakland police officer, Rebecca “Rebel” Cole, has always excelled by playing by the rules. She has always known that she must be better and smarter on the job because she is both black and female. After her brother is slain by police, Rebel soon becomes disillusioned with the system and is forced to take matters into her own hands and become a private investigator and a champion for her community. Caught between family loyalty and the fraternity in blue, Rebel’s actions set in motion a cause-and-effect crisis that can’t be undone.

Just Add Magic Gets 2nd Season

June 16, 2016

Shie has been asked to return for two more seasons on Just Add Magic. Shie will be working once again with composers Deborah Lurie & Zack Ryan, who will continue to score the series. Loosely based on the book by the same name by Cindy Callaghan, the series follows Kelly, Hannah & Darbie, 3 friends who find a mysterious magical cookbook.

Musical Fantasy Album Released

May 20, 2016

Film and television composer Shie Rozow is proud to announce the release of his debut classical CD Musical Fantasy by 4Tay Records (CD 4047). The album features performances by The Lyris Quartet, violist Luke Maurer, pianist Robert Thies, and the final recording of French horn player Brian O’Connor, who sadly passed away recently.

“I’ve always been drawn to and intimidated by writing for solo instruments,” said Rozow. “When writing for a solo instrument or a small chamber group like a string quartet, there is nothing to hide behind. The spotlight is on the singular voice.” Musical Fantasy features “Fantasia Appassionata” for solo piano, “Expedition” for string quartet, “Esmé’s Moon” for solo piano, “Old Friends” for viola, and “Ananke” for French horn & piano.

“Fantasia Appassionata” was inspired by the story of Alice Herz-Sommer. “Arrested by the Nazis during World War II, she was sent to Theresienstadt concentration camp, where she would be imprisoned until the end of the war,” Rozow explained. “Being a musician, her life was spared and she was forced to play concerts for guards and fellow prisoners during Red-Cross visits as part of Germany’s propaganda effort to hide their crimes against humanity. After her release, she continued to play piano daily for the rest of her long life, passing in 2014 aged 110. When I first heard her story, I was so taken by her beautiful spirit that I stopped what I was doing and immediately wrote this piece.”

Shie Rozow is a composer, music editor and music supervisor. Born in Tel-Aviv, Israel, Shie was introduced to the piano at 5 years old. As his affair with music evolved, he became fascinated with the technology of producing music, throwing himself into the world of synthesis, sampling & sequencing. Following his high-school graduation, Shie spent 3 years serving with distinction in the Israeli Defense Force before attending Rimon School of Jazz & Contemporary Music in Ramat HaSharon, a northern suburb of Tel-Aviv, where he began his formal musical training. Shie went on to earn a scholarship to Berklee College of Music in Boston, where he completed his bachelor’s degree majoring in film scoring and graduating Magna Cum Laude. Following his graduation, Shie moved to Los Angeles where he built a career working in film, TV and interactive media.

“Expedition”, Shie’s 4-movement string quartet, was premiered by the Lyris Quartet in January 2016 as part of Los Angeles-based Contemporary Performance Collective’s CPC II concert.

His classical works include his scores to BONNEVILLE, for 10 strings, flutes, piano, guitar & percussion and to THE REMEMBERING MOVIES for chamber ensemble, the orchestral works “Immortal Beloved”, “The Road Not Taken”, “For King & Country”, “Warrior”, and “Staredown”, orchestra and choir works “Self-Sacrifice” and “Battle Cry”, “Endless Horizon” for orchestra and acoustic guitar, “Off Road” for orchestra, choir and synths, “Cat & Mouse” and “Chaos Theory” for orchestra and synth percussion and “Michelangelo” for small orchestra and choir. Many of these have been used as film cues.

Shie’s film and TV work has earned him 13 Golden Reel Award nominations, including two wins –the first as assistant music editor for the hit musical Chicago, and the second as music editor for IMAX: Deep Sea.

Over the many years Shie spent working primarily as a music editor for film, he was able to form friendships with some of the world’s finest musicians. Rozow explained, “During breaks I’d often go and talk to the musicians, ask questions and try to learn and absorb as much as I could. One of these incredible musicians was Brian O’Connor. One of the top horn players in Hollywood he played on thousands of scores for legendary composers like Jerry Goldsmith, John Williams, Danny Elfman and countless more, often as principal horn. Whenever I’d see him on a scoring stage we’d end up talking, and inevitably he would show me new techniques, discuss musical ideas and generally enhance my knowledge of the French horn and what it can do.”

Rozow wrote the piece “Ananke” for Brian to perform. Sadly, it would turn out to be the final recording by O’Connor who succumbed to brain cancer earlier this year. “I will forever be grateful for his kindness, generosity and outstanding musicality.”

4Tay Records will release Musical Fantasy-Works by Shie Rozow (CD 4047) on May 20, 2016.

Trial & Error Picked Up To Series by NBC

May 11, 2016

Shie had the pleasure of teaming up once again with composer John Swihart as his music editor on the pilot to Trial & Error, which got picked up to series by NBC. In this outrageous fish-out-of-water comedy, Josh Segal, a bright-eyed New York lawyer, heads to a tiny Southern town for his first big case. His mission? To defend an eccentric, “rollercizing” poetry professor (John Lithgow, “3rd Rock from the Sun”) accused of the bizarre murder of his beloved wife. Settling into his makeshift office behind a taxidermy shop and meeting his quirky team of local misfits, Josh suspects that winning his first big case will not be easy – especially when his client is always making himself look guilty. “Making a Murderer” can be funny!