Jonny Greenwood won the Film Composer of the Year Award at the 22nd World Soundtrack Awards Gala & Concert on Saturday, October 22 at Music Center De Bijloke in Ghent. Nicholas Britell received the Television Composer of the Year Award. "No Time to Die" No Time to Die The Magic Flute won the Best Original Song Award, while Drive My Carcomposer Eiko Ishibashi claimed the Discovery of the Year Award. Joseph Metcalfe, John Coda and Grant Kirkhope were honored with the Public Choice Award and The Penelopes composed the Best Original Score for a Belgian Production. Bruno Coulais received the Lifetime Achievement Award.
The 49th edition of Film Fest Ghent was traditionally closed with the World Soundtrack Awards, one of the most prestigious international awards for film music. After multiple nominations for his most recent scores – including an Oscar, a BAFTA and a Golden Globe – composer Jonny Greenwood can finally take home an award. The World Soundtrack Academy crowned him Film Composer of the Year for his scores for The Power of the Dog and Spandcer. It is the first time Jonny Greenwood wins a World Soundtrack Award, but he was previously nominated in 2008 for There Will Be Blood, in 2013 for The Master and in 2018 as Film Composer of the Year for Phantom Thread. His track "Magic Works" from Harry Potter and the Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire was nominated in 2006.
Nicholas Britell and his stunning (intro) music for Succession have become nearly unbeatable. Britell cashed in on his nomination and was named Television Composer of the Year 2022, earning his fifth World Soundtrack Award. In 2020, he also won Television Composer of the Year for his music for Succession. Between accolades for his television work, he won Best Original Song for "Call Me Cruella" from Disney's Cruella. He has also won Film Composer of the Year 2019 and Discovery of the Year 2017 at the World Soundtrack Awards.
Six songs competed this year for the highest honor in the Best Original Songcategory, with "Strange Game" from the series Slow Horses —written by Daniel Pemberton and Mick Jagger—being the first song from a TV series to be nominated for Best Original Song. However, the Academy chose "No Time to Die" from the James Bond film No Time to Die The Magic Flute as Best Original Song. Songwriters Billie Eilish and Finneas O'Connell were unable to attend but thanked the World Soundtrack Academy in a video message.
Eiko Ishibashi impressed the Academy with her enchanting, jazzy score for the Oscar-winning Murakami adaptation Drive My Car and can now call herself Discovery of the Year 2022. Her music will be performed next year at the World Soundtrack Awards. Drive My Car was one of Ishibashi's first experiences scoring for film, and the Academy sincerely hopes many more scores will follow.
The Public Choice Award went to the music for The King's Daughter, composed by Joseph Metcalfe, John Coda, and Grant Kirkhope. The score was well-received by audiences and garnered the most votes from film fans. Composer Giacomo Rita received the Sabam Award for Best Original Composition by a Young ComposerHe impressed the jury with the score he composed for a scene from Nosferatu, the 1922 film by F.W. Murnau. The Parisian indie pop band The Penelopes composed the Best Original Score for a Belgian Production with their music for the charming family film SpaceBoy by Olivier Pairoux.
During the World Soundtrack Awards Ceremony & Concert, the body of work of French composer Bruno Coulais took center stage. Coulais' film music ranges from scores for French blockbusters such as The Purple Rivers, to epic documentaries such as Winged Migration to folkloric animated films such as Wolfwalkers. Brussels Philharmonic, conducted by Maestro Dirk Brossé, performed a selection of his music for films such as Oceans, Microcosmos and Coraline. His distinctive lyrical and imaginative scores often reveal his fondness for opera and the human voice. During the World Soundtrack Awards, the all-male choir A Filetta and mezzo-soprano Mélissa Zerbib, together with Brussels Philharmonic, brought Coulais' music to life. During the ceremony, Bruno Coulais received the Lifetime Achievement Award.
The WSA Industry Award goes this year to the Alliance for Women Film Composers. The AWFC is a community of composers dedicated to supporting the work of female composers. Catherine Joy, chairwoman of the Alliance for Women Film Composers, accepted the award in person on Friday, October 21st. The WSA Industry Award is presented to a person or organization that makes a remarkable and significant contribution to the film music industry.
During the awards show, Brussels Philharmonic performed music from three special guests. From Lifetime Achievement Award winner Bruno Coulais, the orchestra brought a selection from his music for films such as Oceans, Microcosmos and Coraline. The audience enjoyed some beautiful pieces from the repertoire of composer and jazz artist Mark Isham, who also took the stage himself and played trumpet during the music from The Black Dahlia, The Moderns and Judas and the Black Messiah. The Brussels Philharmonic also performed music by last year's Discovery of the Year winner, Nainita Desai, who was nominated this year for the Public Choice Award. The audience listened to several pieces from the award-winning documentary, among others For Sama.
Overview of the laureates
- Film Composer of the Year
Jonny Greenwood for Spandcer and The Power of the Dog
- Television Composer of the Year
Nicholas Britell for Succession (S3)
- Best Original Song
"No Time to Die" from No Time to Die The Magic Flute written by Billie Eilish and Finneas O'Connell, performed by Billie Eilish
- Discovery of the Year
Eiko Ishibashi for Drive My Car
- Public Choice Award
Joseph Metcalfe, John Coda and Grant Kirkhope for The King's Daughter
- Sabam Award for Best Original Composition by a Young Composer
Giacomo Rita
- Best Original Score for a Belgian Production
The Penelopes for SpaceBoy
- Lifetime Achievemandt Award
Bruno Coulais
- WSA Industry Award
The Alliance for Womand Film Composers
