By Millie Takaki
Composer Gordon Cyrus—who’s been working as a freelancer out of Stockholm and Paris—has signed with Peligro Music & Sound Design, the Los Angeles house launched last year by composer/sound designer Greg Kuehn and executive producer Jonnie Peckham (SHOOT, 2/19/99, p. 7). This is Cyrus’ first U.S. spot representation. Plans call for Gordon to work on projects both out of Peligro’s Southern California studio and from his own facilities in Europe.
Cyrus’ recent credits include such spots as Volvo’s "Brick," directed by Jhoan Camitz of bicoastal/international Satellite, as well as "Stray Dog," "Teacher," "Lodge" and "Test Drive," directed by Traktor of bicoastal/ international Partizan and Traktor, Stockholm, all for agency Forsman & Bodenfors in Gothenberg, Sweden. Cyrus also composed music for Diesel’s new "Dirty Jeans" commercial, helmed by Traktor for Paradisit DDB, Stockholm. Additionally, he is a well-known music producer for European recording artists; in ’99, he produced a soon-to-be-released album by Baz Baz for France’s Island Records.
Cyrus rounds out a Peligro roster of composers that includes recent hires Rae DiLeo and Karl Leiker, who are both Los Angeles residents. Leiker has worked as a composer, musician, mixer and producer. He recently completed production on an album for Perry Farrell (lead singer for Jane’s Addiction and Porno For Pyros, and founder of the Lollapalooza music festival). Karl, a native Californian, spent several years in London entrenched in the club scene as a member of the band Big Buddha. He has completed remixes and production for many noted British big-beat groups, among them Lo-Fidelity Allstars, Propellerheads and The Chemical Brothers.
DiLeo is a Grammy-winning producer for spoken-word artist Henry Rollins’ "Get In The Van." He is best known for producing the band Filter’s "One" for The X-Files movie soundtrack, and recently finished co-producing Filter’s second CD release, called Title of Record. Other producing credits include jazz albums for Gerald Wiggins and Dr. Kevorkian. DiLeo has released on his own label, Resist Records, three solo albums: ’94’s Journey To The Core, a new-age instrumental CD; ’95’s How About Now, which contains ambient tracks; and ’97’s electronic music album Translingual.
Peligro has added a File Transfer Protocol (FTP) server, which allows for rapid delivery of music via the Internet. The FTP server allows Peligro’s clients, regardless of their location, to give and receive instant feedback and updates on musical scores. This technology was recently employed on a campaign for British American Tobacco, directed by Markus Blunder of Stiefel & Company, Santa Monica, for Grey Advertising, New York. The Los Angeles-based Kuehn, along with Cyrus in Stockholm, were able to upload the tracks to the server and have them available in minutes for the agency to review and for the editor to lay against picture.
Some U.S. spots recently scored by Kuehn include: adidas BMX’s "Ride for Yourself" and "Dish Dogs," directed by Patrick Solomon of Fusion Films, Santa Monica, for Leagas Delaney, San Francisco; Toyota Tacoma’s "Adrenaline," directed by Craig Henderson of Stiefel & Company, for Saatchi & Saatchi LA, Torrance, Calif.; Honda S 2000’s "Buttons," helmed by Lance Kelleher of Ritts/Hayden, Los Angeles, for Rubin Postaer and Associates, Santa Monica; and Motorola E Messaging’s "Yasmine," directed by Phil Morrison of bicoastal Epoch Films for McCann-Erickson, New York.
Franklin Leonard and The Black List To Receive 2024 Gotham Awards Anniversary Tribute
Franklin Leonard and his company, the Black List, the platform dedicated to nurturing written storytelling and empowering writers to maximize their professional potential, will receive The Gotham Anniversary Tribute at the 34th annual Gotham Awards ceremony, taking place on Monday, December 2, at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City.
The Anniversary Tribute was created by The Gotham Film & Media Institute in order to recognize the major milestones and storied commitments of entertainment’s most influential individuals. With the Anniversary Tribute, The Gotham will honor the 20th anniversary of the Black List, which has been dedicated to identifying and celebrating exceptional storytelling since it was first established by Leonard in 2005. Most recently, Mariska Hargitay received the Anniversary Tribute at the inaugural Gotham TV awards for her outstanding run on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.
“With the Black List, Franklin Leonard has undeniably reshaped Hollywood by elevating talented writers and remarkable projects. His commitment to nurturing emerging screenwriters and lowering barriers to entry for talent is one that resonates deeply with The Gotham and our values,” said Jeffrey Sharp, executive director of The Gotham Film & Media Institute. “So many of Hollywood’s most beloved films, such as Juno, Slumdog Millionaire, and The King’s Speech, were all given a singular platform by the annual Black List that helped them get made. We are honored to present Franklin and the Black List with the Anniversary Tribute.”
First established as an annual survey of Hollywood’s most-liked unproduced screenplays, the Black List has since grown into a comprehensive resource for the film, TV,... Read More