By Susan Lin
Josh Kirsch has ended his eight-year tenure as a composer at JSM, New York, to head his own shop, Kirsch Electric, also in New York. As a composer/sound designer, Kirsch will primarily handle commercials, but plans to expand into multimedia, films and longform programming as well.
Kirsch entered the music industry in ’89 as a studio assistant at the New York office of bicoastal Elias Associates, where he remained for two years before joining JSM.
Kirsch decided to go solo, he said, in order to broaden his dealings with clients. At JSM, which had its own staff of producers, Kirsch said his interaction with clients was limited to the creative aspects of a job. "There was a lot of behind-the-scenes work that you don’t see as a composer," Kirsch said. After working in the music industry for 10 years, Kirsch said he felt he’d gained enough experience to start his own company.
Out of his new one-man shop, Kirsch has most recently scored and sound designed "Spring 2000," a national spot campaign for Estee Lauder via Bates USA, New York. Since the shop’s launch two weeks ago, Kirsch also completed several Moonlighting promos, including "Roach Coach" and "Hidden Treasures," for the Bravo network.
Kirsch enjoys eliminating the boundaries between sound design and original music, and treats the two as a single entity. As an example of his best work, Kirsch cites "Join the Festival," a :60 for the Atlanta Film Festival via Austin Kelley Advertising, Atlanta. The spot, which won a ’98 Bronze Clio in the Original Music category, featured live carnival sounds that Kirsch recorded and then integrated into an eerie musical score.
Kirsch’s talents were also put to use in Volvo’s "Rounded Corners" via Messner Vetere Berger McNamee Schmetterer/Euro RSCG, New York, which he scored at JSM. Because the spot only panned around the exterior of a luxury car, Kirsch enlivened the spot with a slow-paced, jazzy score.
Kirsch is presently seeking representation for his shop.
Judge Upholds Dismissal Of Involuntary Manslaughter Charge Against Alec Baldwin In “Rust” Shooting
A New Mexico judge has upheld her decision to dismiss an involuntary manslaughter charge against Alec Baldwin in the fatal shooting of a cinematographer on the set of a Western movie.
In a ruling Thursday, state District Court Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer stood by her July decision to dismiss an involuntary manslaughter charge against Baldwin. She said prosecutors did not raise any factual or legal arguments that would justify reversing her decision.
"Because the state's amended motion raises arguments previously made, and arguments that the state elected not to raise earlier, the court does not find the amended motion well taken," the judge wrote, adding that the request was also untimely.
A spokesperson for Baldwin's lawyers said Friday that they had no immediate reaction to teh decision.
The case was thrown out halfway through trial on allegations that police and prosecutors withheld evidence from the defense in the 2021 death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of the film "Rust."
Baldwin's trial was upended by revelations that ammunition was brought into the Santa Fe County sheriff's office in March by a man who said it could be related to Hutchins' killing. Prosecutors said they deemed the ammo unrelated and unimportant, while Baldwin's lawyers say investigators "buried" the evidence in a separate case file and filed a successful motion to dismiss.
Special prosecutor Kari Morrissey can now decide whether to appeal to a higher court.
Baldwin, the lead actor and co-producer for "Rust," was pointing a gun at Hutchins during a rehearsal on a movie set outside Santa Fe in October 2021 when the revolver went off, killing Hutchins and wounding director Joel Souza. Baldwin has said he pulled back the hammer —... Read More