Responsible for all audio in the film, I worked with the Lipscomb class of ’24 Animation students to bring Arco to life, the violin-playing mouse who discovers the magic of bluegrass music.

I composed the score, created parts for the live violin and harmonica players, hired the musicians, and recorded the music, in addition to handling all sound design, mixing, and mastering.

Arco was awarded Best Animation Film, Best Animation Screenplay, Audience Choice for Animation, Best Animation Original Score, and 2nd Place in Animation Sound Design at Lipscomb University’s 5-Minute Film Festival.

After successful film festival run, Arco was selected for performance at Lipscomb University’s 2024 Film Score Concert.

To make this happen, I created sheet music for all instrument parts, put together a click track, and carefully ensured that everything lined up absolutely perfectly. It was an interesting challenge notating the “scary aleatoric stuff” while also making sure everything was playable. Fortunately, all my time spent in orchestras and wind ensembles (and orchestration class) paid off.

The score was performed live in the concert (video above), to great reviews (from audience members and musicians as well).

Bringing the minimalist and understatedly chaotic world of (square) to life was a great challenge! Using a unique blend of acoustic instruments and synthesizers, I created the music score and the sound design, while also handling all mixing/mastering. Yet again, I managed to be a one-stop shop for audio, with incredible results!

(sqaure)- Steam page

Soundtrack (Spotify)

Soundtrack (Apple Music)

Collaborating with fellow composer Kaleb Clarke, we wrote, recorded, and mixed the film score. 

Additionally, for the Film Score Concert, we revisited the piece’s orchestration, created all sheet music, and assembled the audio session for the live concert– additionally, I conducted a chunk of the orchestra rehearsals myself.

The film also won the Best Composer (Honorable Mention) and Best Fiction Short (Honorable Mention) awards in the American Golden Picture International Film Festival!

I used the power of music and the magic of sound design to create a believable, engrossing sci-fi atmosphere while simultaneously providing context and narrative motion.

In addition to creating the score and sound design, I also prepared the full audio mix for the film. I was able to utilize my skills to be a one-stop shop for audio!