score Working with composers: How do you keep track on feedback?

[sfrost82]

Hey everyone! When my film team works with composers, managing the feedback through several score versions is so difficult. Especially when we send them a new film edit. The director, producers, network all have to give feedback keeping track of this becomes insane. How do you all manage this? Is there a good way to somehow keep all the films and feedback in one place so its easier to keep track of? Anyone find solutions for this?

 

[mlesemann]

This may be too simple for what you're looking for, but I use (electronic) folders extensively. I have carefully labeled folders in my Yahoo mail & Gmail, separating out different projects, drafts, dates, etc. I also carefully label folders both in Dropbox and on the hard drive of my computer. And I aim to label/name things in consistent formats. So the feedback on "Screenplay 123" is all together, everyone's comments on the 3rd version of the score are in "Score 123 version 3."

You may be looking for something more sophisticated/complex, so I'll be interested to read other responses.

 

[indietalk]

How about, give composers the film when it is picture locked so there are no different versions to send them?

 

[CelticRambler]

When my film team works with composers ...
... when we send them a new film edit ...
... The director, producers, network all have to give feedback ...

Sounds to me like a lot of people being asked/encouraged to meddle in the affairs of others! Why do the producers and network all have to give feedback at what seems to be quite a late stage in the process? Surely the director would look for/be given a set of guidelines as to style, content and budget at the beginning, before any composer was involved, so what useful feedback on the score can the producer or the network offer when the film has been shot and edited?

And why is the whole team working with the composers? Unless the film includes scenes of musicians actually performing, there's really no reason why anyone other than the director should have any contact with the composer or any musicians. Okay, maybe if things are being done at short notice, or in a very dynamic way, the editor and audio mixer might need some involvement too while the score is evolving, but who else and why?

As @indietalk says, a single locked picture edit would leave the composer with a definite context within which to work. Presumably the director would have earlier given an idea of the musical style that had been cleared with the producer and network, so the composer could have been working on a variety of themes while waiting for the final edit. Some sample scenes might help guide them in their composition, and shorten the time needed later, but until the final cut is ready to be scored, there's really no need for "insane" feedback from anyone - just direction!