Steven Price (born 22 April 1977) is a British film composer, best known for scoring ''
Gravity
In physics, gravity () is a fundamental interaction which causes mutual attraction between all things with mass or energy. Gravity is, by far, the weakest of the four fundamental interactions, approximately 1038 times weaker than the stro ...
'', which won him the
Academy Award for Best Original Score
The Academy Award for Best Original Score is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) to the best substantial body of music in the form of dramatic underscoring written specifically for the film by t ...
.
Before making his debut as a composer with ''
Attack the Block
''Attack the Block'' is a 2011 British science fiction comedy horror film written and directed by Joe Cornish and starring John Boyega, Jodie Whittaker and Nick Frost. It was the film debut of Cornish, Boyega and composer Steven Price.
The f ...
'', he worked on the music department for various notable films, such as ''
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers'', ''
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King'', ''
Batman Begins
''Batman Begins'' is a 2005 superhero film directed by Christopher Nolan and written by Nolan and David S. Goyer. The film is based on the DC Comics character Batman, it stars Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne / Batman, with Michael Caine, Liam ...
'', and ''
Scott Pilgrim vs. the World''.
Life and career
Price's passion for music began early: a guitarist from the age of five, he went on to achieve a First Class degree in Music from
Emmanuel College, Cambridge
Emmanuel College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1584 by Sir Walter Mildmay, Chancellor of the Exchequer to Elizabeth I. The site on which the college sits was once a priory for Dominican mon ...
. Following graduation, he went to work in the
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
studio of
Gang of Four
The Gang of Four () was a Maoist political faction composed of four Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials. They came to prominence during the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976) and were later charged with a series of treasonous crimes. The gang ...
guitarist/producer
Andy Gill
Andrew James Dalrymple Gill (1 January 1956 – 1 February 2020) was a British musician and record producer. He was the lead guitarist for the rock band Gang of Four, which he co-founded in 1976. Gill was known for his angular, jagged style of gu ...
, for whom he would program, contribute string arrangements, and play on albums alongside artists such as
Michael Hutchence
Michael Kelland John Hutchence (22 January 1960 – 22 November 1997) was an Australian musician, singer-songwriter and actor. Hutchence co-founded the rock band INXS, which sold over 75 million records worldwide and was inducted into th ...
and
Bono
Paul David Hewson (born 10 May 1960), known by his stage name Bono (), is an Irish singer-songwriter, activist, and philanthropist. He is the lead vocalist and primary lyricist of the rock band U2.
Born and raised in Dublin, he attended M ...
.
Price went on to work as a programmer, arranger, and performer with film music composer
Trevor Jones. He provided additional music for projects such as
Roger Donaldson
Roger Lindsey Donaldson (born 15 November 1945) is an Australian-born List of New Zealand film makers, New Zealand film director, producer and writer whose films include the 1981 relationship drama ''Smash Palace'', and a run of titles shot in ...
's ''
Thirteen Days'';
Stephen Norrington
Stephen Norrington (born 1964) is an English filmmaker and special effects artist known for his work in the horror and action genres. Beginning his career as a sculptor and makeup artist, he worked under Dick Smith, Rick Baker, and Stan Winston ...
's ''
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
''The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen'' (''LoEG'') is a comic book series (inspired by the 1960 British film ''The League of Gentlemen'') co-created by writer Alan Moore and artist Kevin O'Neill which began in 1999. The series spans four volum ...
'';
Frank Coraci
Frank Coraci (born February 3, 1966) is an American film director and screenwriter best known for his work with actor Adam Sandler.
Biography
Coraci was born in Shirley, New York. In 1984 he graduated from William Floyd High School, where he ...
's ''
Around the World in 80 Days
''Around the World in Eighty Days'' (french: link=no, Le tour du monde en quatre-vingts jours) is an adventure novel by the French writer Jules Verne, first published in French in 1872. In the story, Phileas Fogg of London and his newly employe ...
''; the television series ''
Dinotopia
''Dinotopia'' is a series of illustrated fantasy books, created by author and illustrator James Gurney. It is set in the titular Dinotopia, an isolated island inhabited by shipwrecked humans and Sapience, sapient dinosaurs who have learned to H ...
''; and
Tamra Davis
Tamra Davis (born January 22, 1962) is an American film, television and music video director.
Early life
Davis was born the second out of four children in Studio City, California. She was exposed to the media industry at an early age by her gran ...
' ''
Crossroads
Crossroads, crossroad, cross road or similar may refer to:
* Crossroads (junction), where four roads meet
Film and television Films
* ''Crossroads'' (1928 film), a 1928 Japanese film by Teinosuke Kinugasa
* ''Cross Roads'' (film), a 1930 Brit ...
'', on which he was also the featured guitar soloist with the
London Symphony Orchestra
The London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London. Founded in 1904, the LSO is the oldest of London's orchestras, symphony orchestras. The LSO was created by a group of players who left Henry Wood's Queen's ...
.
A recommendation from
Abbey Road Studios
Abbey Road Studios (formerly EMI Recording Studios) is a recording studio at 3 Abbey Road, St John's Wood, City of Westminster, London, England. It was established in November 1931 by the Gramophone Company, a predecessor of British music c ...
brought him to the attention of
Howard Shore
Howard Leslie Shore (born October 18, 1946) is a Canadian composer and conductor noted for his film scores. He has composed the scores for over 80 films, most notably the scores for ''The Lord of the Rings'' and ''The Hobbit'' film trilogies. ...
, leading to Price's work with the composer as
music editor
A music sequencer (or audio sequencer or simply sequencer) is a device or application software that can record, edit, or play back music, by handling note and performance information in several forms, typically CV/Gate, MIDI, or Open Sound Cont ...
on
Peter Jackson
Sir Peter Robert Jackson (born 31 October 1961) is a New Zealand film director, screenwriter and producer. He is best known as the director, writer and producer of the ''Lord of the Rings'' trilogy (2001–2003) and the ''Hobbit'' trilogy ( ...
''
The Lord of the Rings
''The Lord of the Rings'' is an epic high-fantasy novel by English author and scholar J. R. R. Tolkien. Set in Middle-earth, intended to be Earth at some time in the distant past, the story began as a sequel to Tolkien's 1937 children's boo ...
'' film trilogy. His subsequent films as music editor included
Christopher Nolan
Christopher Edward Nolan (born 30 July 1970) is a British-American filmmaker. Known for his lucrative Cinema of the United States, Hollywood blockbusters with complex storytelling, Nolan is considered a leading filmmaker of the 21st century. ...
's ''
Batman Begins
''Batman Begins'' is a 2005 superhero film directed by Christopher Nolan and written by Nolan and David S. Goyer. The film is based on the DC Comics character Batman, it stars Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne / Batman, with Michael Caine, Liam ...
'', for which he shared with his fellow music editors a
Golden Reel Award nomination; and, in his first project with ''
The World's End'' director
Edgar Wright
Edgar Howard Wright (born 18 April 1974) is an English filmmaker. He is known for his fast-paced and kinetic, satirical genre films, which feature extensive utilisation of expressive popular music, Steadicam tracking shots, dolly zooms and a ...
, ''
Scott Pilgrim vs. the World'', on which he also collaborated with the film's composer
Nigel Godrich
Nigel Timothy Godrich (born 28 February 1971) is an English record producer, recording engineer and musician. He is known for his work with the English rock band Radiohead, having produced all their studio albums since '' OK Computer'' (1997). H ...
. Among the other composers that he has worked with and learned from are
Hans Zimmer
Hans Florian Zimmer (; born 12 September 1957) is a German film score composer and music producer. He has won two Academy Awards, Oscars and four Grammy Awards, Grammys, and has been nominated for two Primetime Emmy Awards, Emmys and a Tony Awar ...
,
James Newton Howard
James Newton Howard (born June 9, 1951) is an American film composer, music producer and keyboardist. He has scored over 100 films and is the recipient of a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, and nine nominations for Academy Awards. His film scores ...
,
Harry
Harry may refer to:
TV shows
* ''Harry'' (American TV series), a 1987 American comedy series starring Alan Arkin
* ''Harry'' (British TV series), a 1993 BBC drama that ran for two seasons
* ''Harry'' (talk show), a 2016 American daytime talk show ...
and
Rupert Gregson-Williams,
George Fenton
George Richard Ian Howe (born 19 October 1949), known professionally as George Fenton, is an English composer. Best known for his work writing film scores and music for television, he has received five Academy Award nominations, several Ivor No ...
,
Dario Marianelli
Dario Marianelli (born 21 June 1963) is an Italian composer known for his frequent collaborations with director Joe Wright.
Early life, education
Marianelli was born in Pisa, Italy. He came from a musically inclined family and learned the piano ...
, and
Anne Dudley
Anne Jennifer Dudley (née Beckingham; born 7 May 1956) is an English composer, keyboardist, conductor and pop musician. She was the first BBC Concert Orchestra's Composer in Association in 2001. She has worked in the classical and pop genre ...
.
He has composed music for advertising campaigns in both the U.K. and U.S. After contributing additional music to
Richard Curtis
Richard Whalley Anthony Curtis (born 8 November 1956) is a New Zealand-born British screenwriter, producer and film director. One of Britain's most successful comedy screenwriters, he is known primarily for romantic comedy films, among them '' ...
' ''
Pirate Radio
Pirate radio or a pirate radio station is a radio station that broadcasts without a valid license.
In some cases, radio stations are considered legal where the signal is transmitted, but illegal where the signals are received—especially w ...
'', he composed the original score for
Joe Cornish
Joseph Murray Cornish (born 20 December 1968) is an English comedian and filmmaker. With his long-time comedy partner, Adam Buxton, he forms the comedy duo Adam and Joe. In 2011, Cornish released his directorial debut ''Attack the Block''. He ...
's sleeper success ''
Attack the Block
''Attack the Block'' is a 2011 British science fiction comedy horror film written and directed by Joe Cornish and starring John Boyega, Jodie Whittaker and Nick Frost. It was the film debut of Cornish, Boyega and composer Steven Price.
The f ...
'', winning awards from both the
Austin Film Critics Association
The Austin Film Critics Association (AFCA) is an organization of professional film critics from Austin, Texas.
Each year, the AFCA votes on their end-of-year awards for films released in the same calendar year. A special award, the Austin Film ...
and the
Sitges - Catalan International Film Festival
The Sitges Film Festival ( ca, Festival Internacional de Cinema Fantàstic de Catalunya, links=no) is an annual film festival held in Sitges, Spain, specialized in fantasy and horror films, of which it is considered one of the world's foremost in ...
.
In 2013, Price composed the score for
Alfonso Cuarón
Alfonso Cuarón Orozco ( , ; born 28 November 1961) is a Mexican filmmaker. He is known for directing films in a variety of genres including the family drama ''A Little Princess (1995 film), A Little Princess'' (1995), the romantic drama ''Gre ...
's ''
Gravity
In physics, gravity () is a fundamental interaction which causes mutual attraction between all things with mass or energy. Gravity is, by far, the weakest of the four fundamental interactions, approximately 1038 times weaker than the stro ...
'', for which he won the
Academy Award
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
for Best Original Score.
Discography
Films
Television
Music department
*''
Trojan Eddie
''Trojan Eddie'' is a 1996 British-Irish crime drama film directed by Gillies MacKinnon
Gillies MacKinnon (born 8 January 1948, Glasgow) is a Scottish film director, writer and painter. He attended the Glasgow School of Art where he studie ...
'' (1996)
*''
The Proposition'' (1998)
*''
Doomwatch: Winter Angel'' (1999)
*''
Crossroads
Crossroads, crossroad, cross road or similar may refer to:
* Crossroads (junction), where four roads meet
Film and television Films
* ''Crossroads'' (1928 film), a 1928 Japanese film by Teinosuke Kinugasa
* ''Cross Roads'' (film), a 1930 Brit ...
'' (2002)
*''
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers'' (2002)
*''
A Man Apart
''A Man Apart'' is a 2003 American vigilante action film directed by F. Gary Gray and released by New Line Cinema. The film stars Vin Diesel and Larenz Tate. The story follows undercover DEA agent Sean Vetter who is on a vendetta to take down a m ...
'' (2003)
*''
I'll Be There'' (2003)
*''
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
''The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen'' (''LoEG'') is a comic book series (inspired by the 1960 British film ''The League of Gentlemen'') co-created by writer Alan Moore and artist Kevin O'Neill which began in 1999. The series spans four volum ...
'' (2003)
*''
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King'' (2003)
*''
Belly of the Beast
''Belly of the Beast'' is a 2003 American action film directed by Hong Kong film director Ching Siu-tung in his American directorial debut, and starring Steven Seagal, who also produced. The film co-stars Byron Mann, Monica Lo and Tom Wu. Seagal ...
'' (2003)
*''
Gladiatress
''Gladiatress'' is a 2004 British comedy film, starring Sally Phillips, Fiona Allen and Doon Mackichan. It is partly a spoof of 2000's ''Gladiator (2000 film), Gladiator''.
Plot
Three unlikely heroines Worthaboutapig (Sally Phillips), Dwyfuc ...
'' (2004)
*''
Around the World in 80 Days
''Around the World in Eighty Days'' (french: link=no, Le tour du monde en quatre-vingts jours) is an adventure novel by the French writer Jules Verne, first published in French in 1872. In the story, Phileas Fogg of London and his newly employe ...
'' (2004)
*''
Batman Begins
''Batman Begins'' is a 2005 superhero film directed by Christopher Nolan and written by Nolan and David S. Goyer. The film is based on the DC Comics character Batman, it stars Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne / Batman, with Michael Caine, Liam ...
'' (2005)
*''
Stoned'' (2005)
*''
Opal Dream
''Opal Dream'' (also known as ''Pobby and Dingan'') is a 2006 Australian drama film, based on the 2000 Ben Rice novella '' Pobby and Dingan'', directed by Peter Cattaneo and starring an ensemble cast including Vince Colosimo, Jacqueline McKenzi ...
'' (2006)
*''
Driving Lessons
''Driving Lessons'' is a 2006 British comedy-drama film written and directed by Jeremy Brock. The plot focuses on the relationship between a shy teenaged boy and an ageing eccentric actress.
Plot
Seventeen-year-old Ben Marshall is the sensitive ...
'' (2006)
*''
Perfect Creature
''Perfect Creature'' is a 2007 New Zealand horror/thriller film from 2007, written and directed by Glenn Standring and starring Saffron Burrows and Dougray Scott, set in an alternate universe New Zealand. The New Zealand release date was 18 Oc ...
'' (2006)
*''
After Thomas
''After Thomas'' is a television drama film, first broadcast in the United Kingdom on 26 December 2006, on ITV. It was produced by Beryl Vertue and Elaine Cameron, directed by Simon Shore, and written by Lindsey Hill.
The plot is about the sev ...
'' (2006)
*''
Mr. Bean's Holiday
''Mr. Bean's Holiday'' is a 2007 comedy film directed by Steve Bendelack and written by Hamish McColl and Robin Driscoll, from a story penned by Simon McBurney. Based on the British sitcom series ''Mr. Bean'' created by Rowan Atkinson and Richar ...
'' (2007)
*''
The Last Legion
''The Last Legion'' is a 2007 historical action adventure film directed by Doug Lefler and produced by Dino De Laurentiis. It is based on the 2002 novel of the same name by Valerio Massimo Manfredi. It stars Colin Firth, Ben Kingsley, Aishwarya ...
'' (2007)
*''
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...
'' (2007)
*''
I'm Not There
''I'm Not There'' is a 2007 musical drama film directed by Todd Haynes, and co-written by Haynes and Oren Moverman. It is an unconventional biographical film inspired by the life and music of American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan. Six actors de ...
'' (2007)
*''
Made of Honor
''Made of Honor'' (''Made of Honour'' in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, and Australia) is a 2008 American romantic comedy film directed by Paul Weiland and written by Adam Sztykiel, Deborah Kaplan, and Harry Elfont. The film stars Patrick ...
'' (2008)
*''
Wild Child'' (2008)
*''
The Meerkats'' (2008)
*''
Frequently Asked Questions About Time Travel
''Frequently Asked Questions About Time Travel'' (stylised as ''FAQ About Time Travel'') is a 2009 British comedy science fiction film directed by Gareth Carrivick from a script by Jamie Mathieson, starring Chris O'Dowd, Dean Lennox Kelly, Marc ...
'' (2009)
*''
Pirate Radio
Pirate radio or a pirate radio station is a radio station that broadcasts without a valid license.
In some cases, radio stations are considered legal where the signal is transmitted, but illegal where the signals are received—especially w ...
'' (2009)
*''
Nanny McPhee Returns
''Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang'' (released in the United States and Canada as ''Nanny McPhee Returns'') is a 2010 period fantasy comedy film directed by Susanna White, produced by Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner and Lindsay Doran with music by James Ne ...
'' (2010)
*''
Scott Pilgrim vs. the World'' (2010)
*''
Paul
Paul may refer to:
*Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name)
*Paul (surname), a list of people
People
Christianity
*Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chris ...
'' (2011)
*''
Johnny English Reborn
''Johnny English Reborn'' is a 2011 spy action comedy film directed by Oliver Parker and written by Hamish McColl from a story by William Davies. A sequel to ''Johnny English'' (2003) and the second instalment in the ''Johnny English'' serie ...
'' (2011)
*''
Marley'' (2012)
*''
Baby Driver
''Baby Driver'' is a 2017 action film written and directed by Edgar Wright. It stars Ansel Elgort as a getaway driver seeking freedom from a life of crime with his girlfriend Debora (Lily James). Kevin Spacey, Jon Hamm, Eiza González, Jamie ...
'' (2017)
Awards and honours
In December 2013, the
Dallas–Fort Worth Film Critics Association
The Dallas–Fort Worth Film Critics Association (DFWFCA) is an organization of 31 print, radio/TV and internet journalists from Dallas–Fort Worth-based publications. Current members include Robert Wilonsky and Chris Vognar of ''The Dallas Mo ...
awarded him the
Best Musical Score honor for his work on ''Gravity''.
Accolades
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Price, Steven
1977 births
Alumni of Emmanuel College, Cambridge
Animation composers
Best Original Music BAFTA Award winners
Best Original Music Score Academy Award winners
English film score composers
English male film score composers
English television composers
Male television composers
Living people
People from Nottingham