Dara! Massive congratulations on being one of the few women composers for Marvel and scoring their most recent mini-series, Ironheart! How is your creative process for such a hybrid score that truly combines orchestra with electronics? Where do you find yourself beginning with the compositions and how do they evolve?

Thanks! I’m still very much like “whaaattttt???” —  it’s very surreal to be in the MCU. I had a blast using synths more prevalently than I typically do in scores. We really wanted to tap into the cheeky, techy side of RiRi but still give her a big epic landscape to ensure she’s given the importance she deserves. After I stare at a blank session and scream for a little bit, I go back to my thematic suite I wrote to see what to interpolate from there. One of my favorite things about scoring television is not just about finding fun ways to use the major themes, but ways to pick out little bits of counter melodies and turn them into recurring motifs. For RiRi that was taking the counterline in her main theme and using it as her “winning” motif, whether she’s winning my force or by wit. For Mephisto, since we don’t actually see him on screen until episode 6, it was hinting at bits of his theme whenever we saw Parker’s hood and at mentions of magic.

Another recent release of yours is Netflix’s Straw, which has a completely different sound! It is way more intimate and sentimental. We know you are a chameleon in handling all these different genres, but what kind of music brings you the most joy and fulfillment to write – either for you as an artist or for you as a media composer – and why?

I think each genre brings out a different side of me in a James McAvoy ‘Split’ kind of way, whether that’s a fun groove, intricate folksy figures, languid emotional phrases, or cheeky synths. It might sound corny, but it’s really my collaborators that bring me the most joy, so if I had a truly great time on the project like I did on Ironheart, then it becomes one of my favorites. What I watch the most are comedies of any type – dark, horror, buddy, etc. – so those always feel like home when I work on them. I also love a heist, and have a blast whenever there’s a heist scene in a film. That said, Straw was a fun departure from all of that because there were no jokes and it was more about sitting in one emotion at a time, so I got to do things like write in longer phrases. I also enjoyed using different brass textures, like flugelhorns, than I would in a comedy or action score.

Having been in Chris Lennertz’s music team and now having your own music team, what are the things that you feel like you’ve brought to your own work from your experience at Sonic Fuel Studios and what are the things that you are consciously choosing to do differently?

One of the most beautiful things about working on Chris’s Team was the team itself. He always kept company with incredibly talented and most importantly incredibly kind people and I have vowed to do the same. Many members of his team (orchestrators, engineers, copyists) have graciously come along on my journey too and I couldn’t be happier they have. There are some new processes I created while on his team that I wanted to bring to mine, especially in terms of file and time management in hopes to benefit everyone. One of them being, whenever possible, to send the largest cues I can to my orchestration team first, one so they can see a lot of the idioms and motifs of the score at once as they tend to converge in larger cues, and so they feel that they don’t have to rush through the most important material at the end of the process. I also do more remotely than at Sonic Fuel, but that’s more a byproduct of the pandemic and living all the way out in Thousand Oaks.

One of the milestones of your career was scoring The Tender Bar for Amazon Studios, directed by Academy Award-winning filmmaker George Clooney. In what ways working with such a prolific actor as your director was different from your other director/composer collaborations?

The best thing is that it was no different. He was just as present and collaborative as anyone else and I appreciated that. The experience definitely also helped me get over my proverbial “stage fright” when faced with prolific collaborators. Once you’ve worked with George Clooney, it’s a little easier to not be afraid of the next person you meet. I do consider that job a huge milestone both in terms of title recognition and personal development. There are certain projects where you leave feeling a little differently as a collaborator and person than when you started. Another project like that for me was The Noel Diary, directed by the legendary Charles Shyer. We had such a wonderful working relationship and his prolific experience allowed him to instill real trust in me and my process and that’s something I’ll always remember and take with me.

You are a Governor of the Recording Academy’s LA Chapter, as well as a member of the Alliance of Women Film Composers, Composers Diversity Collective, Society of Composers and Lyricists, Television Academy, and Women in Media. What does community mean to you and how do you balance socializing and work in your busy schedule?

I don’t sleep as much as medically recommended. I can certainly be shy when meeting new people, but once I feel part of a community I really enjoy being around my peers and I get energy from it. I think it’s important to be an active part of your community and have friends you can both commiserate with and celebrate each other’s wins because there’s no one else who will understand the ups and downs of this job quite like your peers. I also enjoy being on any mentorship committee whether it’s the SCL’s Early Career Committee, being part of Grammy Camp’s Lunch and Learn, or the AWFC’s mentorship program. Mentorship was just an integral part of my journey and I try to pay it forward whenever possible. 

Looking back on your journey, is there a particular piece of advice or quote that you think significantly shifted your perspective and therefore the course of your life?

The music editor Chris Brooks is the one who taught me how to make a good recording order. Other than that it’s really hard for me to pinpoint specific advice I’ve been told even though there’s been plenty. I think I just hear things, internalize them, and immediately forget the exact wording. However, one such internalized thing I always try my best to do (to varying levels of success) is to just worry about my own career. The industry will always try to put you in these little races with your contemporaries, especially if you check some of the same boxes of intersectionality, but try your best to make that the industry’s problem – not yours. Just try to make each year a little better than the last. That doesn’t always have to mean getting more projects and money since it’s a volatile industry, but it can mean putting out your own album, strengthening a skill, or making a new meaningful connection. It’s a long ride and almost 12 years in, I still feel like I’m at the beginning of it, so try to truly enjoy every stage you reach.

Interview by Esin Aydingoz

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