Tell us about your background, Kelsey!  How did you get into music and what led to composing for you?

I started music in high school. Our school held a demonstration in which they introduced all the instruments we could potentially learn, and I remember feeling particularly drawn to the saxophone. I was fortunate that my parents agreed to allow me to start lessons, and from there I progressed quite quickly through the levels.

As I got more involved in music, I started picking up additional instruments like piano and guitar, sang a bit, and spent a lot of time playing in orchestras, wind bands, jazz bands, and all kinds of ensembles. When it came time to choose a career path, music was really the only option that made sense to me. So I started a Bachelor’s degree in Music at the University of Stellenbosch.

During that degree, I had a fantastic lecturer who taught a short module on film composition. I had always been deeply inspired by film music, but I had this idea that composition was completely out of reach for me, like it was some kind of innate talent that people were just born with and could magically hear in their heads.

That lecturer completely changed my perspective. He broke the process down and showed us that composition is actually a skill, and one that can absolutely be developed with training and practice. That was a huge turning point for me. I switched majors from classical saxophone performance to composition and have never looked back. 

Congratulations on your SAFTA nomination for ‘Kind’ for Best Made for TV Movie! Can you tell us more about the story of the film and your process for your score?

Working on Kind was such a special time in my life. The timeline was definitely tight, but every morning I got to wake up and go work on music, and that’s a privilege I never take for granted. My process on the score started with a long conversation with the director about musical references, what he was thinking when certain scenes were shot, and the emotional inspiration behind specific moments in the film. After that, he sent me a playlist of reference tracks for the major cues.

The story itself is about an elderly couple reconnecting over the Christmas season after sharing a joint, and it’s genuinely hilarious while also being very heartfelt. When I started writing, I would listen to the references and map out the key emotional points I needed to hit in each cue. From there, I would start crafting the “bones” of the piece. Sometimes it began with a chord progression, other times a simple melodic idea, just to get me into the emotional world of the scene. Once that foundation was there, I could build out the rest of the cue around it. It was a really collaborative and enjoyable process!

You’re currently working on the finishing touches to a jazz soundtrack as your next album release! Considering you’re a classically trained saxophonist, what’s it been like working on a jazz score?

I have loved every second of working on this film and album. Exploring jazz harmonies has been absolutely invigorating, and in many ways, it reminded me of the time I spent playing in jazz bands during my university years. I’ve always felt that jazz has so much character and attitude, and it was a lot of fun to lean into that while writing.

At the beginning of the project, I hadn’t really planned on performing the saxophone on the score myself. These days I tend to be a little performance-shy and much more comfortable working “off camera.” But the deeper I got into the project, the more I realised that some of the melody lines really needed the live touch of a saxophone.

When I started recording the parts, I discovered something interesting about how my background influenced the sound. Because I’m classically trained, my saxophone tone is quite clean compared to the more distinctive, stylised tones you often hear from jazz or pop saxophonists. At first, I worried that it might not suit the score, but it actually ended up working really well.

Saxophone and vocals can sometimes compete for space in a mix because they sit in similar frequency ranges. But because my tone is a bit more classical and less gritty, I found there was actually less competition in that range, which helped the music blend more naturally with the vocals. I’m currently finishing the mix for the album and I’m hoping to release it in June.

Of the films you’ve worked on, what are some of the musical challenges you encountered, and how did you solve them?

One challenge I encountered quite early in my career was the concept of musical development across a film. In the beginning, if I were scoring a longer piece of media, I had the instinct to write a completely new cue for every scene. From a time perspective, that’s extremely demanding, but more importantly, it fragments the score. The music can start to lose its impact because there’s no real sense of continuity or development.

My approach shifted fairly quickly after that. Now, when I start a project, one of the first things I do after watching the film and listening to the references is try to find the “centre” of the score. That centre could be a melody, a harmonic language, a particular orchestration style, or even just a specific sonic palette. Once that core identity is established, the rest of the cues can grow naturally out of it. It keeps the music cohesive and helps tremendously from a workflow perspective, since you already have a palette to work from when starting each new cue.

You also were selected for VIFF AMP in 2025! Can you share what it was like for you and what you learned from participating in AMP?

Being selected for VIFF AMP honestly felt a bit like a fever dream. It was such an exciting and invigorating experience, and I cannot recommend it enough to composers considering applying.

The festival itself is fantastic and a great place to connect with filmmakers and other composers. I made some incredible friends there, and it ended up being one of my favourite trips I’ve ever taken. The whole program is also extremely well organised, and the conversations you get to be part of are really special.

One part of the program I particularly enjoyed was the “duets.” They created such an open and thoughtful space for discussion. It was incredibly helpful to hear about the challenges other composers and industry professionals are facing and to realise that many of us deal with similar things, no matter what stage of our careers we’re at. Topics like creative burnout, tying your personal worth to the success of a project, the isolation that can come with long scoring projects, and even practical things like posture and workstation setup all came up in conversation.

It was also amazing to hear from people like Miriam Cutler and The Danna Brothers. Being able to learn from composers at that level while also connecting with peers was incredibly inspiring.

What would a dream project look like for you? Are there certain films or genres you’d love to write for?

A dream project for me would definitely be working on a fantasy or sci-fi romance or drama. I’ve always been drawn to stories that take place in other worlds. They give people a way to connect with very human emotions while exploring completely different landscapes and possibilities. I especially love stories that bring warmth and light into people’s lives.

Projects like that also often create opportunities to work with live orchestra and choir, and the magical, almost transcendent effect of those ensembles is hard to put into words. Musically, I’m most drawn to blending orchestral writing with synth elements. In a way, there are two directions I love working in: orchestral music supported by synth textures, or synth-driven sound worlds that still have orchestral elements woven through them. While I can absolutely write purely orchestral or purely synth cues, I find I do my best work when I can combine the two.

I also have a deep love for Celtic music. I’ve been an Irish dancer for about fourteen years, and that musical tradition is incredibly close to my heart. Whenever I have the opportunity to bring those colours or influences into a score, it feels very personal and meaningful to me.

Interview by Kati Falk-Flores

Edited by Nami Melumad 

Check out Kelsey’s Directory Page here!