In the history of the Academy Awards, only eight women have been nominated for composing. The first woman to take home an Oscar for Best Original Score was prolific, yet criminally underappreciated, Rachel Portman. Portman’s name may not be as recognizable as saying Hans Zimmer or John Williams, but her work surely speaks for itself. Taking on a range of tones and genres, Portman has collaborated closely with exceptional filmmakers like Jonathan Demme and Lynne Ramsay. Her style may be rather diverse and hard to define, but one thing is for sure — she is one of the most talented composers in the industry.
Watch Now: It’s your last chance to catch the Rachel Portman-scored Mona Lisa Smile on Fandor before it expires on October 31, 2018.
Around here the only thing we love more than music is the movies. So come with us as we celebrate some of our favorite film composers in our Score Auteur series, which features Hans Zimmer, Trent Reznor, Nick Cave, and Jóhann Jóannsson. Then follow that up with our videos on How Radiohead is used in the movies, “The Art of the Needle Drop” and “Romance in the Record Store.”
