Michael Yezerski was a double winner at tonight’s Screen Music Awards, while Benjamin Speed took out Feature Film Score of the Year for The Portable Door.
Yezerski, who was up for three awards this year, walked away with both Best Television Theme and Best Music for Children’s Programming for Netflix’s Ivy + Bean, which he worked on with long-term collaborator and director Elissa Down.
Speed’s score for The Portable Door, which included a full orchestra and choir, as well as his own own recordings, won the night’s major prize in a category that also included Cornel Wilczek and Thomas Rouch for Talk to Me, Chris Wright for The Secret Kingdom and Anna Liebzeit for The Survival of Kindness.
Speaking to IF prior to the awards, the composer he wanted the score to be accessible and speak to the film’s fun and adventure, but also a give sense of strangeness that spoke to its magical elements.
“In my creativity and music, I’m always obsessed with the exact fine balance of order and chaos,” he said.
Held by the APRA AMCOS and the Australian Guild of Screen Composers at Forum Melbourne, the night was hosted by Susie Youssef with co-presenters David Wenham and Remy Hii.
Other winners included Amanda Brown, who took home Best Music for a Television Series or Serial for her work on Prime Video’s Deadloch, while Mark Bradshaw won a Screen Music Award for the first time for his score for The Clearing, taking home Best Music for a Mini-Series or Telemovie.
Nigel Westlake won Best Soundtrack Album for Blueback, recognising his work with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra.
Damien Lane and Jodi Phillis won Best Original Song Composed for the Screen for Rollercoaster from ABC series Soundtrack to Our Teenage Zombie Apocalypse. The series follows the story of four music-obsessed teens on a mission to win the triple j Unearthed High competition, who find themselves trapped in an abandoned building during a zombie apocalypse.
Cezary Skubiszewski took home his tenth Screen Music Award, winning Best Music for a Documentary for Flyways, while James Mountain won his first in Best Music for a Short Film for Mud Crab.
In a testament to the continued global phenomenon that is Bluey, Joff Bush took home Most Performed Screen Composer – Overseas, breaking a 15-year winning streak by composer Neil Sutherland. The DA’s Office’s Adam Gock and Dinesh Wicks won the equivalent award for Australia for the tenth time, for works including MasterChef, Anh’s Brush with Fame, and Beauty and the Geek Australia.
The full list of winners are below:
Feature Film Score of the Year
The Portable Door
Composed by Benjamin Speed
Published by Kobalt Music Publishing
Best Television Theme
Ivy + Bean
Composed by Michael Yezerski
Published by BMG
Best Music for a Television Series or Serial
Deadloch
Composed by Amanda Brown
Published by Universal Music Publishing
Best Music for a Mini-Series or Telemovie
The Clearing
Composed by Mark Bradshaw
Published by Universal Music Publishing
Best Original Song Composed for the Screen
Rollercoaster from Soundtrack to Our Teenage Zombie Apocalypse
Composed by Damien Lane & Jodi Phillis
Published by Kobalt Music Publishing obo Lillipilli IP
Best Music for a Documentary
Flyways
Composed by Cezary Skubiszewski
Best Music for a Short Film
Mud Crab
Composed by James Mountain
Best Soundtrack Album
Blueback
Composed by Nigel Westlake
Best Music for Children’s Programming
Ivy + Bean
Composed by Michael Yezerski
Published by BMG
Best Music for an Advertisement
Samsung Galaxy Earbuds
Composed by Lance Gurisik
Published by Massive Publishing
Most Performed Screen Composer – Australia*
Composers: Adam Gock & Dinesh Wicks
For: MasterChef, Anh’s Brush with Fame, Beauty and the Geek Australia
Most Performed Screen Composer – Overseas*
Composer: Joff Bush
For: Bluey
*Most Performed categories are determined by statistical analysis.