Benjamin Wallfisch
Benjamin Mark Lasker Wallfisch (born 7 August 1979) is a British composer, conductor, orchestrator, and record producer, known for his work on film scores. He has contributed to over 50 feature films since the mid-2000s, including notable works like Blade Runner 2049, Shazam!, It, It Chapter Two, The Invisible Man, Hidden Figures, A Cure for Wellness and The Flash.
Benjamin Wallfisch | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Benjamin Mark Lasker Wallfisch |
| Born | 7 August 1979 London, England, U.K. |
| Genres | Film score |
| Occupation(s) | |
| Instrument(s) | |
| Years active | 2003–present |
| Website | benjaminwallfisch |
His work has earned recognition including a joint nomination with Pharrell Williams and Hans Zimmer for Best Original Score at the 74th Golden Globe Awards for Hidden Figures, as well as nominations for the BAFTA Award for Best Film Music and the Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media for Blade Runner 2049. In 2020, Wallfisch was nominated for Film Composer of the Year for the second consecutive year at the World Soundtrack Awards.[1]
Wallfisch's film compositions have contributed to movies with a combined worldwide box office revenue of over $2.5 billion.[2] In 2019, Variety acknowledged his achievements by including him in their Billion Dollar Composer series.[3]
Early life and family
Benjamin Mark Lasker Wallfisch was born on 7 August 1979 in London, England, to Elizabeth Wallfisch (née Hunt), an Australian Baroque violinist, and Raphael Wallfisch, a British cellist. He is the eldest of their three children. His paternal grandparents are pianist Peter Wallfisch and cellist Anita Lasker-Wallfisch, the latter of which was a member of the Women's Orchestra of Auschwitz. They were Jewish emigrants from the city of Breslau, Poland (now Wrocław). His great-grandfather was conductor Albert Coates.
Career
Wallfisch has been nominated for multiple awards, including a Golden Globe Award, a BAFTA Award, two Grammy Awards, and two Emmy Awards. He composed Andy Muschietti's It, It Chapter Two, and The Flash, David F. Sandberg's Shazam!, Leigh Whannell's The Invisible Man, co-composed Denis Villeneuve's Blade Runner 2049 with Hans Zimmer, and wrote the score for Simon McQuoid's Mortal Kombat for New Line Cinema and Warner Bros.[4][5]
Other projects include Neil Marshall's Hellboy, Academy Award Best Picture nominee Ted Melfi's Hidden Figures (in collaboration with Pharrell Williams and Hans Zimmer), and David F. Sandberg's Annabelle: Creation. He contributed music based on Elgar's "Enigma' Variations" for Christopher Nolan's Dunkirk. [6]
Wallfisch has also scored Gore Verbinski's A Cure for Wellness, the Steven Spielberg produced short film Auschwitz, directed by James Moll, James Marsh's King of Thieves, and Steven Knight's Serenity.
Wallfisch has released 25 albums and has performed over 100 live concerts worldwide, leading orchestras such as the London Philharmonic, Philharmonia, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra and the Sydney Symphony at venues including the Hollywood Bowl, Sydney Opera House and Royal Festival Hall. He has collaborated, recorded, and performed his music with artists including Lang Lang, Herbie Hancock and Yuja Wang.
He has collaborated with Pharrell Williams three times, including a live performance at the 2015 Grammy Awards, and he arranged Adele's 2017 Grammy Awards performance of George Michael's "Fastlove".
Wallfisch has been a member of the BAFTA Academy since 2009, was appointed an Associate of the Royal Academy of Music in 2014, and was invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 2017.[7]
Personal life
Wallfisch resides in Los Angeles, California, with his wife and daughter.
Discography
As primary score composer
| Year | Title | Director(s) | Studio(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Dear Wendy | Thomas Vinterberg | Lucky Punch Nimbus Film Productions Zentropa Entertainments TV2 Danmark Zentropa International Köln |
Nominated – Robert Award for Best Score |
| 2008 | The Escapist | Rupert Wyatt | Picture Farm Parallel Film Productions Vertigo Films |
— |
| 2009 | In Search of the Messiah | Tim Meara | Meara Films | Documentary film |
| 2012 | Fetih 1453 | Faruk Aksoy | Aksoy Film Medyapim |
— |
| 2013 | Hours | Eric Heisserer | The Safran Company PalmStar Media Hours Capital |
As composer and conductor |
| Hammer of the Gods | Farren Blackburn | Vertigo Films Magnolia Pictures |
Nominated – Hollywood Music in Media Award for Best Original Song | |
| Summer in February | Christopher Menaul | CrossDay Productions Ltd. Apart Films Marwood Pictures |
Hollywood Music in Media Award for Best Original Score | |
| 2014 | Desert Dancer | Richard Raymond | CrossDay Productions Ltd. Head Gear Films Lipsync Productions |
— |
| Bhopal: A Prayer for Rain | Ravi Kumar | Rising Star Entertainment Wardour Media Group Sahara One Motion Pictures |
— | |
| 2015 | Auschwitz | James Moll | Allentown Productions | Documentary film |
| A Flickering Truth | Pietra Brettkelly | PBK Limited Umbrella Entertainment | ||
| Gamba | Tomohiro Kawamura Yoshihiro Komori |
Arad Productions Grindstone Pictures Shirogumi |
— | |
| Pressure | Ron Scalpello | Pinewood Pictures Vertical Entertainment |
— | |
| Within | Phil Claydon | The Safran Company New Line Cinema Warner Bros. |
— | |
| 2016 | Lights Out | David F. Sandberg | New Line Cinema RatPac-Dune Entertainment Grey Matter Productions Atomic Monster |
First collaboration with David F. Sandberg, as composer and conductor |
| Mully | Scott Haze | Bardis Productions Sterling Light Productions |
Documentary film | |
| Hidden Figures | Theodore Melfi | Fox 2000 Pictures Levantine Films Chernin Entertainment |
Composed with Hans Zimmer and Pharrell Williams Nominated – Black Reel Award for Outstanding Original Score Nominated – Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score Nominated – Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media. Orchestra conducted by Timothy Williams First collaboration with Theodore Melfi | |
| A Cure for Wellness | Gore Verbinski | 20th Century Fox Regency Enterprises New Regency Productions Blind Wink Productions |
Orchestra Conducted by Gavin Greenaway | |
| 2017 | Bitter Harvest | George Mendeluk | Devil's Harvest Productions Roadside Attractions D Films |
As composer and conductor |
| Annabelle: Creation | David F. Sandberg | New Line Cinema Warner Bros. Pictures Atomic Monster Grey Matter Productions |
Second collaboration With David F. Sandberg, orchestra conducted by Timothy Williams | |
| It | Andy Muschietti | New Line Cinema Warner Bros. Pictures Vertigo Entertainment |
First collaboration with Andy Muschietti | |
| Blade Runner 2049 | Denis Villeneuve | Warner Bros. Pictures Columbia Pictures Alcon Entertainment Scott Free Productions |
Composed with Hans Zimmer Replaced Jóhann Jóhannsson Themes by Vangelis Nominated – BAFTA Award for Best Film Music Nominated – Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Score Nominated – Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media Nominated – Hollywood Music in Media Award for Best Original Score in a Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Horror Film | |
| 2018 | The Darkest Minds | Jennifer Yuh Nelson | 20th Century Fox 21 Laps Entertainment |
Orchestra conducted by Timothy Williams & Benjamin Wallfisch |
| King of Thieves | James Marsh | Working Title Films StudioCanal UK |
Orchestra conducted by Chris Egan | |
| The Vanishing | Kristoffer Nyholm | Cross Creek Pictures Saban Entertainment Lionsgate Films |
— | |
| 2019 | Serenity | Steven Knight | IM Global | Additional music by Antonio Andrade, orchestra conducted by Geoff Alexander |
| Shazam! | David F. Sandberg | DC Films New Line Cinema Warner Bros. Pictures The Safran Company |
Third collaboration with David F. Sandberg.[8] Orchestra Conducted by Chris Egan & Benjamin Wallfisch | |
| Hellboy | Neil Marshall | Millennium Films Dark Horse Entertainment |
Additional music by Antonio Andrade, Jared Fly & Alex Lu. Orchestra conducted by Chris Egan and performed by The Chamber Orchestra of London | |
| It Chapter Two | Andy Muschietti | New Line Cinema Warner Bros. Pictures Vertigo Entertainment |
Second collaboration with Andy Muschietti | |
| 2020 | The Invisible Man | Leigh Whannell | Universal Pictures Blumhouse |
Orchestra conducted by Chris Egan, performed by The Chamber Orchestra of London Hollywood Music in Media Award for Best Original Score in a Horror Film |
| 2021 | Mortal Kombat | Simon McQuoid | Warner Bros. Pictures New Line Cinema Atomic Monster Broken Road Productions |
— |
| The Starling | Theodore Melfi | Netflix Limelight Entertainment One Boies/Schiller Film Group |
Second collaboration with Theodore Melfi | |
| 2022 | Thirteen Lives | Ron Howard | United Artists Releasing Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Universal Pictures Bron Creative Imagine Entertainment |
— |
| 2023 | The Flash | Andy Muschietti | Warner Bros. Pictures DC Studios The Disco Factory Double Dream |
Third collaboration with Andy Muschietti. As composer, producer and conductor. |
| 2024 | Twisters | Lee Isaac Chung | Universal Pictures Warner Bros. Pictures Amblin Entertainment The Kennedy/Marshall Company |
— |
| Alien: Romulus | Fede Álvarez | 20th Century Studios Scott Free Productions Brandywine Productions |
— | |
| Kraven the Hunter | J. C. Chandor | Columbia Pictures Marvel Entertainment Arad Productions Matt Tolmach Productions |
— |
As composer of additional music
| Year | Title | Director(s) | Composer(s) | Studio(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Moon | Duncan Jones | Clint Mansell | Stage 6 Films Limelight Pictures Sony Pictures Classics |
— |
| 2013 | 12 Years a Slave | Steve McQueen | Hans Zimmer | Summit Entertainment Regency Enterprises Film4 Productions Fox Searchlight Pictures |
— |
| 2015 | The Little Prince | Mark Osborne | Hans Zimmer Richard Harvey |
ON Animation Studios M6 Films Netflix |
— |
| 2016 | Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice | Zack Snyder | Hans Zimmer Junkie XL |
DC Entertainment RatPac-Dune Entertainment Cruel and Unusual Films Warner Bros. Pictures |
— |
| 2017 | Dunkirk | Christopher Nolan | Hans Zimmer | Syncopy Inc. Warner Bros. Pictures |
Composed the "Nimrod" variation, based on the theme by Edward Elgar |
Television
| Year | Title | Network(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Breaking the Mould | BBC One | Television film |
| 2013 | The Thirteenth Tale | BBC Two | |
| 2014 | The Crimson Field | BBC One | 6 episodes |
| 2015 | The Enfield Haunting | Sky Witness | 3 episodes |
| 2019 | Hostile Planet | National Geographic |
Theatre
| Year | Title | Director(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Peter Pan | Ben Harrison | London / San Francisco |
References
- "Film Composer of the Year". Archived from the original on 25 December 2019. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
- "Benjamin Wallfisch | IMDbPro". pro.imdb.com. Retrieved 19 February 2024.
- Composer Benjamin Wallfisch Scores High in Versatility With 'Hellboy,' 'Hostile,' 'Shazam!'
- Fischer, Tyler. "Mortal Kombat Reboot Award-Winning Composer Revealed". Comic Book. Archived from the original on 22 January 2020. Retrieved 22 January 2020.
- "'Mortal Kombat's Composer Began the Score Before Getting Hired — And Yes, It Includes the Iconic Theme". Collider. 6 March 2021. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
- Ryzik, Melena (26 July 2017). "Ticking Watch. Boat Engine. Slowness. The Secrets of the 'Dunkirk' Score". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 27 July 2017.
- "Benjamin Wallfisch". IMDb. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
- "Benjamin Wallfisch to Score David F. Sandberg's 'Shazam!' | Film Music Reporter". Retrieved 17 January 2019.