Arend Productions

"Rain" by Arend Erasmus (music, edit & sound) I found this video footage inspiring and added some sound to it like it was shot from inside a car in a city. I scored some music to it that has a bit of mystery and danger in it. What story would you create using this as a mood board starting point? #composer #filmscore #moodboard #mystery #danger #piano #strings

I've found that most films I work on capture very deep and real things that the creators of the story have experienced in their lives. Sometimes it heals something in me while I work on the music for a film. During this specific one, I have accepted that it is time to move on from the pain of the past and be free. #composer #filmscore #movingon #story #life

What is a good story without a good ending in the music? This is a sample of what I did for the last moments of the film that reflects a change of perspective/paradigm shift. #composer #filmscore #music #ending #perspective

This was a piece I composed for a scene that is filled with nostalgia and confronting the mistakes of the past. I was aiming mostly at what the reference music was saying for the part I had to score it for, but I made sure it was something that is unique to my style of scoring. #composer #filmscore #filmmusic #music #nostalgia #sad

Subtlety is sometimes required if you want to slowly build up the tension. This is another sneaky scene that required some music to punctuate many of the moments in particular scenes. The way you start and end the cue is important. #composer #filmscore #danger #lurking #stranger #music

I love it when I have the opportunity to create something odd and out of the ordinary. This is one of those cues I composed where I did a lot of experimentation with church bell sounds, experimental vocal samples and some beautiful piano. #composer #filmscore #deep #experimental #music #churchbell #vocals #piano

I just love creating some suspense in film, I usually go for noisy disjointed sound ideas to create the most unexpected sound that not everybody expects. It's important to have it be able to go in any direction and be surprising to create that mystery and suspense. #filmcomposer #suspense #mysterious #filmscore #awry

Sometimes you just need that little bit of music to establish the scene and introduce the story in a way that is simple and beautiful like the scenery in the shot. I composed this in a way where the double bass takes the lead, and the cello and violin sections support that strong voicing. Something a bit out of the ordinary. #composer #filmscore #doublebass #strings #violin #cello #music

Sometimes there are beautiful moments in cinematography that inspires you to create something that really says what the picture is saying. In this case a beautiful scene of a misty morning in West Virginia. I composed this piece of music to communicate the joy of working in a beautiful environment. #composer #filmscore #misty #gentle #strings #airy #westvirginia

The sound of sadness: When I was busy with the intro of the score of Time Alone, I wanted to create the sound of sadness and loss, something that sounds void, within context, two parents are mourning the loss of their child. There is a slightly melancholic hope at the ending that represents the courage to go on with life despite the pain and the emptiness left behind. #composer #filmscore #filmcomposer #timealone #drama #voilins #strings #piano

Guess the genre of film I worked on when creating this music. Also for extra points guess what happened in this scene. #filmcomposer #composer #filmmusic #soundtrack #filmscore

This was a feature film score I was working on a few years ago. One of my favorite pieces in a story about the crimes of apartheid, with an old man haunted by the ghosts of the past.

Experimental re-score of The Division

React video talking about an experimental rescore of The Division Video Game Music. Enjoy watching! #composer #videogames #music #filmscoring #talking

African Ethnic Film Music Score (Part III) by Arend Erasmus

I composed a piece of music for an African film where the history of the German occupation of Namibia in 1888 and the near extinction of the “Ova Himba” tribes is depicted on screen. I wanted to create a piece of music that is African but inspired by a military march. I used some ghostly Tuba instrumentation in the intro, along with some Japanese Taiko drums, which work so well with the African drums. I added some tension with high strings and sound design elements and some textural elements. Read more on my Instagram: https://bit.ly/3dbim0y #ethnicmusic #epic #tribalmusic #african #percussion #composer #mysterious #soundtrack #filmscoring #filmmusic #filmmusiccomposer

African Ethnic Film Music Score (Part II) by Arend Erasmus

While working on a piece of music for a fight scene in a movie between a Namibian "Ova Himba" hunter and a Lion, I wanted to bring out the aggression of the Lion as he retaliates after being thrown with a spear and decides to attack the hunter. I used some interesting sound design elements along with ghostly sounding Tubas to bring you into the atmosphere of the Lion’s den. The percussion then signals the attack and aggression of the scene. The strong sound of Djembe drums conveyed the perfect sound for conflict and elevated aggression. The drum has enough “color” that it produces depending on how hard it is hit. Read more on my Instagram: https://bit.ly/3L7GttE #ethnicmusic #epic #tribalmusic #african #percussion #composer #mysterious #soundtrack #filmscoring #filmmusic #filmmusiccomposer

African Ethnic Film Music Score (Part I) by Arend Erasmus

I worked on an African Film score for a film that was set in Namibia. When I started working on it I immediately decided that I was not going to use a lot of melody driven elements, but I am going to tell the story a bit differently. Using African percussion as the voice that rhythmically tells the story. I used a variation of African instruments like the Djembe and Dundun, but I also added Gran Cassa, Tubas, Ethnic Flutes, String sections and some Electronic elements. Read more on my IG: https://bit.ly/3euzNtm #ethnicmusic #epic #tribalmusic #african #percussion #composer #mysterious #soundtrack #filmscoring #filmmusic #filmmusiccomposer

Dark & Ambient Science Fiction Game Music by Arend Erasmus

When composing sci-fi music for games, I tend to focus a lot on the landscape of the game first to create an atmosphere that brings it to life. In this case I was experimenting with ideas from science fiction movies and other video games. I wanted to create something dramatic and ominous to communicate the arid landscape of a game set on Mars. Playing around with space and powerful drones that lie underneath the ambient elements. I mostly used hybrid sounds and only a little orchestral instruments like bass percussion and some string sections. Read more here: https://bit.ly/3Bks4Hd #composer #scifimusic #gamemusic #dark #dramatic #epicmusic #powerfulmusic #ambient #synthesizers #strings #bassdrum #spacemusic #mars #soundtrack #filmscoring #filmmusic #filmmusiccomposer

Drama Film Music (Part IV) by Arend Erasmus

It is sometimes a hard thing to have some empathy for certain types of "bad guy" characters in films. However, sometimes I make the mistake of feeling pity for a character on screen and write the wrong type of music. Here is a perfect example of something more suitable for another type of scene. Read more about what happened here: https://bit.ly/3cNBqlk #drama #composer #filmscore #filmmusic #soundtrack #empathy #wrongvibe #emotional #doublebass #cello #ethereal

Drama Film Music (Part III) by Arend Erasmus

Creating a successful film music score requires something I call "emotional immersion". This was a piece of music I composed for a drama film, where my aim was to mesmerize the listener with a strange sound that pulls you into the tragic world of a character on screen with dementia. Read more about my process here: https://bit.ly/3q24uJ0 #filmscore #composer #drama #featurefilm #abstract #emotional #immersive #haunting #soundtrack #filmmusic #violin #cello #doublebass

Drama Film Music (Part II) by Arend Erasmus

I love creating music that makes people sit on the edge of their seat, or even be more agitated with a character on screen. This is one of those cases where I had to cater for an incredibly self absorbed and aggressive character. The music displays his intimidating nature and the tension between him and the lead character, as the conversation grows more tense until the lead character is asked to leave with a shotgun pointed at him. Read more about the score creation on Instagram: https://bit.ly/3KAHNF3 #music #composer #featurefilm #drama #filmscore #soundtrack #intimidation #tension