SOCAN and the SCGC (Screen Composers Guild of Canada) co-sponsored the 2019 Vancouver International Film Festival (VIFF) AMP Summit launch party and industry mixer on Oct. 3, 2019, at the Colony bar in Vancouver.
Conference delegates, local industry representatives, and members of both SOCAN and the SCGC attended. Among the notables present were Valerie Biggin (music supervisor, The Song Rep), Red Heartbreaker (SOCAN screen composer member), Jessica Hoefsloot (Tonic Records), Tonya Dedrick (SCGC), Kristina Lao (Nimbus), Tony Scudellari (Sony Pictures Television), Rob Calder (Secret Study), Patrick Zulinov (Hyvetown), Jimmy Leitch (Music BC), Ed Henderson (SOCAN Board of Directors, SCGC), PIOTR (SOCAN member), Adrian Ellis (SOCAN member and SCGC First Vice President), Michael Averill (SOCAN member), Chin Injeti (SOCAN member), Ari Wise (Core Music Agency), and Matthew Safran (Core Music Agency).
Attending for SOCAN were CEO Eric Baptiste; Director, A&R, Rodney Murphy; Account Executive, Radio, Coralie Hummel; and Team Lead, Member Accounts, Sara Pavilionis.
On Oct. 4, Baptiste participated in a Summit panel, “Where is the Money? Global Rights and the Way Income is Improving for Creatives.” He discussed how it’s the creative side of music that supports the business side; how SOCAN is working hard to improve the fortunes of our members; and and how the Music Modernization Act in the U.S., and other rights-management victories around the world, could benefit songwriters, artists, and music publishers.
Left to right: Red Heartbreaker, Wendy Melvoin, Lisa Coleman, Starr Parodi
The “Composers Creating Change” panel was a highlight of the Summit, moderated by SOCAN member screen composer Red Heartbreaker, and featuring Starr Parodi (President, Alliance of Woman Film Composers), and Wendy Melvoin and Lisa Coleman (composers, Wendy & Lisa). They talked about the gender gap in the screen music industry, taking leaps of faith, and leaving the rubber on the road. The entire theatre was inspired by this powerful conversation.
Other VIFF AMP highlights included “Reel Voices – Behind the Music in Red Snow,” an in-depth look at music in Indigenous filmmaking; “A Closer Examination: The Music of The Good Doctor,” in which the producers, composer, and music supervisor of the popular show explored their work in music and TV; and “A Bad Rap: The Current State of Hip Hop on Screen,” a thorough discussion of rap’s rise to popularity in film and TV.