24102224 SHR5E021P~002 An Exploration of the Structures and Functions of the Film Industry Through the Career and Development of a Film Music Composer

24102224 SHR5E021P~002

Chloe Thomsen

Word Count: 2714

Introduction

For many people, mentioning the ‘film industry’ conjures up ideas of Hollywood, fame, stardom, and exclusivity – seemingly unreachable for ‘normal’ people. However, in reality, the film industry is as abundant and lucrative as any other when it comes to opportunities and career development. This essay will explore the ways in which a film music composer can create and sustain a fruitful career in the film industry, featuring occasional excerpts from my interview with composer Adele Etheridge-Woodson. Notably, in this essay, when phrases ‘film music composer’ and ‘film industry’ are used, I am referring to the whole scope of the career/industry, including productions such as television series, advertising, news broadcasts, plays, etc. First, considering wider elements of the industry itself to do with finance, production, and marketing (on both international and personal levels). Second, going into detail about the importance of the film music composer and their ability to enhance the Director’s vision for the project, alongside having a recognisable compositional ‘style’. Then, exploring the impacts of online marketing in the modern day to do with social media, online presence, and finally, how these elements effect employment opportunities and career development, both on an industry level, and a personal level as an aspiring film music composer myself, discussing future plans and ‘portfolio careers’. Each of these points will construct a debate that argues against the reputation of exclusivity, insecurity, and unattainability that developing a career in the film industry has garnered.

Careers in the Film Industry

When looking to develop a career in the film industry, being knowledgeable of the financing and production costs to do with various projects can be extremely valuable. Because of the high-risk, high reward system that the industry often adopts, most productions (from both independent and major studios) lose money overall with occasional, incredibly profitable blockbusters providing enough income to keep this system sustainable (Simonton, 2009). However, there are significant differences between funding and finances of independent films versus major studio films (Singh & Asthana, 2025). Independent films and major studios source funding differently, with independent studios relying on crowdfunding, private investors, and grants, while major studios rely on corporate funding and merchandising (Singh & Asthana, 2025). Additionally, Singh and Asthana (2025) compare the risk and profits of independent films versus major studios:

Independent Films: Lower budgets reduce financial risk, but securing distribution remains a major challenge. Successful independent films can achieve high returns relative to investment (e.g., Paranormal Activity – $15,000 budget, $193 million revenue).

Major Studios: High-risk, high-reward model due to massive investments. While failures can result in significant losses, hits like Avengers: Endgame ($2.97 billion revenue) demonstrate the potential for extraordinary returns.

Because of the differences in funding, risks, and profits, budgets can vary widely between projects depending on various factors. This affects all areas of the film – including the music. For smaller projects, music budgets range from 5-15% of a film’s total budget (i.e., £1,250 – £3,750 for a film with a budget of £25,000), whereas for larger projects, it could be 1-5% (i.e., £10,000 – £50,000 for a film with a budget of £1 million) (Corpus, 2024). This is important to consider as a film music composer, as the music budget includes your own salary for the project alongside any rehearsal and recording costs. With this information, it becomes clear how a fundamental understanding of film finance is key to creating a sustainable career.

Similarly to film finance, it is also important that composers develop an understanding of contract law and music copyrights to stay on top of project incomes and overall credit. Because of the nature of the film industry, there are multiple ways in which composers may receive payment for their services depending on what contracts they sign regarding their music. Most legally binding agreements for film music composers are ‘work-for-hire’ agreements, where the composer gives the rights away completely to the film production company and earns a flat fee for their work on the film (Brabec & Brabec, 2024). This is especially common for blockbuster films, as it enables the production company to publish, edit, and distribute, (etc.) the music without any legal barriers. Though Woodson, 2026, emphasises the importance of retaining ‘writer’s rights’ (publishing rights), at least for smaller productions (see Appendix 1). If a composer is to retain any copyrights to their work, this must be in writing and agreed upon by both the composer and the production company. Projects where composers often do retain rights include smaller-budget films where an upfront fee may not cover the overall cost of the music. As film composers are usually self-employed, keeping track of ownership and income streams is important, alongside getting fairly compensated for your work. Composers who have limited knowledge about these topics may sign legally binding agreements with unfair terms, leading to low, or in some cases non-existent, pay. This is why knowledge of budgets, contracts, and copyright law can be so valuable.

Another term often laid out in a composer’s contract is the credit due for undergoing a project. This includes the title card during the opening or ending credits of a film. More well-known composers are able to negotiate their credits on albums, in trailers and advertising, and in printed marketing (Brabec & Brabec, 2024). Even for smaller-budget films, this can be a valuable negotiation point in lieu of a large music budget. Though seemingly small, the placement of a title card or name in the credit sequence of a film or poster can have a large effect on exposure and credibility, making it a worthwhile discussion between the composer and producer.

Enhancing the Director’s Vision

Another important factor of being a film music composer is honouring the director’s vision for a project alongside composing in a recognisable, individualistic ‘style’. Many well-known modern film composers have instantly recognisable styles – John Williams, Danny Elfman, Hans Zimmer, and Thomas Newman, to name a few. As is apparent with any creative roles across industries, it is inevitable that a certain style is developed over the course of a film musician’s career. While honing an individual ‘style’ can make composing more efficient, recognisable, and – in some cases – iconic, it is important to honour the director’s vision and ensure that the music “works” alongside the on-screen media. Wierzbicki, 2009 argues that differing approaches to how film music is written or produced by different composers is not a reliable indicator to how much the film music “works”. A balance is to be struck for the composer’s style and the director’s vision to work in tandem. Despite the identifiable elements of individual film composer’s’ styles, most musical scores succeed in honouring the director’s vision, and so “work”. A composer’s style and the director’s vision have the potential to go hand-in-hand, with each one complimenting the other.

Online Marketing and Personal Branding (and Mini Case Study)

One aspect of a film composer’s career that causes a lot of doubt and anxiety is the stability of the job itself. Unlike a 9-5 office job, for example, composers must rely on their own ability to network and advertise to secure the next job. However, there are modern methods that make this much easier. Gehl, 2011 describes personal branding as “the metaphorical expansion of the practices of marketing of branded goods and services into the realm of individual workers, freelancers, and entrepreneurs”. Similarly to that of a business selling physical goods, a ‘personal brand’ is a strategy to market your own freelance service, with the aim to attract clients and earn a stable income (Hearn, 2008). Many composers have strong online presences across many different social media platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube in order to widen their prospective career opportunities and reach a wide audience. Freelancers spanning all areas of the workforce succeed in using social media and the internet to boost the marketing potential of their products and services through a perceived ‘personal brand’ (Gorbatov; Khapova; Lysova; 2019). Having a wide audience also impacts perceived credibility when employers look at a profile, in turn influencing career success as a whole (Adler; Kwon; 2002). Having a website displaying a portfolio alongside a description of the composer themselves also proves to be a common and effective strategy, however due to the more personal and algorithmic natures of social media platforms, a higher chance of career success can be assumed from composers who have strong, active presences on all or most of these platforms (instead of, for example, having only a website and no social media presence). Having a strong online presence can boost a composer’s career opportunities by exposing their work to potential clients, impacting their future job prospects through increased credibility, a strong portfolio, and a wide audience. This is an effective modern marketing strategy, and a means to job stability in a very unpredictable industry landscape.

Having an online presence, however, isn’t a one-time pursuit. Keeping an updated profile and portfolio across all platforms can be the difference between gaining or losing a client. Consistent posting across social platforms not only increases engagement (Adobe Express, 2023; Hutchinson, 2025) – in turn, increasing the chance of a potential employer coming across your work – it also allows your audience to view your most current work and stay up to date with you on a more personal level. As a case study exploring this, I will be looking at the social media presence of London-based composer Adele Etheridge-Woodson. Woodson has gained significant social media popularity over time which has contributed to her gaining employment opportunities of all kinds. Woodson has profiles across Instagram (adelecomposer, n.d.), Facebook (Woodson, n.d.), LinkedIn (Woodson, n.d.), SoundCloud (Woodson, n.d.), Spotify (Woodson, n.d.), and X (adelecomposer, n.d.), alongside having a website showcasing her past projects and personal skills (Woodson, n.d.). Instagram is her main platform, with 15.5 thousand followers. She posts a range of different content, from promotional material (e.g., in October 2023 the composer posted about winning the Horizon Award at the International Sound & Film Music Festival (adelecomposer, 2023)) to popular ‘day in my life’ format videos which have gained widespread popularity over time. Posting a range of different content across platforms allows Woodson to reach a wide audience, including relevant industry figures – potentially contributing to the composer’s success. Additionally, having a range of different content displayed allows her to connect with her audience on a more personal level (which boosts viewer engagement), whilst maintaining a professional personal brand. It is also worth mentioning that Woodson posts consistently and has been active on social media since 2020. Her success has come over years of developing her platform and portfolio. Woodson’s success alone demonstrates that social media is an integral part of growing a career in the current industry climate, and that doing so consistently over an extended period of time can have a significant impact on employment opportunities, furthering the career of a film music composer.

Career Development

Additionally to having a wide social media outreach, composers will often put together a promotional package of newer material to send directly to potential clients to ‘pitch’ for work. Not only are promotional packages seen as more professional in the industry (rather than linking a social media profile), but they are also more efficient for the recipient of the promotional package, as scrolling through someone’s profile takes much more time and effort than simply opening a link to a showreel (see Appendix 2). They can also be an opportunity for the composer to choose their best, most recent pieces of work to showcase their abilities – enabling a more personalised, curated experience for the employer, perhaps leading to more job opportunities down the line. Furthermore, as claimed by Amankwah and Asare (2019), “Effective sales promotional packages are believed to be key in the approach of winning and maintaining customers”. Initially promoting a professional identity and then following up with a relevant, impressive showreel or portfolio in the form of a promotional package makes the composer seem worthy of employment on all levels, putting them in the best position to receive any job that they are pitching for. Promotional packages are important and useful separately to having an online presence, as they appear more professional and give the composer an opportunity to showcase their best up-to-date work, impacting potential employment and career development.

Many composers and industry professionals have ‘portfolio careers’ – multiple streams of income from different projects over a long period of time – while being self-employed. Woodson, 2026 explains that “you can have full-time or part-time work in addition if you want, which is what a lot of us do” (see Appendix 3), especially for composers early in their careers, whilst still developing their connections. A portfolio career includes jobs across sectors, such as music direction, recording, writing, teaching, and community activities (Bartleet & Ballico & Bennet & Bridgstock & Draper & Tomlinson & Harrison, 2019) but is entirely dependent on the individual themselves. As an aspiring film music composer, I consider a ‘portfolio career’ to be a good long-term plan to build connections and get work while developing my career. Teaching and writing library music alongside having a part-time job while I find my footing would be a great start out of university. Woodson, 2026 emphasises the importance of building connections at this stage, explaining how she met composer Chris Benstead at a film festival, whom she later assisted on projects like ‘Young Sherlock’ and ‘The Gentlemen’ (see Appendix 4). A portfolio career is a good opportunity to get to know my way around the industry after graduation, as it can provide multiple possible career avenues. I see this in my long-term plan, alongside developing down the ‘library music’ route.

As an aspiring film composer, the idea of career development is very relevant as I begin pitching and working on smaller local films. Many industry professionals, in my experience, focus on abstract concepts such as “being in the right place at the right time” to secure jobs for the future, and though I do believe that this is partly true, I also believe that “luck favours the prepared mind”. Being prepared is something that is always in our control, in this context meaning: having an online presence, a promotional package, a website, and knowledge of the industry itself. To prepare for my career as a film music composer, I have put together a showreel and website as examples of effective promotional packages and marketing strategies. Given the importance of social media in the modern day, it is impossible to ignore its relevance and career-changing potential, which is why I have also included examples of my own professional social media profiles across different platforms. These examples are also suitable for my prospective career trajectory of slowly building up a portfolio over time. Altogether, the promotional materials that I have created align with the marketing strategies that I discussed previously, overall, positively impacting my own ability to find my footing within the film industry.

Conclusion

In conclusion, this essay argues that through multiple efforts such as online marketing, being knowledgeable about contract law and the industry itself, and having plans for the future of your career, will positively impact your employability over time and demystify the ins-and-outs of having a career in the industry as a film music composer. Woodson, 2026 explains that composing is only 40% of the job (see Appendix 5) – the rest is networking and knowledge (as laid out throughout this essay), which isn’t ever really considered when you ask someone the question – “what is it like to be a film composer?”. In fact, maybe this lack of knowledge is the reason that the industry seems so unattainable in the first place. As stated previously, this essay sets out to disprove inclinations that working in the film industry is exclusive and filled with job insecurity. Look at the ending credits of a film, for example – immediately, hundreds of names of people making a living through the film industry are displayed, each of them with a different career path, and each of them successful. Through combining the skills and plans put forward in this essay, I am confident that my career will develop fruitfully in the modern film industry.

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Appendices

Appendix 1