Eelke Kleijn's Career in Film and TV Scoring
When we think of the people who score and create soundtracks for movies, composers like Hans Zimmer typically come to mind. Or maybe we imagine an orchestra working together to create sweeping sounds, or video editors carefully selecting popular songs that will pique the interest of movie goers.
Over time there have been numerous instances of electronic musicians getting the opportunity to step into the recording booth and take a shot at a movie soundtrack. Whether it was deadmau5 scoring Ghost in the Shell, or the iconic Daft Punk soundtrack for Tron, DJs and producers have proven their worth in this field time and time again.
For Eelke Kleijn, the foray into film and TV was not something he ever thought would happen. Once it did, though, he found a new passion for it.
“It was the result of my manager asking me early in 2008, ‘What do you want to do 10-15 years from now?'” Eelke Kleijn said during his Gray Area Spotlight interview. “One of my answers was that I wanted to write music for film or TV. I started trying to write tracks that would work for some of these things. My managers started to try and get in touch with Hollywood-based agencies that link the artist and entertainment.”
After working hard to break in, Eelke Kleijn was able to find success initially with commercials, and then with a full-length documentary titled Hollywood Banker. After getting his feet wet, he began to find bigger opportunities, eventually seeing his work make it into the scores of films such as The Hunger Games and Wrath of the Titans.
“Pusher Music heard something in my sound and linked me,” Eelke said. “I got to try some pitches for tracks in film. Around 2010-2011 the first one landed. I spent a lot of time writing records for TV after that. A lot have landed in trailers. It’s something I love to do, although the last few years have been more of a focus on movie trailers when it comes to that world. It’s quite different from the music I write for myself. You have unlimited possibilities on a track for the music side; on a movie pitch you’re trying to fit into a box, though.”
As his profile continued to rise, Eelke had the opportunity to create a score for the new Star Wars series. He ended up coming in second place, yet the opportunity was still awe inspiring for him. To simply have the chance to put his hands on such an iconic melody and score really put into perspective for Eelke how important this type of work is for him. Going forward, Eelke Kleijn is focused on creating more long-format albums, introducing new instruments to his music, and diving deep into film and TV production.
“I've recently taken an interest in the indie dance and indie rock scene; my next album will probably have a bit more crossover to that sound,” he said. “I also want to continue my film and TV ventures although it’s often difficult to divide your time amongst all of them. I'm hoping that my album will appeal to the film industry.”
