PREMIUM COURSE

Intro to Scoring for Film & TV

Learn how to write, orchestrate, and produce cues for TV, films, and other media, and start building a professional portfolio.

Learn on Your Schedule.
Learn from anywhere, anytime, at your own pace.

Go Deep.
Get unlimited access to countless high-quality lessons.

Challenge Yourself.
Take on practice activities & exercises to help you improve.

Get Help & Feedback.
Join our Discord community where you can get support 24/7.

Eerie violins, rolling timpani, ethereal tones, epic fanfares, haunting melodies... the music in films and TV shows plays a massive role in how we experience those stories, heightening our emotions and deepening the impact.  

In this expansive course, we're going to walk you through everything you need to know to start scoring to picture, from how to compose your first demo to how to navigate the industry. This course features interviews with some amazing film scorers working in Hollywood and in independent film and media today, including Amanda Jones (Black Lady Sketch Show), Sherri Chung (Riverdale, Kung Fu), Gary Yershon (Mr. Turner, Peterloo), Ian Hultquist and Drum & Lace (Dickinson), and Andrew Orkin (Save Yourselves!, The Next Thing You Eat).

Plus, you'll learn to analyze groundbreaking music cues from dozens of films, like Arrival, Dunkirk, Chernobyl, Psycho, and more. And you'll get first-hand experience honing your compositional chops by writing leitmotifs to character descriptions, creating a musical "lookbook" for some fictional film projects, and writing full cues, using reference tracks and cue sheets, to scenes from real films and video projects that you can include in your own demo reel.

By the end of this course, you'll have the knowledge, wherewithal, and skills to start building your own portfolio, as well as clear next steps for how to go out and tackle your first job in the industry. Are you ready to get writing?


Soundfly Team

An In-House Production

When we create a course in-house, we draw on the expertise of our team as well as pulling in a variety of experts and professional musicians to help illustrate and illuminate the topics you're interested in learning.

More About Soundfly Team
Less About Soundfly Team
composing
music business
sync licensing
sound design
history of film music
ad music
orchestration
scoring for picture
tv scoring
film scoring

Subscribe Now for Unlimited Access

Take this course for as low as $12/month with a Soundfly subscription, and get access to all the creative courses we offer, and much more. Cancel anytime.

Want to work on this course with 1-on-1 support from an expert mentor? Request a mentor through our
custom mentorship program here.

Watch the Trailer

If you've ever wanted to score a film, TV show, ad, or video, but didn't know where to start, this is the course for you. Learn from a variety of professionals from across the industry about how you can support storytelling with music and give audiences an experience they'll never forget.

Bring Stories to Life With Music

Get started with the basics of scoring for picture, from the history and the processes to the music and the methods.

Learn the Foundations

Understand how music functions logistically and narratively in film, TV, and other media.

Marry Music With Narrative

Use theme, leitmotif, and other techniques to support a story.

Discover the Many Paths of Scoring

Hear from a variety of experts on how to launch and build your career in scoring.

Build Your Portfolio

Take advantage of sample videos, prompts, and other exercises to gain experience and start building your own portfolio.

WHAT STUDENTS SAY

Course Outline

  1. Preview
    Section 1

    Introduction

  2. Section 2

    Film Scoring Basics

  3. Section 3

    Supporting a Narrative

  4. Section 4

    Starting to Compose

  5. Section 5

    Working in the DAW

  6. Section 6

    Common Cues & Genres

  7. Section 7

    Finding Opportunities

  8. Section 8

    Conclusion

MORE INFORMATION

Who is this course for?

This course is for anyone interested in scoring for film, TV, or other media. 

As an intro course, this course will be particularly useful for people just starting out in composing, anyone looking for more experience with scoring projects, and musicians interested in transitioning into scoring, who want to understand the field in more detail. 

What will I learn in this course?

You will learn: 

  • The history and foundations of scoring
  • How it normally works and various approaches to writing to picture
  • The roles music can play in media
  • Narrative tools such as theme, leitmotif, etc.
  • How to set up and execute projects in the DAW
  • Various common cue types and how to approach them
  • An overview of various pathways to scoring professionally

By the end of the course, you will have started building your own portfolio and a have plan for how to enter the industry. 

Are there any pre-reqs?

This course does not have pre-reqs, but there is a whole section on working in the DAW (production software) and we will talk about music theory a little bit — both of which are fairly important skills for scorers today. If you're new to working in the DAW, consider our course on making music in Logic Pro X.

Who is the instructor?

This course was developed by a number of different people on the Soundfly Team and professionals who contributed lessons, insights, and assets. It includes interviews with professional scorers working on major shows and films today, including Amanda Jones, Sherri Chung, Gary Yershon, Andrew Orkin, Ian Hultquist, and Drum & Lace (Sofia Hultquist).

How long does this course take?

This course was designed for you to take entirely at your own pace. If you want to watch and read all the content from start to finish, you could probably finish it in a couple hours; taking a more active approach and utilizing the various exercises and challenge prompts, you could probably spend a month or two working through it. 

You're also welcome to just skip around to the lessons and sections most relevant to you and your music.  

Is there a specific start date?

You can start the course anytime. If you'd like more accountability and guided feedback from a professional, you can request to work through the course and reach your own musical goals with a Soundfly Mentor for four or six weeks.

Learn more about custom mentorship here.

How many lessons are there?

This course includes 59 lessons, including videos, graphics, text, activities, demos, creative prompts, downloadable tracks, stems, and much more. 

What is your refund policy?

Our mission is to support musicians, not to rip anyone off. If you realize after subscribing that it's not what you wanted, email us as soon as you can with your reason for cancelling. Our policy is to issue refunds within two weeks of a purchase, for either a monthly or annual subscription, if the courses didn't meet your expectations.

Note that we cannot offer refunds on monthly subscription payments beyond a single month of payment because of the residuals we pay out to our instructors and artists.

What do I get if I enroll as a subscriber?

As a subscriber, you'll get unlimited access to all courses on Soundfly.com, including this and all our other premium courses, to go through at your own pace. This includes all the videos, tutorials, demos, quizzes, activities, downloads, and other materials within our full suite of courses.

You're also entitled to a 25% discount on our custom mentorship program, you will be invited to join our exclusive community Discord group, you'll be able join subscriber-only Study Groups, artist Q&As and workshops, annual contests and giveaways, and you'll have access to a growing list of exclusive discount perks courtesy of our partner brands. Cancel anytime.

You can find out more about subscribing here.

Can I take this course with a mentor?

Yes, absolutely. If you would like to go through the course with support, accountability, feedback, and guidance from an expert, you can request a mentor by filling out this form. A Soundfly team member will reach out within 48 hours to learn more about your goals, your music, and your skill level, and pair you with a mentor who can help you achieve your next musical milestone. Our mentorship program is based on a science-backed learning model designed to help you learn more efficiently and effectively. Your mentor will tailor the course to your experience and interests, offer detailed weekly feedback on your work, answer any questions you have, help you blow past obstacles, and keep you on track to accomplish your goals.

You can find out more about mentorship and our expert mentors here.