Attracting Musicians

If a filmmaker wanted to attract independent Musicians, those who don't have a wide audience, to contribute their songs towards the soundtrack of an independent film, what is the best way to go about asking them for the use of their songs?

I asked one musician, if I could use one of his songs and he said "by all means." But I felt like it was too easy. I'm not sure a young band will just let me use their song, so I was wondering if there was an approach. There are some local musicians whose songs I do want to use, and I'm trying to figure out how to approach them. One of them has had a couple of her songs appear on major TV shows in Canada. She has a total of 300K views on youtube for her songs. Another dude has a total of 61K views for his songs and I can't tell if he has had any use of his material.

If any musician could enlighten me on how to go about approaching musicians without involving amounts of cash that would be prohibitive, it would be most appreciated.

Thanks
Aveek

It is that easy. As a musician, I want people to hear my stuff. I want people to use songs in movies and I get excited when they ask! Just send them an e-mail, or message on youtube/soundcloud/reverbnation/wherever you find them. Say you like their stuff, send a link to some of your past work if you can.

Again, working on the no-budget indie scale, particularly new bands will be easy to get involved without cash (though if you're both local, go to their shows and buy them a beer, and it will be much appreciated). But it never hurts to ask, and we love to be asked!

I've been the music supervisor on a number of projects. Most indie bands/artists would love to have their track in a film, no matter how small - as long as they get a few copies of the finished project.

I used to find lots of great stuff on MySpace, but they've changed the format and, worst of all, eliminated the detailed search function that really allowed you to drill down. However, there are dozens of indie music sites out there, some just by genre. Just be prepared to spend LOTS of time auditioning tracks.

When I'm wearing my music supervisor hat the song has to grab me in less than 20 seconds. The first is the technical quality of the track; it must sound professionally recorded, or close to it. Next is the "feel" or "groove" of the track; is it close to the temp music? Some sites include the lyrics, so check those out for appropriateness. I don't mean being politically correct, but do the lyrics fit the scene/story/film/etc. Using this method I can vet about 50 tracks an hour, usually finding two (2) or three (3) possibles. When I have a dozen or so I send off emails asking if they would consider having their track used in a film; some say "No" when they find out that the song may be heavily edited, or it's only going to be "background noise" from the radio. I then send a list of links of the positive responses (usually a half dozen or so) to the director and/or producer for their favorite selections and negotiations with the band/artist.

How you approach the contract is up to you; festival usage and renegotiating if you get distribution, or an "all inclusive" contract, or a variation thereof.

Alcove Audio said:

When I'm wearing my music supervisor hat the song has to grab me in less than 20 seconds. The first is the technical quality of the track; it must sound professionally recorded, or close to it. Next is the "feel" or "groove" of the track; is it close to the temp music?

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This is great. I was listening to a song and thinking about my scene. I was thinking, "Well it doesn't go with the scene completely, but I could make it work." After reading your stuff above, I'm thinking that I should just look harder for the music until it grabs me in the scene, not "I could make it work."

When you work as a music supervisor, how do you determine what songs to choose. Do you look at a rough edit first, or do you first start making your decisions based on the script?

How you approach the contract is up to you; festival usage and renegotiating if you get distribution, or an "all inclusive" contract, or a variation thereof.

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Any tips on what the costs are like for an "all inclusive" contract? I'm sure it depends on the band/song/etc. But are there any recommendations you'd have for cost sensitive producers?

Thanks Alcove

Since I am also doing the audio post, and my clients are on a budget, I get a final cut - re-conforming dozens (or more) of audio tracks to a new edit is time consuming and a real PITA. (If it's a long-term feature project I'll look at an early cut to get my bearings and begin writing up my questions list for the director and the editor.)

It can often take a very long time to find the (almost) perfect song, and sometimes you have to settle.

When it comes to "deciding" on songs I search and vet them as I outlined in my previous post. I'm usually looking for something that is similar to the temp music in tempo, groove, mood, instrumentation, etc. If possible - and sometime it's mandatory - the song can be a "Greek Chorus" that comments or "narrates" a bit in the film. (Example - in "Forrest Gump" when he's running cross country the songs, besides being year accurate, were sequence appropriate; the Doobie Brothers "It Keeps You Running" and Jackson Brown's "Running on Empty.") I worked on a short where a character was a really nasty bitch, and we needed a song on the radio while she talked with her husband. I found a track called "I Feel Sorry For You" about a scheming conniver.

As far as "All Inclusive" I meant a contract that covers all eventualities in advance if the project gets distribution. All that stuff is open to negotiation, and it's a good idea to get professional legal advice. What's nice is you can do it once (it is pretty expensive) and use that contract as a boiler plate for other contracts.