Hildur Guðnadóttir is an Icelandic influential and incredible film composer; famously known for her work in ‘Sicarios’, ‘The Joker’ and Sky’s series ‘Chernobyl’.
In recent podcasts and interviews, it is important to note that Hilder mentions that although Hollywood contrives identities she does not consider herself as “one thing”. Her background in cello playing certainly hands her the musician’s cup, however, her work is extremely experiential and less cerebral than most. I found her words relatable in the way she talks about the love for both storytelling and music, and the way film combines them. This is important to uphold when you strive to create a sound for the screen. Music can not just be placed over the screen; the sound subtly informs the movement of the characters – the way they move and think through rhythm, pitch and melody. Creative works like this can only be fulfilled well when there is a close creative relationship between the director and composer. Both have to hold the same message and understanding of who they want each character to be.
What impresses me most about Hilder’s recent work, is the creative process she went through to create the spine-tingling soundtrack for Chornobyl. She worked alongside Chris Watson (famous for his incredible field recordings) and ventured inside The Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant, Lithuania. Together they collected hours worth of sounds taken inside the looming corridors and plant rooms. Every single part of the score was pieced together from these field recordings like a tragedy rendered into sonic sounds. Again these sounds translated so well because the recordings were made alongside the shooting process; at the same time and geographically in the same place.
Hildur has also previously spoken about her ability to trust her instinct in the way something should sound when reflecting moments on screen. Although as a society we naturally connotate certain sounds of nuclear disaster, through things such as a Geiger counter; she wanted to involve authentic sounds that one does hear when on a nuclear plant.
Her words used to describe the story of the series – “It’s a complicated story to tell” resonate with the way she structured her sound. The difficulty and compacted storyline Chornobyl holds means her almost ‘musique concrete’ style of work portrays so well when watching the series. It is so simplistic sonically yet so dense creatively. With little musical incorporation with some string sounds here and there, the field recordings shower the score with a continuous atmospheric effect. The entire piece felt as if something was continuously going to happen sonically. This is a huge reflective response to what is happening on screen and in real life. The apprehensions and nervousness felt by the entire world during the Chornobyl disaster still stand with us today. Her ability to sketch this out sonically lifted the series to that extra level.
I truly admire Hildur Guðnadóttir’s work she gets involved in whatever the story may be. Her inclusivity within the themes she works with always proves to blow you away sonically. She breaks boundaries for composers that have previously been bound up by the likes of Hollywood and tells a story no other composer does as well. I hope to get as physically and mentally involved within my storytelling the way Hilder does for my future works in sound for the screen.