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The recently deceased Ryuichi Sakamoto at age 71 was in 2016 the first Eastern composer who received the World Soundtrack Lifetime Achievement Award here in Ghent. He was born in Tokyo and learned to play the piano from since he was three years old. Not only was he a fan of Ludwig van Beethoven, Johann Sebastian Bach and Claude Debussy, but he also loved British rock music. Sakamoto just wasn't entirely sure if The Beatles and The Rolling Stones were British or American. Debussy's nationality was much clearer to him. He recognised Asian influences in the Frenchman's oeuvre, which influenced Sakamoto's own music.

During the upcoming edition of the WSA Film Music Days (19 - 21 october 2023), Film Fest Gent will again organise the Belgian version of the Third Character initiative. This initiative is organised yearly in collaboration with MCM (Festival International Music & Cinema Marseille) and FIFF Namur (Festival International du Film Francophone de Namur). Composers who are looking for a film project can rely on FFG, MCM and FIFF Namur to find a match with a suitable film director.

What is your favourite film score of the year? What film music have you been listening to all year long? Let's hear! You can now vote for the WSA Public Choice Award 2022. The winner and the successor of Benji Merrison's score for SAS: Red Notice will be revealed at the World Soundtrack Awards Ceremony & Concert on 22 October.

What is your favourite film score of the year? What film music have you been listening to all year long? Let's hear! You can now vote for the WSA Public Choice Award 2023. The winner and the successor of Joseph Metcalfe, John Coda and Grant Kirkhope's score for The King's Daughter will be revealed at the World Soundtrack Awards Ceremony & Concert on 21 October.

Scores from world-renowned video games such as The Legend of Zelda, The Last of Us, Final Fantasy VII and more are set to be performed by Brussels Philharmonic during the concert PRESS PLAY: Music in Games on Thursday 19 October 2023 at Film Fest Gent. The festival - home to the World Soundtrack Awards - announced the concert and its host, composer Austin Wintory, back in March, and now releases the first line-up of the night, including the first-ever orchestral live performance of Lena Raine’s score for indie hit Celeste.

Every year, Film Fest Gent and VIERNULVIER forge a quirky marriage between music and (cult) cinema with the VIDEODROOM programme, an eclectic melting pot of audio-visual performances and new scores to obscure films. From 10 to 21 October 2023, VIDEODROOM offers a thrilling, alternative trip through the nights of Film Fest Gent. The full programme of VIDEODROOM will be announced step by step during the summer.

Multi-instrumentalist & composer Eiko Ishibashi and Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Ryûsuke Hamaguchi have teamed up once again following their successful collaboration on the critically acclaimed feature film Drive My Car. This new film, titled Gift and written and directed by Hamaguchi, will world premiere with a live score performed by Ishibashi at Film Fest Gent in the VIDEODROOM programme, a partnership between the festival and Arts Centre VIERNULVIER.

Are you a young filmmaker under the age of 36? Are you aware of the power of music for your films, but have you not yet found the right vocabulary to go all the way with your composer in your creative partnership? Then let Film Fest Ghent take you on an immersive exploration through the world of film music in the Creative Partnership Lab during the WSA Film Music Days in October (19-21 October).

Film Fest Gent proudly presents Elliot Goldenthal: Music for Film, the film festival’s 2024 album with all-new studio recordings of selected scores by Elliot Goldenthal. In October, the composer of Frida and Heat, among others, will be awarded the WSA Lifetime Achievement Award for his flourishing career.

Composers Stephanie Economou (Assassin's Creed Valhalla: Dawn of Ragnarök), Borislav Slavov (Baldur's Gate III, Divinity: Original Sin II), Gordy Haab (Star Wars Jedi: Survivor), Stephen Barton (Star Wars Jedi, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare) and Gustavo Santaolalla (The Last of Us) will be present at Film Fest Gent's game music concert PRESS PLAY: Music in Games on Thursday 19 October at Capitole Ghent. During the concert, a selection of their work will be performed by Brussels Philharmonic conducted by Dirk Brossé. Gustavo Santaolalla will accompany the orchestra with his ronroco. Moreover, during the WSA Film Music Days from 19 to 21 October, Stephanie Economou, Gordy Haab and Borislav Slavov will talk about their métier during various panels and masterclasses.