Composition contest
2026 Composition Contest
Registrations for the 2026 Composition Contest will in March 2026.
Participants will be invited to show their skills as a composer for screen by writing a symphonic score for the selected film excerpt. The jury will choose three finalists, whose compositions will be performed at the annual World Soundtrack Awards Ceremony and Concert, after which the winner of the Award for Best Original Composition by a Young Composer Powered by Vienna Synchron Stage will be announced.
The finalists will attend the WSA Film Music Days at Film Fest Gent and meet professionals from the international film music industry. Thanks to Vienna Synchron Stage, the winner will receive a lifelong license to the Synchron Series Package, Vienna Symphonic Library's biggest sample library package with 1.6 TB of finest audio recordings (worth € 7,199).
© Jeroen Willems2025 Winner Composition Contest: Bongseop Kim
In 2025, Korean composer Bongseop Kim won the Award for Best Original Composition by a Young Composer Powered by Vienna Synchron Stage with his music for an excerpt from David Lynch's The Elephant Man (1980).
He holds a bachelor’s degree from Korea Baptist Theological University and Seminary and a master’s degree from ChungNam National University, where he is currently pursuing a doctoral degree in Composition. He is the founder and president of the CN Contemporary Music Society, promoting new music creation and performance. His works have been selected for various projects and festivals, including Elixir of Love (performed by Ensemble Écoute), Orbits of Reveries (featured at the Daegu Contemporary Music Festival), and Zephyr’s Resonance (premiered at the Seoul Arts Center).
Previous winners
2024 - Florian Van der Reijden
2023 - Alec Sievern
2022 - Giacomo Rita
2021 - Dougal Kemp
2020 - Ana Kasrashvili
2019 - Pierre Charles
2018 - Logan Nelson
2017 - Gavin Brivik
2016 - Sándor Török
2015 - Peer Kleinschmidt
2014 - Cyril Molesti
2013 - Gilles Alonzo
2012 - Valentin Hadjadj
2011 - Gabriel Heinrich
2010 - Karzan Mahmood
2009 - Christopher Slaski
2008 - Cédric Murrath
2007 - Werner Viaene
2006 - Alexis Koustoulidis
2005 - Hannes De Maeyer
2004 - Steven Prengels
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