Where The Wild Things Are

Carter's Notes

The first thing I did on "Where The Wild Things Are" was to be fired. I think it was in 2005 that Spike Jonze called to tell me was going to Australia to begin shooting "Where The Wild Things Are," and that he would not be asking me to write music for the film. He said it in the nicest possible way. I had written the music for Spike's previous feature films (Being John Malkovich and Adaptation), but Spike wanted Karen O (of the Yeah Yeah Yeah's) to write music for the "Wild Things."

Around this time I was taking a two-year break from film scoring to spend more time with my family and pursue other interests, so Spike's film receded from my consciousness until he called me in the Summer of 2007 to ask if I'd come to a screening.

Apparently this was an early screening. Warner Brothers was not invited. The film was long, as all rough cuts are, and had no special effects. Karen's songs were in it but so was a lot of other music playing the role of score (what we call "temp music"). The tone of the film was dark, but in a way that was sincerely reminiscent of childhood itself.

Afterward we had lunch and discussed the film and the musical situation. Spike knew he would have a battle with Warner Brothers over the tone of the film. He also suspected that the songs might not be able to do everything the film needed musically. These two issues were not unrelated. At the very least Warner Brothers was going to want to clarify the emotional tone of the film, and music is a powerful way to do so.

Spike was not asking me to write music for the film - only for my opinions, which I gladly gave him. He still hoped that remixes or rearrangements of Karen's songs (which were fantastic) would suffice to score the film. I think he was influenced by the experience Sofia Coppola (Spike's ex-wife) had with her film "The Virgin Suicides". The entire film had been scored with remixes of a few themes by the band Air.

Sometime during the next few months my role changed from advisor to composer. I can't say how or when this happened exactly. I just started sending Spike thematic ideas and he'd give me his reaction. Writing music for film always involves certain constraints, but here there were more than usual. My music would have to match Karen's in instrumentation and feeling. It would have to follow Max's emotional journey in detail, as that experience takes the place of plot in the film. My music would have to make it clear to Warner Brothers, if no one else, what the film was about.

The first theme I wrote was called "Lost Fur" and it played nicely on some early scenes of Max at home. While I continued working, Warner Brothers planned a preview screening to test how a sample audience would react to the film. I wanted to come to the screening but Warners declined to fly me out (I live in New York and the screening was in Los Angeles). I'd forgotten that, although the film had some of my music in it already, they hadn't actually hired me yet. I was just helping Spike out.

After the screening the film went on a crazy ride in which Warner Brothers and Spike fought about the type of film they were making. I was told simply to stop work.

The following year I was asked to join officially as composer. After some editing and rewriting the film was in a form that both Spike and Warner Brothers could embrace. Spike and Karen and I "spotted" the film several times - parcelling out who would be responsible for the music in each scene. We'd audition our results for each other and have another meeting where we'd politely, sometimes desperately, trade scenes. Completely by chance we each ended up having written about half of the music in the film.

Of course Karen's songs will be much more prominent in the minds of listeners - this is the nature of song as opposed to score. She's worked on the film since before it was shot and I think it's perfectly right that she has that foreground role. And did I mention before? Her songs are outstanding.

 

Film Info

Directed by Spike Jonze
Written by Dave Eggers, Spike Jonze, Maurice Sendak (novel)
Produced by Vince Landay, Gary Goetzman, Tom Hanks, John B. Carls, Maurice Sendak
Starring Max Records, James Gandolfini, Catherine Keener, Catherine O'Hara, Forest Whitaker, Chris Cooper, Paul Dano, Lauren Ambrose, Mark Ruffalo

Songs by Karen O

Score Composed, Orchestrated and Conducted by Carter Burwell

The film credit reads "Score by Karen O and Carter Burwell". Karen wrote the songs and Carter wrote the instrumental music, but Spike never chose to divide the film up that way. And since Karen sings wordless vocals on both her own and Carter's pieces the distinction is wonderfully vague.

Scoring Mixer: Mike Farrow
Music Editor: Todd Kasow, Ren Klyce
Contractor: Sandy Park
Recorded at Avatar Studios, New York
Mixed at The Body Studio. New York City

Soundtrack mastered by Bob Ludwig at Gateway Mastering

U.S. Release October 16, 2009

Music Production Notes

In addition to the credits given above, these were the key people working on the score:

Copyist: Tony Finno
Composer’s Assistant: Dean Parker

Guitars: Marc Ribot, Mark Stewart
Piano: Bill Mays
Violins: Sharon Yamada, Laura Seaton
Viola: Robert Rinehart
Cello: Eileen Moon
Acoustic and Electric Bass: Greg Cohen
Harp: Barbara Allen, Tori Drake
Oboe: Rob Bottil
Clarinet: Pavel Vinnitsky
Bassoon: Marc Goldberg
Other Woodwinds: Dave Weiss
Percussion: Gordon Gottlieb, David Cossin
Snare Drum: Washington Duke
Bass Drum: Chauncey Yearwood

The score was recorded in April, 2009 at Avatar Studios in New York City, a classic rock'n'roll studio that used to be called Power Station. The sessions were notable partly because there were kids in the control room all the time. We even had a local pre-school bring a busload of kids as a field trip.