When Music Paints a Scene

Eric Stone’s music permeates the film. His songs tell tales of pirates and sailors on the seas. Unlike some artists Eric has actually lived in the Islands, playing all around Tortola. He owned his own bar in Marathon, Florida, and now he’s embarking on his first novel.

We chose Eric’s Song “Endless Summer” at the point in the film where there is a montage showing the characters flying down to Florida. The scene builds as the music does, working harmoniously to increase the beauty and drama of their journey.

His Song “Gary’s Island” is a wistful song and is one of my favorites. The song comes on at the moment when Bob’s wife discovers he is in Key West and yells at him. It’s the first moment in the film where Bob truly starts to question his life and choices. It has an almost surreal feel to it. This was not a song I would have thought of for this moment but my editor, David, chose it. When I saw it in the cut for the first time I thought, “this fits perfectly.”

Very rarely does a filmmaker know the songs for each scene before they are filmed and this is certainly true of most of the songs in the film. The only exception to this would be Eric’s song, “Calling in Well.” I have been a fan of this song for some time. I can remember driving in my car, thinking of how to shoot the final few scenes of the film, and that song came on. The song has such a driving beat that goes on for a longer time than normal and builds to such an exciting chorus. I thought that it could be perfect for the ending. It starts softly and builds. I thought I could put slowly crescendo the song as we move from seeing Bob in his office to his drive to the Keys and onto his ultimate destination: pursuing his dreams.

It’s impossible to know how a scene or series of scenes will play until they are finished, but I had a hunch it would work – and it was fantastic. The entire sequence came out exactly how I envisioned it thanks to Eric’s song. The driving beat only contributes to the lyrics, which seem tailor-made for the scene:. “I’m not sick, I’m just sick of this job, in case you couldn’t tell, I’m calling in well.”These lyrics speak not just to that moment, but the entire film as well.

If you want to check out Eric’s music and tour, you can follow him here. Keep an eye out for his new music and book as well!

Thanks for joining me on a jaunt down memory lane as I open up about the ‘why’ behind the film and the music!

Keep Listening,

Todd

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