Presented within the Agora Meet the Future initiative at the 65th Thessaloniki International Film Festival (TIFF65) in November 2024, Hollywood-based Greek composer Kostas Christides delivered a masterclass titled “Music in Motion: The Art of Film Scoring”. Moderated by film music and tutor of that year’s film music educational programme, Eleni Mitsiaki, that masterclass was a part of the festival’s Meet the Future initiative.

The masterclass was an open discussion about scoring for cinema and TV in Hollywood. From “how to get the job” to “how to get the job done”. Christides emphasized that modern film scoring requires building a symbiotic relationship with the director, maintaining extreme punctuality within strict production timelines, and effectively managing a support team to push projects across the finish line.

The composer also contrasted the structural and creative adjustments required when shifting between cinema and television formats, while also detailing how a composer adapts these international methodologies when working on domestic Greek projects. Using comprehensive audio-visual materials—such as raw footage from live recording sessions, “before and after” temp music comparisons, and original Logic working files—the masterclass demystified the real-time execution of a professional score.

Finally, the presentation traced Christides’ personal journey from a film-music-obsessed teenager in Thessaloniki to his formal musical studies in London, covering his pivotal relocation to Los Angeles, his time working closely alongside legendary Hollywood horror composer Christopher Young, and his ultimate transition into a fully independent composer and orchestrator.