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GHENT, 22 AUGUST 2017. This first wave of the 2017 World Soundtrack Award Nominees includes multiple Academy Award® winners and nominees, a past Discovery of the Year nominee, and the best of contemporary film and television music. 

The nominees for Best Film Composer are 2017 Academy Award® winner Justin Hurwitz, Academy Award® nominees Mica Levi, Nicholas Britell, Dustin O’Halloran and Jóhann Jóhannsson. The Television Composer of the Year nominees include upcoming & popular composers such as duo Kyle Dixon & Michael Stein, Ramin Djawadi, Rupert Gregson-Williams, Dave Porter and Mac Quayle.

As previously announced, The Lifetime Achievement Award will be presented to David Shire (‘The Conversation’, ‘All the President’s Men’) as part of the #WSAwards celebration of jazz this year. Following the award ceremony, a selection of Terence Blanchard’s work (‘Mo’ Better Blues’, ‘Malcolm X’, ‘25th Hour’) will be performed by Brussels Philharmonic and additional jazz soloists, conducted by Film Fest Gent’s music director Dirk Brossé. Film Fest Gent will be releasing an exclusive album with Blanchard’s work the same week. Following its yearly tradition the WSAwards welcomes its last Discovery winner to preform, now Joe Kraemer (‘The Way of the Gun’, ‘Jack Reacher’, ‘Mission: Impossible- Rogue Nation’).

Film Fest Gent’s artistic director Patrick Duynslaegher about the selection: “This year’s nominations reflect the incredible wide range of style and talent in contemporary scoring for film and television, with a great line-up of new and established composers to celebrate the art and craft of film & television music.”

THE NOMINEES ARE: 

Best Film Composer of the Year
Nicholas Britell: ‘Moonlight’
Justin Hurwitz: ‘La La Land’
Jóhann Jóhannsson: ‘Arrival’
Mica Levi: ‘Jackie’, ‘Marjorie Prime’
Dustin O’Halloran: ‘Lion’ (co-composer Hauschka), ‘In the Shadow of Iris’ (co-composer Adam Wiltzie)

Best TV Composer of the Year
Kyle Dixon & Michael Stein: ‘Stranger Things’
Ramin Djawadi: ‘Westworld’, ‘Prison Break: Resurrection’, ‘The Strain’
Rupert Gregson-Williams: ‘The Crown’
Dave Porter: ‘Better Call Saul’, ‘The Blacklist’, ‘The Blacklist: Redemption’
Mac Quayle: ‘Feud: Bette & Joan’, ‘Mr. Robot’, ‘Scream Queens’

Best Original Song written directly for a Film

Can’t Stop the Feeling
from ‘Trolls’
music & lyrics by Justin Timberlake, Max Martin and Shellback
performers include o.a. Justin Timberlake, Anna Kendrick, Gwen Stefani, James Corden and Zooey Deschanel

City of Stars
from ‘La La Land’
music by Justin Hurwitz
lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul
performed by Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone

How Far I’ll Go
from ‘Moana’
music & lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda
performed by Auli’i Cravalho

Never Give Up
from ‘Lion’
music & lyrics by Sia Furler and Greg Kurstin
performed by Sia

Runnin’
from ‘Hidden Figures’
music & lyrics by Pharrell Williams
performed by Pharrell Williams

The World Soundtrack Academy aims at supporting film and television music, sound design, composers and its worldwide promotion. In 17 year’s time, the membership of the WSAcademy has grown into a group of 370 international film music professionals deciding on the nominees through several rounds of voting. The Academy will announce the nominees for Discovery of the Year, Best Original Score for a Belgian Production and the Sabam Award for Best Young International Composer mid-September. The audience can also nominate their favorite score by voting for the Public Choice Award on the WSAwards website until September 9th 2017.

17th World Soundtrack Awards 
18 October 2017 – WSAwards Gala & Concert: Tickets
19 October 2017 – Symphonic Jazz Concert: Tickets 

Follow the World Soundtrack Awards playlist on Spotify!
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