AWARD-WINNING COMPOSER:
GEORGE S. CLINTON
photo credit: © Michael Maples
Reunites with Director Michael Lembeck to Score Tooth Fairy
(Hollywood, CA) Award-winning composer GEORGE S. CLINTON has reunited with director Michael Lembeck (Santa Clause 2 & 3) for the comical-fantasy TOOTH FAIRY, starring Dwayne Johnson, Julie Andrews, Billy Crystal and Ashley Judd. For his score to TOOTH FAIRY, Clinton has created magical arrangements, full of action, emotion, fun, fantasy and a touch of fairy dust. TOOTH FAIRY is currently in theatres.
He recently scored HOMETOWN GLORY, a documentary about teen firefighters in the 1970s. Last year, Clinton scored Mike Judge’s (Office Space/King of the Hill) comedy EXTRACT, starring Jason Bateman, Mila Kunis and Ben Affleck, incorporating sounds from extract bottles into the score. Clinton has also scored the comedies HAROLD AND KUMAR ESCAPE FROM GUANTANAMO and THE LOVE GURU. Clinton’s other credits range from such diverse films as the romantic Zalman King's RED SHOE DIARIES, the martial arts fantasy MORTAL KOMBAT, the suspenseful thriller THE ASTRONAUT’S WIFE and the sexy thriller WILD THINGS. Other projects include Mike Meyers' AUSTIN POWERS films, John Waters' A DIRTY SHAME and 3000 MILES TO GRACELAND.
Clinton's musical innovation and versatility has allowed him to create memorable scores for various genres. Clinton received an Emmy nomination for Best Original Score to HBO Films’ BURY MY HEART AT WOUNDED KNEE. His score varied from Americana to incorporating Native American elements. He also enlisted World-renowned Native American flutist John Two-Hawks to play on the score.
© 20th Century Fox
The film TOOTH FAIRY centers on Derek Thompson (Johnson), a minor-league hockey player whose nickname is the Tooth Fairy because of his ability to knock out opposing players' teeth. When he discourages a youngster's hope, Derek is ordered to one week's hard labor as a real tooth fairy, complete with wings, magic wand and frilly tutu. Along the way, he rediscovers his forgotten dreams.
In addition to his film projects, Clinton has written several concert works, three musicals, and songs recorded by such artists as Michael Jackson, Joe Cocker, Smokey Robinson and Johnny Mathis. George S. Clinton has also been honored with BMI’s highest honor bestowed on a composer, The Richard Kirk Award for Career Achievement. He joins the company of legendary recipients which include John Williams, Jerry Goldsmith and Danny Elfman. George S. Clinton believes in imparting his knowledge on a new generation of filmmakers. For the last ten years, he has volunteered his time and experience to filmmakers and composers at the Sundance Institute in Park City, Utah.
Thank you so much for the interview George and congratulations for your nice career and very good music.
It's my pleasure.
George, Tooth Fairy is your fourth collaboration with the director Michael Lembeck. How did you meet?
We met when he hired me on Santa Clause 2.
How do you work together?
He is a musician, so he his suggestions are very specific. He's the kind of director that inspires and encourages rather than threatens.
What in your opinion makes your collaboration work so well?
We both find the joy in what we do. We have very similar instincts.
© 20th Century Fox
How do you choose a new film project to score?
I love working with directors and producers I've worked with before, but I also like to find new and interesting projects. I like things that will let me explore new ground creatively.
photo credit: © Michael Maples
Tooth Fairy is a new Fantasy comedy. From a musical point of view, what do you like in that film genre?
This genre allows me to go all out orchestrally. It has a broad range of emotions offers great thematic opportunities.
Can you describe "The Tooth Fairy" score? Themes, solos, chorus? Which emotions did you musically create for this film?
The score has the "Fairyland" music which is very colorful and full of "fairy" references. The theme for Tracy (the tall fairy) is a nod to "Dance Of the Sugar Plum Fairies". Our hero's theme and the hockey music is very athletic and sports-like. The "Believe" theme for the little girl is emotional and magical and works its way into our hero's theme by the end. It's a real combination of the fantasy of the Fairy element and the reality of the action and sport elements. There's also a lot of fun comedy music, touching emotional music, and big heroic thematic music.
photo credit: © Michael Maples
Online, one can read that "Director Lembeck occasionally tells amusing stories and anecdotes to the orchestra". Could you tell us some?
He likes to describe the scene to the orchestra before they play the cue. He use to be a comic, so his desciptions can be hilarious. At one point I had to tell him to speed it up because we were running out of time!
Do you have some funny anecdotes you could tell us?
In Santa Clause 3 I mentioned to the orchestra that I had left a couple of beats of silence in a cue to make room for the reindeer farts. I said since I scored Cheech and Chong and Austin Powers I probably held the world record for scoring bodily functions. The next day the orchestra presented me with a trophy for "Career Achievement in Scoring Bodily Functions."
In Santa Claus 2 and 3, we can already see the Tooth Fairy as a part of the Council of legendary characters. Why such an importance to the character of the Tooth Fairy? Did you discuss it with Michael Lembeck?
Not sure there is a connection. In some cultures the Tooth Fairy is scary and evil, so I don't know.
Do you believe in tooth fairy?
I believe!
As a child, did you get gifts from the tooth fairy?
I got 10 cents per tooth.
You worked with Michael Jackson. Could you tell us a bit about it?
Even though he recorded some of my songs, I never got to work with him.
How did you react to his passing?
To me he was a great entertainer. Whatever else people want to believe about him is all hype. He wasn't a god. He wasn't a monster. He was a great entertainer
If you could make a wish, what would it be?
I wish that the little moment of hope the world felt when Obama was elected could have lasted forever.
If you could choose your last work project, what would it be?
To score my own funeral!
Many thanks and best wishes!
A bientôt!
Interview réalisée et publiée par Christine Blanc pour inter-activities.com
Remerciements particuliers à Pawel pour son aide: dziękuję
Special Thanks to Melissa Mc Neil
