Nicholas Britell
{{Short description|American film composer (born 1980)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2014}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Nicholas Britell
| image = File:Nicholas Britell at the 2024 New York Film Festival 1 (cropped).jpg
| caption = Britell in 2024
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1980|10|17}}
| birth_place = New York City, New York, U.S.
| death_date =
| death_place =
| occupation = Composer
| years_active =
| education = New Canaan Country School
Hopkins School
Juilliard School
Harvard University
| spouse = Caitlin Sullivan
| children =
| website =
| module = {{Infobox musical artist |embed=yes
| genre = {{hlist|Film and television scores |electronic |jazz}}
| label =
}}
}}
Nicholas Britell (born October 17, 1980) is an American film and television composer. He has received numerous accolades including an Emmy Award as well as nominations for three Academy Awards and a Grammy Award. He has received Academy Award nominations for Best Original Score for Barry Jenkins's Moonlight (2016) and If Beale Street Could Talk (2018), and Adam McKay's Don't Look Up (2021). He also scored McKay's The Big Short (2015) and Vice (2018). He is also known for scoring Battle of the Sexes (2017), The King (2019), Cruella (2021), and She Said (2022).
The HBO original series Succession (2018–2023) marked Britell's entry into television. Britell scored all four seasons, earning the Emmy Award for Outstanding Original Main Title Theme Music in 2019.{{cite web|title=Nicholas Britell - Awards|url=https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1615109/awards?ref_=nm_ql_2|access-date=December 12, 2017|website=IMDb}} His scores for the second, third, and fourth seasons of Succession each earned Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Music Composition for a Series nominations in 2020, 2022, and 2023. His score for The Underground Railroad was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Music Composition for a Limited or Anthology Series, Movie or Special in 2021.
His works, as described by Soraya McDonald of Film Comment, "seem to organically straddle accessibility and sophistication in a way that goes beyond the typical programming of a big-city pops orchestra...That might have something to do with the fact that Britell has long had one foot in the world of hip-hop and another in the world of classical music."{{Cite web |title=New American Songbook |url=https://www.filmcomment.com/article/new-american-songbook-nicholas-britell/ |website=Film Comment |language=en |access-date=May 6, 2021}}
Early life and education
Britell was raised in a Jewish family{{cite news |last1=Bloom |first1=Nate |date=February 13, 2017 |title=The tribe goes to the Oscars |url=https://jweekly.com/2017/02/13/the-tribe-goes-to-the-oscars/ |newspaper=J |language=en-US |access-date=April 7, 2023}} in New York City.{{cite news |last=Thompson |first=A. Haven |date=February 26, 2004 |title=Nicholas J. Britell '03–'04 |url=https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2004/2/26/nicholas-j-britell-03-04-for-nick/# |work=The Harvard Crimson |language=en-US |access-date=August 25, 2013}} He attended New Canaan Country School in New Canaan, CT, and he graduated valedictorian from the college preparatory school Hopkins School in 1999.{{Cite web |title=Distinguished Alumni/ae and Fellows {{!}} Hopkins School|url = http://www.hopkins.edu/Page/Alumniae/Distinguished-Alumniae-and-Fellows|website = www.hopkins.edu|access-date = November 26, 2015|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190331181522/https://www.hopkins.edu/Page/Alumniae/Distinguished-Alumniae-and-Fellows|archive-date = March 31, 2019|url-status = dead}} Britell is a graduate of the Juilliard School's Pre-College Division and a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Harvard College{{cite web |url=https://www.ascapfoundation.org/news/alumni-news |title=Nicholas Britell |website= ASCAP Foundation.com|publisher= ASCAP |access-date=February 5, 2017}}{{cite web |url=http://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2004/06/phi-beta-kappa-elects-92-seniors-to-harvard-chapter/ | title=Phi Beta Kappa elects 92 seniors to Harvard chapter |access-date=August 26, 2013 |work=Harvard University Gazette |date=June 10, 2004}} in 2003.{{cite web |url=http://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2017/02/moonlight-reflection/ | title='Moonlight' reflection - Oscar-nominated composer Britell '03 found inspiration in film's poetic depth |date=February 22, 2017|access-date=February 5, 2017 |work=Harvard University Gazette}} At school, he was a member of the Signet Society, as well as the instrumental hip-hop group, The Witness Protection Program, in which he played keyboards and synthesizers.{{cite web | url=https://www.signetsociety.org/notable-alumni | title=Notable Alumni }} He briefly worked at Bear Stearns after graduating.{{Cite web |last=Fisher |first=Jamie |date=2021-06-11 |title=How did he do that? The currency trader who changed the sound of cinema |url=https://www.smh.com.au/culture/music/how-did-he-do-that-the-currency-trader-who-changed-the-sound-of-cinema-20210531-p57wmp.html |access-date=2025-03-12 |website=The Sydney Morning Herald |language=en}}
Britell is part of an emerging generation of composers and artists who draw from an eclectic range of influences. His work is inspired by Rachmaninoff, Gershwin, Philip Glass, Zbigniew Preisner, Quincy Jones and Dr. Dre.{{cite news|title=Review: "New York, I Love You"|url=http://thedodgy.com/2012/07/01/the-fashionable-film-composer//|access-date=August 25, 2013|newspaper=The Dodgy|date=July 1, 2012}}
Career
= Early career =
In 2008, Britell gained wide notice performing his own work "Forgotten Waltz No. 2" in Natalie Portman's directorial debut Eve. He collaborated again with Portman, writing music for the film New York, I Love You.{{cite news|title=Review: "New York, I Love You"|url=https://variety.com/2009/film/reviews/new-york-i-love-you-1200475778/|access-date=August 25, 2013|newspaper=Variety|date=September 30, 2009}}{{cite news | url=http://untappedcities.com/2011/01/14/in-the-studio-with-nicholas-britell-film-composer-for-new-york-i-love-you/ | title=In the Studio with Nicholas Britell, Film Composer from New York, I Love You | access-date=August 25, 2013 | author=Young, Michelle | date=January 14, 2011 | publisher=Untapped Cities}}
In 2011, Britell performed on piano with violin virtuoso Tim Fain in Portals.{{cite news|title=Framing Works With Dance, Words, Screens and Web Browsers|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/27/arts/music/portals-from-tim-fain-at-symphony-space.html |access-date=August 25, 2013| author=Kozinn, Allan | newspaper=The New York Times|date=September 26, 2011}} The multimedia project also featured performances by Craig Black, Julia Eichten and Haylee Nichele, and featured music by Philip Glass and Nico Muhly, poetry by Leonard Cohen and choreography by Benjamin Millepied.{{cite news|title=Music review: Tim Fain's 'Portals' at the Broad Stage|url=http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/culturemonster/2011/10/music-review-tim-fains-portals-at-the-broad-stage.html |access-date=August 25, 2013| author=Swed, Mark|newspaper=The Los Angeles Times|date=October 10, 2011}}{{cite news|title=Classical Music Gets a Modern Update in the Hands of Violinist Tim Fain|url=http://www.vogue.com/culture/article/classical-music-gets-a-modern-update-in-the-hands-of-violinist-tim-fain/#1|access-date=August 25, 2013|author=Creeden, Molly|newspaper=Vogue|date=September 20, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130929125256/http://www.vogue.com/culture/article/classical-music-gets-a-modern-update-in-the-hands-of-violinist-tim-fain/#1|archive-date=September 29, 2013|url-status=dead}} Regarding this collaboration, Vogue called Britell among "...the most talented young artists at work..."{{cite web |last=Creeden |first=Molly |date=September 20, 2011 |title=Classical Music Gets a Modern Update in the Hands of Violinist Tim Fain |url=http://www.vogue.com/873785/classical-music-gets-a-modern-update-in-the-hands-of-violinist-tim-fain/ |website=Vogue |language=en-US |access-date=December 12, 2017}}
As a film composer, Britell created the music for the movie Gimme the Loot, directed by Adam Leon.{{cite news | url=https://movies.nytimes.com/2013/03/22/movies/gimme-the-loot-directed-by-adam-leon.html?_r=0 |title=Larceny for the Sake of Art | access-date=August 25, 2013 | author=Scott, A. O. | date=March 21, 2013 | author-link=A. O. Scott| work=The New York Times}} The film would go on to compete in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival.{{cite web |url=http://www.festival-cannes.fr/en/article/58878.html |title=2012 Official Selection |access-date=August 26, 2013 |work=Cannes}}{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2012/apr/30/cannes-2012-seven-films-lineup |title=Cannes 2012: seven films join the lineup |access-date=August 26, 2012 |work=The Guardian |location=London |first=Andrew |last=Pulver |date=April 30, 2012}} It won the Grand Jury Prize at the SXSW Film Festival in 2012.{{cite news|title=Loot Wins SXSW Grand Jury Prize For Best Narrative Feature Mar. 13, 2012|url=https://variety.com/2012/film/news/loot-wins-sxsw-grand-jury-prize-for-best-narrative-feature-1118051442/|access-date=August 26, 2013|newspaper=Variety|date=March 13, 2012}} The music for the film garnered special praise from New York Magazine{{cite web |url=https://nymag.com/arts/all/to-do-2013-4-1/l |title=To Do: March 27 – April 3, 2013 |access-date=August 25, 2012 |work=New York Magazine }}{{dead link|date=February 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} and Variety.{{cite news | url=https://variety.com/2012/film/reviews/gimme-the-loot-1117947242/ | title=Review: "Gimme the Loot" | access-date=August 25, 2013 | author=Debruge, Peter | date=March 14, 2013 | publisher=Variety}}
Britell's film composing career continued in 2012 with the scoring of Michele Mitchell's PBS documentary Haiti: Where Did the Money Go?{{cite book |title=Haiti : where did the money go? |via=OCLC's World Cat |oclc=785426707}} The film, which aired over 1,000 times in the United States on PBS stations and was screened at the Oakland Film Festival and the BolderLife Film Festival in 2012, is the winner of the 2013 Edward R. Murrow Award for Best News Documentary{{cite web |url=https://www.rtdna.org/content/2013_national_edward_r_murrow_award_winners#.UhuT6mTXjxk | title=2013 National Edward R. Murrow Award Winners |access-date=August 26, 2013 |work=Radio Television Digital News Association}} and winner of a 2012 CINE Golden Eagle Award{{cite web|url=http://www.cine.org/fall-2012-golden-eagle-award-recipients/professional-telecast-news-division/|title=Login|website=CINE|access-date=December 12, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130506235035/http://www.cine.org/fall-2012-golden-eagle-award-recipients/professional-telecast-news-division/|archive-date=May 6, 2013|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}} and a CINE Special Jury Award for Best Investigative Documentary.{{cite web|url=http://www.cine.org/special-jury-awards/cine-2013-special-jury-award-recipients/|title=Login|website=CINE|access-date=December 12, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130927134425/http://www.cine.org/special-jury-awards/cine-2013-special-jury-award-recipients/|archive-date=September 27, 2013|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}
= 2012–2015 =
Britell's music featured prominently in director Steve McQueen's Oscar-winning film 12 Years a Slave, for which he composed and arranged the on-camera music including the spiritual songs, work songs, featured violin performances, and dances.{{cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702304026804579409731527220844|title=In '12 Years a Slave,' Historically Accurate Music Performed|newspaper=Wall Street Journal|date=February 28, 2014|access-date=December 12, 2017|last1=Ramey|first1=Corinne}} Billboard called Britell "...the secret weapon in the music of 12 Years a Slave". "My Lord Sunshine", composed by Britell for 12 Years a Slave, was eligible for the 2014 Oscars' Best Original Song list.{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2013/film/awards/12-years-co-composer-nicholas-brittell-re-creates-antebellum-south-1200950285/|author=Jon Burlingame|title='12 Years' Co-composer Nicholas Britell Re-Creates Antebellum South|website=Variety|date=December 13, 2013|access-date=December 12, 2017}} The Los Angeles Times said of "My Lord Sunshine": "A work song, a spiritual, a blues lament, a communal statement – 'My Lord Sunshine (Sunrise)' is all of the above and more...[w]hat Britell accomplished is no easy feat, and it's a spiritual that feels and sounds of the era and deftly weaves in religious imagery with the daily horror of the slaves' lives."{{cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/music/la-et-ms-the-oscarworthy-songs-thwarted-by-alone-yet-not-alone-20140130-story.html#page=1|title=The best Oscar-worthy songs thwarted by 'Alone Yet Not Alone'|newspaper=LA Times|date=January 31, 2014|access-date=December 12, 2017}} Britell also notably reinterpreted "Roll Jordan Roll" for the film.{{cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/12-years-a-slave-composer-664168|title='12 Years a Slave' Composer Reveals the Challenges of Re-Creating Authentic Slave Songs|website=Hollywood Reporter|date=December 9, 2013|access-date=December 12, 2017}}{{cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/sections/therecord/2013/11/12/244851884/12-years-a-slave-is-this-years-best-film-about-music|newspaper=NPR|title='12 Years A Slave' Is This Year's Best Film About Music : The Record : NPR|date=November 13, 2013|access-date=December 12, 2017|last1=Powers|first1=Ann}} His work received wide critical acclaim and he was profiled in The Wall Street Journal.
As a film producer, Britell produced the short film Whiplash, directed by Damien Chazelle, which won the Short Film Jury Award: US Fiction at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival.{{cite web|url=https://www.ew.com/article/2013/01/23/sundance-2013-whiplash-short|title=Sundance: Prize-winning 'Whiplash' short aims to go long|website=EW.com|access-date=December 12, 2017}} He subsequently helped produce the feature-film Whiplash, also directed by Chazelle and starring Miles Teller and J. K. Simmons.{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/movies/movie/472767/Whiplash/credits|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141022130111/http://www.nytimes.com/movies/movie/472767/Whiplash/credits|url-status=dead|archive-date=October 22, 2014|department=Movies & TV Dept.|work=The New York Times|date=2014|title=In 'Whiplash,' a Young Jazz Drummer vs. His Teacher|access-date=December 12, 2017}}{{cite news |last=Fleming |first=Mike |date=May 14, 2013 |title=Cannes: Bold, Blumhouse, Right Of Way Strike Up Band For Feature Version Of Sundance Short 'Whiplash' | url=https://deadline.com/2013/05/cannes-bold-blumhouse-strike-up-band-for-feature-version-of-sundance-short-whiplash-499436/ |website=Deadline Hollywood |language=en-US |access-date=August 25, 2013}} The Whiplash feature won the Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic and Audience Award: Dramatic at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival, went on to receive 5 Oscar nominations (including Best Picture), and won 3 Oscar awards.{{cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/moviesnow/la-et-mn-sundance-film-festival-awards-winners-story.html#page=1|title=Sundance 2014 winners: 'Whiplash' wins big|newspaper=LA Times|date=January 26, 2014|access-date=December 12, 2017}}{{cite web |last=Brown |first=Kat |date=February 23, 2015 |title=Oscars 2015 winners list in full |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/oscars/11420116/oscars-2015-winners-list.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/oscars/11420116/oscars-2015-winners-list.html |archive-date=January 12, 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |website=The Telegraph |language=en-GB |access-date=December 12, 2017}} Britell also wrote and produced the track "Reaction," produced the track "When I Wake," and performed and produced "No Two Words" for the film's soundtrack.{{cite web|url=http://www.soundtrack.net/movie/whiplash-2014/|title=Whiplash (2014)|website=Soundtrack.Net|access-date=December 12, 2017}}
In 2015, Britell scored The Seventh Fire, a documentary directed by Jack Pettibone Riccobono and presented by Terrence Malick, which debuted to critical acclaim at the Berlin International Film Festival.{{cite news|last1=ICTMN Staff|title=Must-Watch Trailer: Documentary About Native Gangs Is a Hit at Berlin Festival|url=http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/02/10/must-watch-trailer-documentary-about-native-gangs-hit-berlin-festival-159141|access-date=August 26, 2015|work=Indian Country Today Media Network|date=February 10, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150212023738/https://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/02/10/must-watch-trailer-documentary-about-native-gangs-hit-berlin-festival-159141|archive-date=February 12, 2015|url-status=dead}}
Britell scored Natalie Portman's directorial debut feature film A Tale of Love and Darkness, which screened at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival.{{cite web|url=http://www.festival-cannes.fr/en/archives/ficheFilm/id/655858a3-0b61-40ce-b93d-cb20e0653383/year/2015.html|title=Festival de Cannes - Site Officiel / Institutionnel|website=festival-cannes.fr|access-date=December 12, 2017}} Deadline called Britell's score for the film "riveting".{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2015/05/natalie-portman-a-tale-of-love-and-darkness-cannes-film-festival-video-1201427211/|author=Anthony D'Alessandro|title=[Watch] Natalie Portman's Directorial Debut 'A Tale of Love And Darkness': Cannes Film Festival|website=Deadline|date=May 15, 2015|access-date=December 12, 2017}}
Britell also scored the Oscar-winning The Big Short, directed by Adam McKay, starring Brad Pitt, Christian Bale, Ryan Gosling, and Steve Carell, based on the book The Big Short by Michael Lewis, and released by Paramount in December 2015.{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1596363/combined|website=imdb.com|title=The Big Short (2015)|access-date=December 12, 2017}} In addition, Britell produced the soundtrack album for the film.{{cite web |title='The Big Short' Soundtrack Announced |url=http://filmmusicreporter.com/2015/12/10/the-big-short-soundtrack-announced/ |website=Film Music Reporter |language=en-US |date=December 10, 2015 |access-date=December 15, 2015}}
= 2016–2019 =
In 2016, Britell scored director Gary Ross's Civil-War era historical drama Free State of Jones, starring Matthew McConaughey, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Mahershala Ali, and Keri Russell.{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1124037/fullcredits?ref_=tt_ql_1|title=Free State of Jones (2016) - Full Cast & Crew|website=IMDb|access-date=December 12, 2017}} The soundtrack album, produced by Britell, was released June 24, 2016 on Sony Masterworks.{{cite web |title='Free State of Jones' Soundtrack Details |url=http://filmmusicreporter.com/2016/05/18/free-state-of-jones-soundtrack-details/ |website=Film Music Reporter |language=en-US |date=May 18, 2016 |access-date=December 12, 2017}}
Also in 2016, Britell wrote the original score for the critically acclaimed, Best Picture-winning film Moonlight, directed by Barry Jenkins.{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4975722/fullcredits/|title=Moonlight (2016) - Full Cast & Crew|website=IMDb|access-date=December 12, 2017}}{{cite web|url=http://moonlight-movie.com/|title=Moonlight – Official Movie Site|website=moonlight-movie.com|access-date=December 12, 2017}} Britell's score received a 2017 Academy Award for Best Original Score nomination and it was nominated for a 2017 Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score in the Motion Picture category.{{cite web|url=http://www.goldenglobes.com/winners-nominees|title=Winners & Nominees 2018|website=Golden Globes|access-date=December 12, 2017}} A. O. Scott of The New York Times praised Britell's score as "...both surprising and perfect."{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/21/movies/moonlight-review.html?_r=0|title='Moonlight': Is This the Year's Best Movie?|website=The New York Times|date=October 20, 2016|access-date=December 12, 2017|last1=Scott|first1=A. O.}} Britell's original score was described as "... an enthralling collection of music that will linger in your mind and in your heart in much the same way as the film",{{cite web|url=http://www.cutprintfilm.com/features/soundtrack-listening-moonlight/|title=Soundtrack Listening: 'Moonlight'|website=CutPrintFilm|date=November 10, 2016|access-date=December 12, 2017}} and named one of the Ten Best Music Moments of 2016 by Brooklyn Magazine.{{cite web|url=http://www.bkmag.com/2016/12/16/year-film-ten-best-music-moments-2016/|website=bkmag.com|title=The Year In Film: The Ten Best Music Moments of 2016|date=December 16, 2016|access-date=December 12, 2017}} The film's soundtrack album, named one of the top 25 Soundtrack Albums of 2016 on iTunes,{{cite web|url=http://filmmusicdaily.com/2016/12/11/apple-itunes-ranks-lakeshore-records-among-best-soundtracks-and-songs-of-2016/|title=Apple / iTunes Ranks Lakeshore Records Among Best Soundtracks and Songs of 2016!|website=Film Music Daily|date=December 12, 2016|access-date=December 12, 2017}} was produced by Britell and released by Lakeshore Records, including a special vinyl collectors' edition.{{cite web|url=http://filmmusicdaily.com/2016/10/28/moonlight-vinyl-release-announced-score-by-nicholas-britell-pre-order-coming-soon/|title='Moonlight' Vinyl: Release Announced, Score by Nicholas Britell: Pre-Order Now!|website=Film Music Daily|date=October 28, 2016|access-date=December 12, 2017}} Britell's "Middle of the World", from the soundtrack album, was named one of the top 25 Soundtrack Songs of 2016 on iTunes.
Britell scored director Adam Leon's film Tramps in 2016,{{cite web |title=Tramps (2016) - Full Cast & Crew |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4991512/fullcredits?ref_=tt_ov_st_sm |website=IMDb |language=en-US |access-date=December 12, 2017}} with Netflix acquiring worldwide distribution rights to the film at the 2016 Toronto International Film Festival.{{cite web |last=Lang |first=Brent |date=September 19, 2016 |title=Netflix Buys Adam Leon's 'Tramps' at TIFF 2016 |url=https://variety.com/2016/film/festivals/netflix-buys-tramps-tiff-2016-1201864790/ |website=Variety |language=en-US |access-date=December 12, 2017}}
Britell scored Fox Searchlight's tennis biopic Battle of the Sexes, directed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris, and released in 2017.{{cite magazine |last=Nolfi |first=Joey |date=April 13, 2016 |title=Battle of the Sexes: Emma Stone, Steve Carell are tennis pros in first photo |url=https://ew.com/movies/2016/04/13/battle-sexes-emma-stone-steve-carell-photo/ |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |language=en-US |access-date=December 12, 2017}}
He composed the title song from Christina Aguilera's eighth studio album Liberation (2018).{{cite web|title=Liberation by Christina Aguilera|url=https://music.apple.com/ca/album/liberation/1378454470|website=iTunes Store|date=June 15, 2018 |access-date=February 27, 2019|location=United States}}{{cite web|title=Liberation by Christina Aguilera|url=https://music.apple.com/gb/album/liberation/1378454470|website=iTunes Store|date=June 15, 2018 |access-date=February 27, 2019|location=United Kingdom}}
In 2018, Britell once again collaborated with Barry Jenkins, scoring his film If Beale Street Could Talk. The film received wide critical acclaim and Britell was nominated for awards including the Academy Award for Best Original Score,{{cite web |title=THE 91ST ACADEMY AWARDS |url=https://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/2019 |website=www.oscars.org |date=April 15, 2019 |publisher=Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences |language=en}} BAFTA Award for Best Original Music,{{cite web |title=EE British Academy Film Awards Winners in 2019 |url=https://www.bafta.org/film/awards/ee-british-academy-film-awards-nominees-winners-2019 |website=www.bafta.org |publisher=British Academy of Film and Television Arts |language=en |date=9 January 2019}} and Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Score.{{cite web |last1=DaMour |first1=Henrique |title=Critics' Choice Awards 2019: See the full winners list |url=https://ew.com/awards/2019/01/13/critics-choice-awards-2019-winners-list/ |website=EW.com |publisher=Entertainment Weekly |language=en}}
Britell composed the soundtrack of the critically-acclaimed HBO black comedy-drama series Succession (2018–2023), his first time composing for a television series. For Succession's main title theme, Britell won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Original Main Title Theme Music in 2019. He also received Primetime Emmy nominations for Outstanding Music Composition for a Series in 2020,{{cite web |title=Nominees / Winners 2020 |url=https://www.emmys.com/awards/nominees-winners/2020 |website=Emmys.com |publisher=National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences |language=en}} 2022,{{cite web |title=Nominees / Winners 2022 |url=https://www.emmys.com/awards/nominees-winners/2022 |website=Emmys.com |publisher=National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences |language=en}} and 2023, and a Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media nomination in 2023.{{cite web |title=2023 GRAMMY Nominations: See The Complete Winners & Nominees List |url=https://www.grammy.com/news/2023-grammy-nominations-complete-winners-nominees-list |website=Grammy.com |publisher=The Recording Academy}}
In 2019, Britell worked with American rapper, Pusha T, to create a remix of the main title theme for Succession. The song features Pusha T adding rap vocals over the theme song.{{Cite magazine |last=Wang |first=Amy X. |date=2019-10-11 |title=Song You Need to Know: Pusha T and HBO's 'Succession' Are the Media Merger of the Year |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/pusha-t-hbo-succession-remix-puppets-896973/ |access-date=2023-05-30 |magazine=Rolling Stone |language=en-US}} Britell described the collaboration by saying "If I was going to collaborate with anyone on this track, Pusha T was the dream choice."{{Cite news |date=2020-11-03 |title=Pusha T Joins Remix Of Award-Winning Theme Song Of HBO's 'Succession'|first=Paula|last=Rogo |url=http://www.essence.com/entertainment/pusha-t-remix-hbo-succession/ |access-date=2023-05-30 |website=Essence |language=en-US}}
= 2020–present =
On February 6, 2019, Britell confirmed he was composing the score for Barry Jenkins's The Underground Railroad, an original series on Amazon based on Colson Whitehead's Pulitzer Prize winning novel of the same name.{{Cite web|last=D'Alessandro|first=Anthony|date=2019-02-07|title=Oscar Nominees Barry Jenkins & Nicholas Britell On The Beat Of 'Beale Street' – Crew Call Podcast|url=https://deadline.com/2019/02/if-beale-street-could-talk-oscar-nominees-barry-jenkins-nicholas-britell-interview-podcast-1202523297/|access-date=2021-02-18|website=Deadline|language=en-US}} The show premiered on Amazon Video on May 14, 2021 to critical acclaim for both Jenkins and Britell. For his score, Britell received a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Music Composition for a Limited or Anthology Series, Movie or Special at the 73rd Primetime Emmy Awards.
Britell composed the music for Adam McKay's 2021 film Don't Look Up, including the song "Just Look Up" performed by Ariana Grande and Kid Cudi. Britell received a nomination for Best Original Score at the 94th Academy Awards for the score of Don't Look Up. That same year, Britell scored Disney's One Hundred and One Dalmatians live-action spin-off Cruella.{{Cite web|title=Nicholas Britell|url=http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1615109/|access-date=2021-02-18|website=IMDb}}{{Cite web|url=https://filmmusicreporter.com/2021/03/31/nicholas-britell-scoring-craig-gillespies-cruella/|title = Nicholas Britell Scoring Craig Gillespie's 'Cruella' | Film Music Reporter}} At the World Soundtrack Awards, Britell was awarded Film Composer of the Year in 2019 for his scores for Vice and If Beale Street Could Talk and Television Composer of the Year{{Cite web|last=Awards|first=World Soundtrack|title=Television Composer of the Year - Awards|url=https://www.worldsoundtrackawards.com/en/awards/television-composer-of-the-year/4|access-date=2020-11-03|website=World Soundtrack Awards}} in 2020 for Succession. Britell also won Best Original Song at the 2021 ceremony alongside Florence Welch for "Call Me Cruella", written for Cruella.
On February 16, 2022, it was reported that Britell would be composing the score for the Star Wars streaming series Andor on Disney+.{{Cite web |date=February 16, 2022 |title=Nicholas Britell to Score Disney+'s 'Rogue One' Prequel Series 'Andor' |url=https://filmmusicreporter.com/2022/02/16/nicholas-britell-to-score-disneys-rogue-one-prequel-series-andor/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220216221909/https://filmmusicreporter.com/2022/02/16/nicholas-britell-to-score-disneys-rogue-one-prequel-series-andor/|archive-date=February 16, 2022 |access-date=February 16, 2022 |website=Film Music Reporter}}
Other endeavors
Britell is a Steinway Artist{{Cite web|title=Nicholas Britell - Steinway & Sons|url=https://www.steinway.com/artists/nicholas-britell|access-date=2021-02-18|website=www.steinway.com|language=en}} and a Creative Associate of the Juilliard School.{{Cite web |title=Nicholas Britell |url=https://www.juilliard.edu/node/146951 |website=The Juilliard School |language=en-US |access-date=February 18, 2021}} In December 2018, it was announced that Britell would be a part of Esa-Pekka Salonen's newly formed creative collective "brain trust" as Salonen takes the reins as music director of the San Francisco Symphony.{{Cite web |last=Rowe |first=Georgia |date=December 11, 2018 |title=Esa-Pekka Salonen bringing brain trust to SF Symphony — who are they? |url=https://www.mercurynews.com/2018/12/11/esa-pekka-salonen-bringing-brain-trust-to-sf-symphony-heres-whos-on-board/ |website=The Mercury News |language=en-US |access-date=February 18, 2021}}
Personal life
He is married to cellist Caitlin Sullivan.{{cite web |last1=Greiving |first1=Tim |date=January 11, 2017 |title=Moonlight screens to live music, packed crowd at downtown L.A.'s Million Dollar Theatre |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/arts/la-et-cm-moonlight-movie-live-music-20170111-story.html |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US |access-date=April 7, 2023}}
Filmography
= As performer =
| class="wikitable sortable" |
| Year
! Title ! Director |
|---|
| rowspan="1" | 2008
| Eve |
= As composer =
== Film ==
| class="wikitable sortable" | |
| Year
! Title ! Director | |
|---|---|
| 2008 | |
| rowspan="2" | 2012 | |
| Gimme the Loot | |
| 2013
| 12 Years a Slave (additional music by) | |
| rowspan="3" | 2015
| Jack Pettibone Riccobono | |
| A Tale of Love and Darkness
| Natalie Portman | |
| The Big Short | |
| rowspan="3" | 2016 | |
| Moonlight | |
| Tramps
| Adam Leon | |
| 2017 | |
| rowspan="2" | 2018
| Barry Jenkins | |
| Vice
| Adam McKay | |
| 2019
| The King | |
| rowspan="3" | 2021
| Cruella | |
| Italian Studies
| Adam Leon | |
| Don't Look Up
| Adam McKay | |
| rowspan="2" | 2022 | Carmen |
| She Said | |
| 2024 | Blitz (additional music by)
| Steve McQueen |
| 2025 |
== Television ==
| class="wikitable sortable" |
| Year
! Title ! Notes |
|---|
| 2018–2023
| 39 episodes |
| 2021
| 10 episodes |
| 2021–2022
| Ziwe | Theme music by |
| 2022
| Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty | 10 episodes |
| 2022
| Andor | 12 episodes |
= As producer =
Awards and nominations
{{main|List of awards and nominations received by Nicholas Britell}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- [http://www.nicholasbritell.com/ Official website]
- {{IMDb name|1615109}}
{{Nicholas Britell}}
{{Navboxes
|title = Awards for Nicholas Britell
|list1 =
{{Black Reel Award for Outstanding Original Score}}
{{Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Original Score}}
{{EmmyAward MainTitleThemeMusic}}
{{Hollywood Music in Media Award for Best Original Score in a Feature Film}}
{{Hollywood Music in Media Award for Best Original Score in a TV Show/Limited Series}}
{{Houston Film Critics Society Award for Best Original Score}}
{{International Film Music Critics Association Award for Best Original Score for a Comedy Film}}
{{Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Music}}
{{Online Film Critics Society Award for Best Original Score}}
{{Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association Award for Best Score}}
{{WSA for Best Original Song Written Directly for a Film}}
{{WSA for Discovery of the Year}}
{{WSA – Soundtrack Composer of the Year}}
}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Britell, Nicholas}}
Category:21st-century American Jews
Category:21st-century American pianists
Category:American film score composers
Category:American male film score composers
Category:Composers from New York City
Category:Harvard University alumni
Category:Jewish American film score composers