Soundtracking with Edith Bowman

Very excited about our latest guest on Soundtracking - the Mexican filmmaker Alejandro González Iñárritu 

Alejandro's latest offering is Bardo: False Chronicle Of A Handful Of Truths - a semi-autobiographical tale that follows a journalist & documentarian who returns to his native country of Mexico and begins having an existential crisis in the form of dreamlike visions.

As well as co-writing and directing the film, Alejandro also collaborated with friend of the pod Bryce Dessner on the score

There are so many cracking releases at the moment, we getting as much out to you as we can in something of a festive giveaway. We dropped Michael Giacchino earlier in the week, and now we bring you Frances O'Connor and Abel Korzeniowski, who joined me to discuss Emily. Frances wrote and directed the film, while Abel provided the score. It's a fictionalised version of the life of Emily Bronte, and concentrates on her romantic relationship with the curate William Weightman - there is no evidence that such a relationship ever occurred.

We are dropping two episodes of Soundtracking for you today - the first being with composer and director, Michael Giacchino

Michael performed both duties for Marvel Studio's Werewolf By Night, which is a sly modern take on the classic monster movies of yesteryear.

That's right. Directed. And scored. What a total dude. One of our favourite ever guests! And that hoodie ...

It's always lovely talking to actors on Soundtracking to get their perspective on music, and we have one for you in our latest episode in the shape of Violent Night star, David Harbour.

Violent Night sees David star as a Father Christmas who is anything but the traditional image of cheery, rosy-cheeked, white bearded old man. 

David also discusses the distinctive sound of Stranger Things, and his fondness for Counting Crows, which is something of an embarrassment to him when he's hanging out with his cool East Village pals.

Last time we had our latest guest on the podcast was when he was kind enough to join Edith for a Soundtracking Live at the BFI on London's South Bank. That was more of a career retrospective; this time, Tim Burton is here to talk about Wednesday, his first foray into making a television series.

As is so often the case with Tim's work, Wednesday is scored by the great Danny Elfman, ably supported by Chris Bacon. There are also a couple of delicious needle-drops up for discussion.

It's a welcome return to Soundtracking for Luca Guadagnino, a writer and director who always talks so eloquently and revealingly about the music in his films. 

His latest project is Bones And All. The ensemble cast features Timonthee Chalamet, Taylor Russell and Mark Rylance in what is part horror, part romantic road movie and part period drama.

Bones and All is scored by Atticus Ross and Trent Reznor - or A & T as Luca describes them - who will themselves be joining us soon.

Thrilled to have another director / composer combo on Soundtracking this week in the shape of Sebastian Lelio and Matthew Herbert, who have joined forces on the Chilean writer/director's latest film, The Wonder.

Starring Florence Pugh, it follows an English nurse sent to an Irish village in the 1860s to observe a young girl who is seemingly able to survive without eating.

It's an amazing experience, narratively, visually and sonically, so we highly recommnend you dive in.

It's one of those episodes of Soundtracking which we love so much, in which Edith gets to pick the brains of an up-and-coming filmmaker who's just beginning their journey in the industry.

Charlotte Wells's debut feature Aftersun is an absolutely beautiful piece of work, telling the story of Sophie as she reflects upon a holiday with her then young father they took together 20 years earlier.

As well as containing countless fantastic needle drops, Aftersun is also expertly scored by Oliver Coates, who very kindly furnished us with cues from his as yet unreleased score. Cheers, Oliver!

Bonus episode time with Ryan Coogler, director of the new Black Panther film, Wakanda Forever.

The film's release is obviously hugely bittersweet for all involved with the sad passing of Chadwick Boseman - but, boy, have Ryan and the exceptional cast done his memory proud.

Here he discusses Chadwick's legacy and the tonal influence his death has had on narrative, as well as the excellent soundtrack and Ludwig Goransson's score.

Anyone who knows Edith knows she is a massive fan of what Disney + is doing with Star Wars world-building, from the Mandalorian to Obi Wan Kenobi.

Andor is no exception, taking the franchise in an altogether new direction with its visual palate, narrative pacing and Orwellian undertones.

So it was a genuine thrill to spend a bit of time with show creator, Tony Gilroy, who also co-wrote Rogue One.

Andor is scored by our old friend Nicholas Britell, and you'll hear plenty of his music throughout the conversation.