2023 ASCAP Screen Music Awards Recognize 99 Top Film & TV Composers
NEW YORK, May 16, 2023 – Recognizing the musical storytellers scoring today’s top films, TV series and video games, The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers announced today the winners of the 2023 ASCAP Screen Music Awards. ASCAP celebrated its full slate of award-winning composers at an intimate, invitation-only party in West Hollywood. As part of the celebration, the winners of the highly anticipated 2023 ASCAP Composers’ Choice Awards were revealed live among an audience of peers.
Chosen by the ASCAP composer and songwriter community, the ASCAP Composers’ Choice Awards are unique among US performing rights organizations. The 2023 winners, selected from an outstanding group of nominees, crafted the scores for a sweeping sci-fi horror film, a critically-acclaimed, satirical comedy-drama series, a cutting-edge docuseries exploring the super-senses of the world’s most extraordinary animals, a definitive documentary on Tony Hawk’s life and iconic career and a Norse mythology-inspired action-adventure game:
● Film Score of the Year: Nope – Michael Abels
● Television Score of the Year: The White Lotus – Cristobal Tapia de Veer & Kim Neundorf
● Television Theme of the Year: The White Lotus – Cristobal Tapia de Veer
● Documentary Score of the Year: Super/Natural – Amanda Jones; Tony Hawk: Until the Wheels Fall Off – Jeff Cardoni (tie)
● Video Game Score of the Year: God of War Ragnarök – Bear McCreary
Additional ASCAP Screen Music Award winners include composers of the past year’s hit streaming series and films, which continue to captivate audiences from the comfort of their homes. The Top Streaming Series winners include dynamic duo Kyle Dixon and Michael Stein for their work on global phenomenon Stranger Things, Natalie Holt for her musical storytelling in the live-action Star Wars project Obi-Wan Kenobi and Siddhartha Khosla for his inventive music in hit comedy-drama Only Murders in the Building. Among the Top Streaming Filmswinners, John Debney was honored for his spooky score to Hocus Pocus 2 while Benj Pasek, Justin Paul, Khiyon Hursey, Mark Sonnenblick and Sukari Jones were celebrated for their collective work on hit holiday musical comedy Spirited.
In other categories, Simon Franglen won Top Box Office Film of the Year for his captivating score to the stunning blockbuster film Avatar: The Way of Water, and industry titan David Vanacore was named the top Most Performed Themes and Underscore winner for his work on shows including Survivor, The Kardashians and The Daily Show. Composers Matthew Hawkins, Maurice “m.0.” Jackson and Neil Martin earned Top Network Television Seriesfor their main theme for NCIS, while John Sereda received Top Cable Television Series for his music in the historical drama When Calls the Heart.
The complete list of winners is available on the ASCAP website: www.ascap.com/screenawards23.
