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Benjamin Wallfisch
Birth nameBenjamin Mark Lasker Wallfisch
Born (1979-08-07) 7 August 1979 (age 45)
London, England, U.K.
GenresFilm score
Occupation(s)Composer
conductor
orchestrator
producer
InstrumentsPiano, keyboards, synthesizer, guitar, drums
Years active2003–present
Associated actsHans Zimmer
Websitebenjaminwallfisch.com

Benjamin Mark Lasker Wallfisch (born 7 August 1979) is a British composer, conductor, orchestrator, and producer of film scores. Since the mid-2000s, he has worked on over 75 feature films, including composing original scores for Blade Runner 2049, Shazam!, It, It Chapter Two, The Invisible Man, Hidden Figures and A Cure for Wellness.

In 2017, he was jointly nominated with Pharrell Williams and Hans Zimmer for Best Original Score at the 74th Golden Globe Awards for his work on Hidden Figures, and a BAFTA Award and Grammy Award for Blade Runner 2049. In 2020, he was nominated as 'Film Composer of the Year' in the World Soundtrack Awards for the second consecutive year.

Wallfisch's movies have made over $2.5 billion in worldwide box office receipts, and in 2019 Variety inducted him into their ‘Billion Dollar Composer’ series in recognition of this.

Early life[]

Wallfisch was born on 7 August 1979 in London, England, the son of Elizabeth Wallfisch (née Hunt), an Australian Baroque violinist, and Raphael Wallfisch, a British cellist. He is the eldest of their three children. His paternal grandparents are pianist Peter Wallfisch and cellist Anita Lasker-Wallfisch, who was a member of the Women's Orchestra of Auschwitz. They were Jewish emigrants from the city of Breslau (now Wrocław). His great-grandfather was the conductor Albert Coates.

Career[]

Composer of Andy Muschietti's It and It Chapter Two, David F. Sandberg's Shazam!, Leigh Whannell's The Invisible Man and co-composer of Denis Villeneuve's Blade Runner 2049 (with Hans Zimmer), Benjamin Wallfisch has worked on over 75 feature films and received Golden Globe, BAFTA, 2x GRAMMY and EMMY nominations. He provided the score for Simon McQuoid's Mortal Kombat reboot film for New Line Cinema/Warner Bros.[1][2] He is also set to compose the score to Andy Muschietti’s The Flash.

Other recent projects include Neil Marshall's Hellboy, Academy Award Best Picture nominee, Ted Melfi's Hidden Figures (in collaboration with Pharrell Williams and Hans Zimmer) and David F. Sandberg's box office hit Annabelle: Creation. On the invitation of Hans Zimmer, he contributed music based on Elgar's 'Enigma' Variations for Christopher Nolan's Dunkirk.

In recent years, Benjamin has also scored Gore Verbinski's A Cure for Wellness, the Steven Spielberg produced short film Auschwitz, directed by James Moll, James Marsh's King of Thieves, starring Michael Caine, and Steven Knight's Serenity, starring Matthew McConaughey and Anne Hathaway.

With over 25 albums of his music released to date, Benjamin has performed live in over 100 concerts worldwide, leading orchestras such as the London Philharmonic, Philharmonia, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra and the Sydney Symphony at venues including the Hollywood Bowl, Sydney Opera House and Royal Festival Hall. He has collaborated, recorded and performed his music with artists including Lang Lang, Herbie Hancock and Yuja Wang, and has over 50 concert music commissions to his name.

He has collaborated three times with Pharrell Williams, including a live performance at the 2015 GRAMMY Awards and recently partnered with Adele, arranging her 2017 GRAMMY performance of George Michael's 'Fast Love'.

A member of the BAFTA Academy since 2009, Benjamin was appointed an Associate of the Royal Academy of Music, London in 2014. In 2017, he was invited to join the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences.[3]

Personal life[]

Wallfisch resides in Los Angeles, California with his wife and daughter.[citation needed]

Discography[]

Film[]

As primary score composer[]

Year Title Director(s) Studio(s) Notes
2005 Dear Wendy Thomas Vinterberg Lucky Punch
Nimbus Film Productions
Zentropa Entertainments
TV2 Danmark
Zentropa International Köln
Nominated – Robert Award for Best Score
2008 The Escapist Rupert Wyatt Picture Farm
Parallel Film Productions
Vertigo Films
N/A
2009 In Search of the Messiah Tim Meara Meara Films Documentary film
2012 Fetih 1453 Faruk Aksoy Aksoy Film
Medyapim
N/A
2013 Hours Eric Heisserer The Safran Company
PalmStar Media
Hours Capital
As composer and conductor
Hammer of the Gods Farren Blackburn Vertigo Films
Magnolia Pictures
Nominated – Hollywood Music in Media Award for Best Original Song
Summer in February Christopher Menaul CrossDay Productions Ltd.
Apart Films
Marwood Pictures
Hollywood Music in Media Award for Best Original Score
2014 Desert Dancer Richard Raymond CrossDay Productions Ltd.
Head Gear Films
Lipsync Productions
N/A
Bhopal: A Prayer for Rain Ravi Kumar Rising Star Entertainment
Wardour Media Group
Sahara One Motion Pictures
N/A
2015 Auschwitz James Moll Allentown Productions Documentary film
A Flickering Truth Pietra Brettkelly PBK Limited
Umbrella Entertainment
Gamba Tomohiro Kawamura
Yoshihiro Komori
Arad Productions
Grindstone Pictures
Shirogumi
N/A
Pressure Ron Scalpello Pinewood Pictures
Vertical Entertainment
N/A
Within Phil Claydon The Safran Company
New Line Cinema
Warner Bros.
N/A
2016 Lights Out David F. Sandberg New Line Cinema
RatPac-Dune Entertainment
Grey Matter Productions
Atomic Monster Productions
First collaboration with David F. Sandberg, as composer and conductor
Mully Scott Haze Bardis Productions
Sterling Light Productions
Documentary film
Hidden Figures Theodore Melfi Fox 2000 Pictures
Levantine Films
Chernin Entertainment
Composed with Hans Zimmer and Pharrell Williams
Nominated – Black Reel Award for Outstanding Original Score
Nominated – Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score
Nominated – Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media. Orchestra conducted by Timothy Williams
First collaboration with Theodore Melfi
A Cure for Wellness Gore Verbinski 20th Century Fox
Regency Enterprises
New Regency Productions
Blind Wink Productions
Orchestra Conducted by Gavin Greenaway
2017 Bitter Harvest George Mendeluk Devil's Harvest Productions
Roadside Attractions
D Films
As composer and conductor
Annabelle: Creation David F. Sandberg New Line Cinema
Warner Bros. Pictures
Atomic Monster Productions
Grey Matter Productions
Second collaboration With David F. Sandberg, orchestra conducted by Timothy Williams
It Andy Muschietti New Line Cinema
Warner Bros. Pictures
Vertigo Entertainment
First collaboration with Andy Muschietti
Blade Runner 2049 Denis Villeneuve Warner Bros. Pictures
Columbia Pictures
Alcon Entertainment
Scott Free Productions
Composed with Hans Zimmer
Replaced Jóhann Jóhannsson
Themes by Vangelis
Nominated – BAFTA Award for Best Film Music
Nominated – Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Score
Nominated – Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media
Nominated – Hollywood Music in Media Award for Best Original Score in a Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Horror Film
2018 The Darkest Minds Jennifer Yuh Nelson 20th Century Fox
21 Laps Entertainment
Orchestra conducted by Timothy Williams & Benjamin Wallfisch
King of Thieves James Marsh Working Title Films
StudioCanal UK
Orchestra conducted by Chris Egan
The Vanishing Kristoffer Nyholm Cross Creek Pictures
Saban Entertainment
Lionsgate Films
N/A
2019 Serenity Steven Knight IM Global Additional music by Antonio Andrade, orchestra conducted by Geoff Alexander
Shazam! David F. Sandberg DC Films
New Line Cinema
Warner Bros. Pictures
The Safran Company
Third collaboration with David F. Sandberg.[4] Orchestra Conducted by Chris Egan & Benjamin Wallfisch
Hellboy Neil Marshall Millennium Films
Dark Horse Entertainment
Additional music by Antonio Andrade, Jared Fly & Alex Lu. Orchestra conducted by Chris Egan and performed by The Chamber Orchestra of London
It Chapter Two Andy Muschietti New Line Cinema
Warner Bros. Pictures
Vertigo Entertainment
Second collaboration with Andy Muschietti
2020 The Invisible Man Leigh Whannell Universal Pictures
Blumhouse
Orchestra conducted by Chris Egan, performed by The Chamber Orchestra of London
Hollywood Music in Media Award for Best Original Score in a Horror Film
2021 Mortal Kombat Simon McQuoid Warner Bros. Pictures
New Line Cinema

Atomic Monster Productions

Broken Road Productions

N/A
The Starling Theodore Melfi Netflix Second collaboration with Theodore Melfi
2022 Thirteen Lives Ron Howard United Artists Releasing
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Universal Pictures
Bron Creative
Imagine Entertainment
N/A
2023 The Flash Andy Muschietti Warner Bros. Pictures
DC Films
The Disco Factory
Double Dream
Third collaboration with Andy Muschietti

As composer of additional music[]

Year Title Director(s) Composer(s) Studio(s) Notes
2009 Moon Duncan Jones Clint Mansell Stage 6 Films
Limelight Pictures
Sony Pictures Classics
N/A
2013 12 Years a Slave Steve McQueen Hans Zimmer Summit Entertainment
Regency Enterprises
Film4 Productions
Fox Searchlight Pictures
N/A
2015 The Little Prince Mark Osborne Hans Zimmer
Richard Harvey
ON Animation Studios
M6 Films
Netflix
N/A
2016 Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice Zack Snyder Hans Zimmer
Junkie XL
DC Films
RatPac-Dune Entertainment
Cruel and Unusual Films
Warner Bros. Pictures
N/A
2017 Dunkirk Christopher Nolan Hans Zimmer Syncopy Inc.
Warner Bros. Pictures
Composed the "Nimrod" variation, based on the theme by Edward Elgar

Television[]

Year Title Network(s) Notes
2009 Breaking the Mould BBC One Television film
2013 The Thirteenth Tale BBC Two
2014 The Crimson Field BBC One 6 episodes
2015 The Enfield Haunting Sky Witness 3 episodes
2019 Hostile Planet National Geographic

Theatre[]

Year Title Director(s) Notes
2009 Peter Pan Ben Harrison London / San Francisco

References[]

  1. Fischer, Tyler. "Mortal Kombat Reboot Award-Winning Composer Revealed". Comic Book. Archived from the original on 22 January 2020. Retrieved 22 January 2020.
  2. "'Mortal Kombat's Composer Began the Score Before Getting Hired — And Yes, It Includes the Iconic Theme". Collider. 6 March 2021. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
  3. "Benjamin Wallfisch". IMDb. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
  4. "Benjamin Wallfisch to Score David F. Sandberg's 'Shazam!' | Film Music Reporter". Retrieved 17 January 2019.

External links[]

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