Beyond the Mask - Film Scoring

Jurgen digitally sketches a cue in his studio.

“I don’t create music, I create emotions,” explains Beyond the Mask’s composer Jurgen Beck. “The music partners up with the story and the visuals and cinematography to achieve that.”

This week, I had the privilege of interviewing Jurgen to find out more about the work he’s doing for Beyond the Mask.  He is a gifted musician, and became involved in producing music early in life. Having grown up in Germany, his gentle accent has been softened by the years he has lived in Texas. I noticed his accent most when he pronounced the names of some of his favorite German composers, such as Johann Bach, Ludwig Beethoven, or Hans Zimmer. Americans definitely don’t say those names correctly! Jurgen offers a quick smile, an easy laugh, and is eager to share about his passion with music.

Jurgen loves music, but one of the aspects that most excites him is the ability to tell a story with his composing. Like every great storyteller, Jurgen seeks to create an emotional arc for his audience. The difference is that he uses instruments, not words. “In general, music needs to really partner up with the overall storytelling, and in some ways, tell the story from a different perspective – adding some additional depth to what is on the screen,” he tells.

Because the music primarily plays in the background of a movie, as viewers, we may not even fully realize how the music affects us. But if you wonder about its impact, just try muting a video. “Watching a film without sound leaves a lot to be desired,” says Jurgen. But “as soon as the music and the sound is back in, you really get the full impact of how the story is being told in the film.”

Music adds great depth to the storytelling process of a film. Jurgen compares a soundtrack to the narration in a novel: “If you take a movie that was based on a book and you compare the book with what’s actually ending up in the film, you’ll see that the book is much more explicit. There’s more time to really go into what the characters are thinking about. In a film, music takes some of those qualities, from an emotional perspective, and adds them to what is actually on the screen. For Beyond the Mask, what that means is, music has the opportunity to tell some of the back story. . . some of the emotions that the characters might feel.”

You might be surprised how much back story the soundtrack is going to hold. One big element is the historical setting of Beyond the Mask... (continue reading)
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Beyond the Mask - Composer

Award-winning composer Jurgen Beck was born in Germany in 1962, and began his musical journey early in life. His passion for music grew though training on the trumpet (Fluegelhorn), guitar, piano, and bass.

Growing up a country know for its legendary composers, Jurgen’s love for music found further expression though writing songs and lyrics for his band, which eventually resulted in a recording contract and concert tours. When Jurgen moved to Dallas, Texas in 1987 to continue his music studies at a Christian college, he began producing music for independent artists, developing his skills in music arrangement, recording, mixing, and mastering.

In 2008, Jurgen’s love for film music resulted in a natural transition from writing and producing music to writing for film. To prepare him for the unique challenges of film scoring, Jurgen studied composition and orchestration with internationally renowned composers Leon Willett and Stephen Hill. Since then, he has composed the score for over a dozen documentaries, TV episodes, shorts, and feature films.

Jurgen, his wife Shawn, their daughter Arianna, and their dogs, Molly and Gracie, reside in the city of Midlothian in northern Texas. Please join us in welcoming them to the Beyond the Mask team! You can check out some of Jurgen’s earlier work here.
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The Penny update

"As of this past Friday night "The Penny" edit is officially VIDEO LOCKED!! For those unfamiliar with the term, "video lock" means that all video editing has been completed and the timing of the film is locked in. While that portion of the editing process is now complete there is still quite a bit of post-production work left to do in the coming months."

"Also, we are excited to announce that Jurgen Beck has been brought on to write and produce the original soundtrack for "The Penny"!

Jurgen was selected out of a skilled pool of composers who auditioned for the project. His work really stood out from the rest and we look forward to seeing what his talents will bring to the project. "