There’s been a lot of discussion about the sort of music we might use for the film. As I’ve said before, the soundscape is every bit as important to the way an audience perceives a story as the images through which it’s told. It’s not just for the emotional manipulation which is a feature of so many American movies where we’re instructed how we should be reacting to a particular scene. At it’s best, music complements and extends the meaning of a film through offering a broader sensual context. Think of Juno, where the soundtrack features a variety of artists who are perfectly fitted to the tone of the story.

Although the final music mix is one of the last stages of post, it is something that deserves thinking about. Small budget project that we are, we’ve had approaches from some very impressive candidates to do music for us – both experienced international composers and top of the line New Zealand performers. It’s flattering to get this sort of attention, but we also want to give careful thought to what will suit our film. The more accomplished candidates would want to score the film i.e. write new music to fit in with the cut. That is the traditional route for doing quality music.

But we are also considering a more radical approach in keeping with the grass roots nature of what The Insatiable Moon is all about. This would involve using original music from people who have experienced the mental health system first hand. If we went down that route, we’d be using a soundtrack a la Juno, with snippets of individual tracks rather than a scored backdrop. The deciding factor will be what suits the film best, but this is one of the options we’re considering. Our good friend Johnny Matteson has been referring musicians to us, as well as offering his own tracks. And the remarkable Luke Hurley (pictured above) has also been generous with his time and suggestions.

For the meantime, editor Paul Maxwell and director Rosemary Riddell will confer on a temporary soundtrack to go with the rough cut of the film.

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