Composer Michael Giacchino has been presented with the International Film Music Critics Association Award for Best Original Score for a Fantasy/Science Fiction/Horror Film in 2012 for John Carter by IFMCA members Jon Broxton and Craig Lysy.
This is Giacchino’s 12th win from 30 nominations; he previously received IFMCA Awards in 2004 for The Incredibles, in 2005 for the TV series Lost, in 2007 for Ratatouille, in 2008 for Cloverfield, in 2009 for Up and Star Trek, and in 2011 for Super 8. The other nominees in the fantasy/science fiction/horror category were Cloud Atlas by Tom Tykwer, Johnny Klimek and Reinhold Heil, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey by Howard Shore, Prometheus by Marc Streitenfeld and Harry Gregson-Williams, and Sinister by Christopher Young
John Carter is a lavish science fiction action saga based on the classic novel by Edgar Rice Burroughs, and stars Taylor Kitsch in the titular role as a former Confederate Army captain in the American Civil War who is miraculously transported to Mars, where he gets caught up in a fantastic adventure involving a decades-old conflict between rival races, mysterious inter-dimensional beings, four-armed aliens, and a beautiful and exotic princess. Michael Giacchino’s score for the film is equally lavish, a bold and powerful full-orchestral score with memorable themes, pulsating and complicated action music, and a broad thematic sweep that stands with the classics of the genre.
In addition to his nomination in the Fantasy/Science Fiction/Horror category, Giacchino was also nominated for Film Music Composition of the Year for the wonderful suite, “John Carter of Mars”
New Jersey-born Giacchino began his career writing music video games in the late 1990s, most notably The Lost World, Call of Duty, Secret Weapons Over Normandy, and especially the first several entries in the Medal of Honor series, before making a switch into television and film. A pioneer for composers who aspire to graduate from game to movies scores, Giacchino quickly achieved success, working on hit TV shows Alias and Lost, and successful movies including The Incredibles (2004), Ratatouille (2007), Up (2009) and Cars 2 (2011) for Pixar, as well as Mission Impossible III (2006), Star Trek (2009), Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol (2011), and this year’s Star Trek Into Darkness.
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With many thanks to Dave Martina. Photography by Holly McQuillan.