▸ Welcome To The Course: How to join the community and get the most out of the program.

▸ Set Up Your Studio: Set up for maximum creativity, focus and efficiency, including equipment and software recommendations for every budget.

▸ Download the Materials: How to access and use the scoring templates, sample scenes, and practice files that come with the course.

Get started, connected and set up for success. Download the templates, practice files and scenes so you can jump right in.

▸ Choose a Scene: Hit the ground running - choose a scene from our library and learn how to watch it like a composer.

▸ Start Exploring Sounds: Learn what to listen for to build a cohesive, balanced, cinematic, emotionally compelling, unique and interesting instrument palette.

▸ Follow Along: Watch as Ian picks a scene, discusses it and builds a palette from scratch, then create your own, step by step.

▸ At the End of the Module: You’ll understand your scene and what it needs, and you’ll have a unique palette of sounds, well balanced across categories so it sounds great in the mix and is ready for you to start scoring.

You'll choose from our library of film scenes, then get to know the scene like a composer does - getting a feel for tone, pace, energy, emotional and story arcs. Discover how different instrument categories each contribute something emotionally, musically, and sonically unique. Learn how to balance your choices across categories to fill the sonic spectrum and create a unique palette that sounds great in the mix.

Watch as Ian builds a custom palette from scratch, then follow along and build your own.

By the end of this module, you’ll have a fully customized instrument palette, ready to score your first scene.

▸ How to Write for Strings: Learn how to write for each string instrument. Learn each string technique and how to harness the power, emotional range and versitility of string instruments.

▸ How to Write for Woodwinds: Every woodwind technique and how to write for them to conjure different emotions and add air and atmosphere to the score.

▸ How to Write for Brass: Learn to use the power, warmth and weight of each brass instrument.

▸ How to Write for Orchestral Percussion: Learn to support the orchestra and provide weight, energy and atmosphere to your score.

▸ How to Write for Piano: Learn how to use this incredibly versatile instrument to evoke intimacy, power, to be paired with an orchestra, played solo or integrated into any other sonic palette.

▸ How to Create an Amazing Orchestral Demo: Learn Ian's techniques to layer virtual orchestral instruments to create emotional, powerful demos that knock filmmaker's socks off - and that everyone thinks is the real thing.

The orchestra is used frequently in film scoring for a reason - an orchestra can sound classic, modern or timeless. It has incredible versatility, range, depth and power, and every professional composer needs to be well versed in how to use it.

Take a deep dive - learn how each orchestral instrument works and how to write for them so they sound amazing, and how to write for the orchestra as an ensemble. Learn every technique each instrument can play and how they can be combined or used individually for visceral emotions that bring film scenes to life and keep audiences on the edge of their seats.

Watch as Ian orchestrates a piano piece using virtual instruments to create a lifelike orchestral demo, then take his piano piece (or write your own) and create your own orchestral version.

By the end of this module, you'll have a professional-level understanding of writing for orchestra and creating an orchestral demo.

▸ Using Guitars: Whether using a sampled guitar, playing a real guitar yourself or hiring a guitarist - learn the many ways guitars can be used in a film scoring context

▸ Using Synthesizers and Keyboards: Learn different types of synth sounds and how they can function in a scene and in a mix. Harness these powerful instruments to bring weight, mystery and modernity to your score.

▸ Using Samplers: Play any instrument in the world, record your own samples to have custom instruments or create custom sound design, all playable on your keyboard. Samplers are the lifeblood of modern film scoring!

▸ Using World Instruments or Build Your Own: Learn different categories of world instruments you can use to make your score pop with uniqueness and energy. Learn how building your own simple instruments can make your score even more unique and intriguing.

▸ Using Loops & Electronic Percussion: Learn modern tools and techniques for fresh energy and rhythm.

Make your scores sound unique, creative and well-produced! You can score a whole film with orchestra, but we can usually get much more depth and power by exploring lots of other instruments - plus it's super fun!

Take a deep dive into the many types of instruments you can use as a composer. Learn how to use everything from synthesizers and guitars to samplers and unusual instruments.

Learn to add mystery, intrigue and emotion with unusual instruments, how to use effects and production tools to make sounds larger than life, cinematic and powerful, or add invisible weight and depth to an orchestral score. Learn how to choose the right instrument for the right moment and how to layer sounds for amazing cinema.

Watch as Ian creates synth and guitar sounds from scratch, then create your own.

By the end of this module, you’ll understand how you can use each instrument to make your scores creative, intriguing and unique.

▸ Working With Solo Vocal Samples: Learn to use pre-existing vocal samples and phrases, fit them into your track and make them sound unique and powerful.

▸ Working With a Solo Vocalist: Learn to work with a session singer.

▸ Writing For Choir: Learn to write for choir to add power and humanity to your scores. Create amazing, lifelike demos using virtual instruments, ready to record with real choir (if you want).

▸ Using Your Own Voice: Learn to record your own voice (good or bad - doesn't matter!) and use it in various ways to make your scores unique.

Vocals have the power to instantly connect to the audience. Bring warmth, understanding and humanity to your scores with vocals - learn to work with a solo vocalist, write for choir, work with vocal samples, and use your own voice (you can do it!).

Watch as Ian adds solo vocals, choir, and sings on his orchestrated piece and produces the vocals into the track, then add vocals to your own piece.

▸ Thematic Mindset: Learn how to approach theme - developing empathy for characters, writing from their perspective, and creating musical ideas that feel like an intrinsic part of the film while unlocking the film's emotions, hook the audience and guide them to emotionally connect.

▸ Artistic Principles and How To Use Them: Learn how to use wave mentality, tension and release, leading lines, the golden ratio & the three act structure to build compelling musical arcs.

▸ Melody, Counterline, Chords, Rhythm: Learn how to use melody, harmony, and rhythm together to create something emotionally resonant and musically strong.

▸ Subverting Expectations: Discover how to surprise your audience without losing coherence.

▸ Write Versatile Themes that Cover A Whole Film: Consider the different emotional and storytelling situations your theme will cover, and learn to write a theme that captures the audience at different stages of the story.

▸ Ian Writes A Theme: Watch Ian write a full theme in real time, explaining the musical and emotional choices behind each decision.

Learn why themes are essential, how to craft melodies, counterlines, and chord structures, how to use rhythm to pull the audience to the edge of their seat and keep them there by subverting expectations.

Explore different theme structures and learn to think in waves to shape complete musical ideas. Make your music emotionally impactful by applying universal artistic principles.

Watch Ian compose a full theme on piano from scratch, then apply what you’ve learned to write your own theme.

By the end of this module, you’ll have all the musical material you'll need to score a scene.

▸ Artistic Structure Principles: Learn how wave mentality, tension and release, the golden ratio and the three act structure are used to structure a film cue.

▸ Turning Points, Hit Points & Markers: Learn how to identify the key moments in a scene and build your cue around them.

▸ Tempo Map: Learn to pick the right tempo(s) for the scene so your music naturally lands perfectly on hit points and turning points.

Structure your music for maximum emotional impact, guiding the audience through the film’s narrative. Explore the three-act structure, the concept of forward pull, and how to identify and use hit points and turning points in a scene.

Watch as Ian analyzes a scene, finds key moments and and the perfect tempo(s), and adds markers to guide the score’s intensity. Then apply these techniques to a specific scene, mapping out its dramatic flow and identifying the key emotional beats that your music will support.

By the end of this module, you'll understand how to shape the intensity of a film cue and have a fully structured scene ready for scoring in the next module.

▸ Why Does a Cue Resonate, and what are our goals?

▸ Emotional Storytelling, pacing & supporting subtext

▸ How to start a cue like a character entering a scene: Learn intentional and well-timed scene entrances.

▸ Work with Motion & Momentum: Utilize ostinatos, pulses, arpeggios, and rhythmic flow to keep the cue alive and engaging.

▸ Use a Piano Map: Sketch out the cue using a simple but effective method before orchestrating.

▸ Shape the Emotional Arc: Guide the audience’s emotions with melodic development, harmonic shifts, and dynamics.

▸ Write Around Dialogue: Learn how to write in a natural way, which supports dialog without overwhelming it.

▸ Assign Initial Instrumentation: Begin thinking orchestrationally, choosing which sections of the orchestra (or synths) will carry key moments.

Write the core of your film cue. This is where your ideas become real music, and you begin shaping the emotional impact of the scene. Write a piano map, then start assigning parts to instruments in your palette.

Watch as Ian writes a cue using the theme, structure and palette developed earlier in the course, then write your own cue.

By the end of this module, you’ll have a complete piano map and the first orchestration decisions locked in - with a clear plan to take your cue from a sketch to a fully realized, cinematic score.

▸ Choose Instruments: Use instruments in your palette - or find new instruments - to build the cue.

▸ Play Every Instrument Yourself: Learn to get a realistic, great sounding demo by performing every part with emotion on the keyboard.

▸ Produce for Power & Depth: Learn to use pro techniques and tools like doubling, layering, reverb, delay and overdrive to create a larger-than-life sound.

▸ Enhance the Film’s Scale: Match the scope of the scene and push the edges to get the biggest experience for the audience possible.

▸ Work with Musicians: How different types of musicians can help you at different stages of writing.

Bring your cue to life with orchestration, layering, and production techniques. This is where your score transforms from a sketch into a fully immersive cinematic experience.

By the end of this module, you’ll have a fully orchestrated, polished film cue, ready for mixing and mastering.

▸ Cleaning Up & Clarifying Each Instrument: Learn how to refine your mix by adjusting levels, EQ, compression, and overdrive to make every instrument speak clearly.

▸ Blending for a Cohesive Sound: Techniques to glue your mix together, making sure all elements sit well in the sonic space without overpowering each other.

▸ Reverb & Depth: How to use reverb to create space and realism, and make your mix feel cinematic and immersive.

▸ The ‘Mix Quiet’ Principle: Why mixing at low volumes helps you balance your cue properly, ensuring clarity and impact without relying on loudness.

▸ Final Master for a Composer’s Demo Mix: Learn how to prepare your mix for playback in a real film setting, making sure it’s balanced, clear, and emotionally impactful.

Make your music shine - learn the principles of film music mixing and how to get the most power, emotion, space, weight and vibe out of your cue.

Watch as Ian mixes and masters his finished cue, then mix and master your own.

By the end of this module, you’ll have a finished, professional-sounding cue that’s ready for placement in the film.

▸ How to Handle Revisions: And why they're normal and essential.

▸ How to Handle "Temp Love"

▸ The Art of Collaboration: Communicating with filmmakers and balancing your creativity with their perspectives, opinions and needs.

Learn how to go through the film scoring process, by playing your cue for a director and addressing feedback.

Watch as Ian plays his cue for a director, receives feedback, and revises it in real-time. Then, revise your own cue, making changes efficiently while staying true to your creative voice.

By the end of this module, you’ll be ready to handle feedback professionally and collaborate effectively on real-world film projects.

▸ How To Write Action/Thriller:

▸ How To Write Drama:

▸ How To Write Adventure:

▸ How To Write Animation:

Learn how to think about genre and how genres are different, but the same. Learn to write in different genres while maintaining your unique sound.

Choose scenes from the library in different genres, and go through the process for each genre.

By the end of this module, you'll have the skills to tackle any film genre, and a substantial showreel of your own film music, ready to send to filmmakers.

▸ Recording and Mixing: How to work with an orchestrator, orchestra, solo musicians, and recording and mixing engineers.

▸ Cue Management: keeping track of versions, stems, and mix notes.

▸ How to Handle Last-Minute Picture Changes most efficiently.

▸ Finalizing Your Cue For Delivery: What formats and stems post production mixers expect and how to meet their needs.

▸ Archiving your music so you can quickly find it in the future.

Watch Ian prepare his cue for delivery, ensuring everything is properly formatted, labeled, and export-ready. Then, you’ll go through the process yourself, learning how to keep your work organized and ready for any last-minute adjustments.

By the end of this module, you’ll be confident in delivering finished, professional-level film music.

▸ How film composers make money: royalties, sync fees and more.

▸ Understanding PROs (ASCAP, BMI, SESAC): why you need one and how to register.

▸ The difference between being a writer and a publisher and why you should be both.

▸ The Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC) & Neighboring Rights: how they work and why you should register.

▸ Action steps to collect all the royalties you're due.

By the end of this module, you'll be fully set up to protect your music and earn all the royalties you're owed.

▸ Networking for composers: Where to find opportunities and how to connect with filmmakers.

▸ How to pitch yourself effectively: Crafting an irresistible showreel and outreach strategy.

▸ Who to send your reel to and how to make it stand out.

▸ The different types of film music work: From indie films to TV, commercials, games, and library music Action steps to start getting noticed and moving toward paid work

By the end of this module, you'll have a clear understanding of what to do next to start getting real scoring opportunities.

Learn how to navigate the challenges of time management, creative burnout, and budgeting for your projects. You'll discover:

▸ What To Do and How To Act on your first film.

▸ How to manage crazy deadlines without sacrificing quality.

▸ When to sleep and when to push through - balancing creative output and health.

▸ Should you spend your entire budget on recording? How to budget a film score to deliver the best quality possible while still earning money.

By the end of this module, you’ll have strategies to stay creative, productive, and sane while navigating the intense world of film scoring.