2018 NEXT Section Sundance Trading Card Series: #2. Troy Herion (306 Hollywood)

Eric Lavallee: Name me three of your favorite “2017 discoveries”
Troy Herion: 1. The Optigan – an obscure organ from the 1970s
2. Oregon Rte 138 – highway of waterfalls
3. Ed Steed New Yorker cartoons

Lavallee: In this particular 70 year-life span, I imagine there were dominant instruments / this is your life type soundtracks that you leaned towards?
Herion: One of the “characters” in the movie is the collection of random objects that accumulate in a house over a lifetime. For those rummaging scenes I wanted a “sounds from the attic” vibe. One of my favorite instruments for this purpose is the Optigan – an obscure 1970s gimmick organ that plays back loops of studio musicians in styles like the “cha-cha” or “cocktail.” The old tape hiss and low fidelity create a one-of-a-kind sound texture that is full of nostalgic charm. In the finished score I combined Optigan drums, organ, and flute with live musicians.

Lavallee: Could you discuss your collaboration with the Bogaríns?
Herion: We’ve all been collaborating for years on smaller film and music projects and we love to create rich visual and sonic worlds. While I write music I often also make edits to the video. Sometimes it’s just finessing a few details, but it allows for a “musical” arc to the scene and punchy audiovisual rhythms which can really help a story flow.

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