Sally & Darren Seltmann talk composing for TV show ‘The Letdown’, navigating challenges, and more

When partners in life Sally Seltmann and Darren Seltmann paired up professionally as a dynamic composer duo, magic ensued. At the 2016 Screen Music Awards, the Seltmanns won Best Original Song Composed for the Screen for ‘Dancing in the Darkness’, used in the TV comedy series, The Letdown.

The pair may be accomplished singer-songwriters in their own right – Darren co-founded none other The Avalanches and Sally’s musical accomplishments, including her work with Seeker Lover Keeper and Feist, could fill a novel. Now, after releasing a soundtrack album for the show, The Letdown (Music from Seasons 1+2), in March, they’re up for another Screen Music Award, this time for Best Soundtrack Album.

Ahead of tonight’s first ever virtual Screen Music Awards, Sally and Darren Seltmann take us through the differing approach to composing for screen when compared to their own individual projects, how they navigate musical challenges, and much more.

ON DIRECTION…

Sally: “When Darren and I write for screen, we are constantly taking direction from the creators of the film / TV show. What is the backstory of the character? What is she thinking during the scene? How will the scene be shot? Is there conflict with another character in the scene… that sort of thing.

“When we wrote ‘Dancing in the Darkness’ for The Letdown, we were thinking about the main character, Audrey, and her struggles with adapting to becoming a mother. We wanted to make a song that – musically and lyrically – spoke about the truths of parenthood and the common vulnerabilities felt by new mums.”

Check out ‘Dancing In The Darkness’:

Darren: “We were extremely lucky that Sarah Scheller and Alison Bell (The creators of The Letdown) encouraged us to be our musical selves, it was a bit like ‘you do you!’ We would read the script and think – I can hear an emotion or tone that might work with this scene, then you go off and write with some intent but also a lot of freedom, which is quite similar to traditional song-writing.

“But then there’s requests like, ‘OK we need 38 seconds of music here to go from funny to tender.. and we need it back before lunch’. That’s when I might go to the voice memo library, usually recorded when I’m walking the dog at night, and pull out a few little ideas to start the ball rolling when time is tight and there’s no need for a B section or regular song structure.”

ON THE REWARDS

Sally: “It’s wonderful seeing the final edit of an episode, particularly the moments when music I composed is working so beautifully with the visuals. That’s an incredible feeling!

“I’m also often inspired by the actors and directors and writers, and learn so much from them, and then bring what I’ve learned back into my practise as a solo artist.”

Darren: “I’ll never forget being at a screening of the first episode of The Letdown at a cinema in Darlinghurst and had to keep myself from jumping in the air every time music was heard. It was deeply satisfying, in a way I never expected.

“After months of edits, re-do’s and hoping you haven’t done everything wrong.. then to watch it in a crowd and feel the music work emotionally and help a couple of laughs. I was blown away.”

Stream The Letdown (Music from Seasons 1+2):

ON NAVIGATING CHALLENGES

Sally: “There can be quite a lot of give and take when you collaborate with someone, particularly when you’re faced with challenges. Occasionally, the director and creators of the show requested that we compose and record something very quickly, and this can bring about a lot of stress and tension in the studio.

“Making decisions on melody, phrasing, instruments used, tempo…etc. is challenging when you are under a really tight deadline. Luckily, Darren and I worked well together under these circumstances.

“At times, I would let him go for it, in terms of composition and arrangements, and at other times he’d let me take the wheel. And from there, we’d build the track together and hand it in, hoping they would approve!”

Darren: “Challenges… what challenges?! Honestly the challenges were very minor working on The Letdown, I think mostly due to having two heads instead of one and accidentally creating an oversupply of music in pre-production.

“Series 1 of The Letdown was our first experience writing for the screen and because we had no idea what we were doing we set about creating an elaborate music library divided into a range of emotions and genres that we hoped might suit the script.

“We thought that’s how everyone worked. It was just fun and free experimentation, making all sorts of music with multiple versions. We would set up a few instruments and be like – “time for Japanese Reggae!” or we’d have a go at Appalachian folk..  Skate punk etc. We had a ball.

“Sally and I are very lucky to have worked together for nearly 25 years now and the lines of communication are direct and honest.. no need for niceties! We work fast and sometimes it even feels like we’re writing in fast forward because we’re both jumping ahead in our minds anticipating where we need to go or how to resolve or challenge a direction.

“I can’t imagine how a single composer does it or how I could do it without Sally.”

Check out the trailer for Season 2 of The Letdown:

2020 Screen Music Awards nominees

Feature Film Score of the Year

Title                           Escape from Pretoria
Composed by            David Hirschfelder
Published by              Cas Music Australia obo Copyright Administration Films

Title                            Nekrotronic
Composed by             Michael Lira

Title                            The Vigil
Composed by             Michael Yezerski

Title                            True History of the Kelly Gang
Composed by             Jed Kurzel
Published by               G Schirmer Australia obo Chester Music

Best Music for a Documentary

Title                            Bikram: Yogi, Guru, Predator 
Composed by             Cornel Wilczek / Pascal Babare
Published by               BMG Rights Management obo Maisie Anthems

Title                            Machine         
Composed by             Matteo Zingales
Published by              Sonar Music

Title                            Maralinga Tjarutja
Composed by             Antony Partos
Published by              Sonar Music

Title                            Quilty: Painting the Shadows
Composed by             Damien Lane / Amanda Brown
Published by               Kobalt Music Publishing obo Lillipilli IP

Best Music for a Short Film

Title                            Bolzmann
Composed by             Jonathan Dreyfus / Amy Andersen

Title                            I Want To Make A Film About Women
Composed by             Caitlin Yeo

Title                            The Hammerstone
Composed by             Jackson Milas

Title                            The Sand That Ate the Sea
Composed by              Luke Howard
Published by               Secretly Canadian Publishing

Best Soundtrack Album

Title                            Hearts and Bones
Composed by             Rafael May
Published by               Cooking Vinyl Publishing

Title                            Judy & Punch
Composed by             François Tétaz
Published by               Sony/ATV Music Publishing

Title                            Lambs of God
Composed by             Bryony Marks
Published by               Kobalt Music Publishing obo Lillipilli IP

Title                            The Letdown
Composed by             Sally Seltmann*/Darren Seltmann
Published by               Sony/ATV Music Publishing*

Best Original Song Composed for the Screen

Title                            Ballad of the Bridge-Builders from The Skin of Others
Composed by             David Bridie*/Tom Murray
Published by               Mushroom Music*

Title                             Bear’s Theme from Bear: Koala Hero
Composed by              Adam Gock/Brontë Horder/Mitch Stewart/Dinesh Wicks

Title                            Carry You from Upright
Composed by             Tim Minchin
Published by               Kobalt Music Publishing obo Navel Enterprises

Title                            Edge of Something from Total Control
Composed by             Missy Higgins*/Antony Partos/Matteo Zingales
Published by               Mushroom Music* / Sonar Music

Best Music for Children’s Television

Title                            Alice Miranda: Friends Forever 
Composed by             Ryan Grogan

Title                            Bluey: Flatpack
Composed by             Joff Bush
Published by               Universal Music Publishing obo BBC Worldwide Limited

Title                            Thalu: Shadow Boxer
Composed by             Ned Beckley/Josh Hogan

Title                            The Strange Chores: Train Snorp
Composed by             Joff Bush
Published by               Ludo Studio Pty Ltd

Best Television Theme

Title                            Thalu (Ngarndu Ngurra)
Composed by             Ned Beckley/Josh Hogan/Tyson Mowarin

 Title                           Operation Buffalo 
Composed by             Antony Partos
Published by               Sonar Music

Title                            The Commons
Composed by             Roger Mason

Title                            Unorthodox
Composed by             Antonio Gambale
Published by               BMG Rights Management obo Maisie Anthems

Best Music for a Television Series or Serial

Title                            Everything’s Gonna Be Ok: Seven-Spotted Ladybug
Composed by             Bryony Marks
Published by               Native Tongue Music Publishing obo Avalon Management Group

Title                            Glitch: Perfectly Safe
Composed by             Cornel Wilczek

Title                            The Secrets She Keeps
Composed by             Amanda Brown
Published by               Kobalt Music Publishing obo Lillipilli IP

Title                            You Can’t Ask That: Killed Someone
Composed by             Andrew Sampford
Published by               Universal Music Publishing obo ABC Music Publishing

Best Music for a Mini-Series or Telemovie

Title                            Operation Buffalo 
Composed by             Antony Partos
Published by               Sonar Music

Title                            Stateless 
Composed by             Cornel Wilczek / Tom Rouch* / Pascal Babare
Published by               Native Tongue Music Publishing*

Title                            The Commons
Composed by             Roger Mason

Title                            Unorthodox
Composed by             Antonio Gambale
Published by               BMG Rights Management obo Maisie Anthems

Best Music for an Advertisement

Title                            Georgetown Optician: Eyes Say More Than Words
Composed by             Scott Langley
Published by               Squeak E. Clean Studios

Title                            Klarna: Get What I Love
Composed by             Brendan Tuckerman* / Thandi Phoenix~/ Matt Ford / Jack Steele
Published by              Sony/ATV Music Publishing*/Universal Music Publishing
obo Peppermintblue  Publishing~

Title                            Nippon Steel: Stuck On You
Composed by             Jonathan Dreyfus / Amy Andersen

Title                            Women With Agency: Women Run
Composed by             Angie Coffey

Most Performed Screen Composer – Australia

Composers:                Adam Gock and Dinesh Wicks 

Composer:                 Anthony El-Ammar

Composer:                 Jay Stewart

Composer:                 Mitch Stewart

Most Performed Screen Composer – Overseas

Composer:                 Jed Kurzel

Composer:                 Michael Yezerski

Composer:                 Neil Sutherland

Composer:                 Nerida Tyson-Chew 

2020 SCREEN MUSIC AWARDS

Premiering Tuesday 1 December from 7:00pm AEDT on YouTube Premiere

Hosted by Justine Clarke, Meyne Wyatt and Claudia Karvan

Musical Director Jessica Wells

RSVP to watch here

This article originally appeared on The Industry Observer, which is now part of The Music Network.