Germaine Franco’s Oscar-nominated score for Encanto won outstanding original score for a studio film at the third annual SCL Awards, which are presented by the Society of Composers & Lyricists Awards. The awards were presented on Tuesday (March 8) at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles.
Franco’s score was competing here with three other Oscar-nominated scores — Nicholas Britell’s Don’t Look Up, Hans Zimmer’s Dune, and Jonny Greenwood’s The Power of the Dog.
Franco, the first woman to score a Disney animated feature film, is vying to become the first Latina to win an Oscar for best original score.
The fifth Oscar-nominated score, Alberto Iglesias’s Parallel Mothers, competed in a different category at the SCL Awards. It vied for outstanding original score for an independent film, where it lost to Daniel Hart’s The Green Knight.
Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell’s title song from No Time to Die won the SCL Award for outstanding original song for a drama/documentary. It is also Oscar-nominated for best original song. It beat another Oscar nominee, Diane Warren’s “Somehow You Do” from Four Good Days. The three other Oscar nominees for best original song weren’t nominated here.
Eilish and Finneas accepted their SCL award virtually. In their video message, they shared that they were honored to be recognized by “some of the great composers and lyricists of our time.”
The awards were presented about five weeks later than originally planned. They were originally set to be presented on Feb. 1, but the show was postponed in early January due to the spread of the Omicron variant. With the postponement, the show lost its original host, Emmy winner Darren Criss. Aloe Blacc hosted in his place.
Awards were presented across seven categories for music in visual media (film, TV, streaming, interactive).
Hildur Guđnadóttir and Sam Slater won in the interactive media category for Battlefield 2042. This marks Guđnadóttir’s third SCL Award since the inaugural ceremony in 2020, at which she took home prizes in both film and television categories for Joker and Chernobyl respectively. She went on to win an Oscar for Joker.
The Spirit of Collaboration Award was presented to Oscar-nominated composer Carter Burwell and Oscar-winning filmmakers Joel Coen and Ethan Coen. That award to composers and filmmakers who have worked together harmoniously is the SCL Awards’ most distinctive honor. Burwell and the Coen Brothers have collaborated on 17 films including Raising Arizona, The Big Lebowski, O Brother, Where Art Thou?, No Country for Old Men, Fargo, and The Tragedy of Macbeth, which was directed and adapted by Joel Coen.
The first ever David Raksin Award for emerging talent was awarded to Stephanie Economou for Jupiter’s Legacy. The award is named after the Oscar-nominated film scorer (Forever Amber, Separate Tables) who died in 2004.
The event included musical performances from Grammy winner Judith Hill (20 Feet From Stardom) as well as Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear, the Grammy-nominated songwriters behind Bridgerton: The Unofficial Musical. A musical tribute musical by the Carter Burwell Ensemble accompanied the Spirit of Collaboration award.
The Society of Composers & Lyricists (SCL) is the primary organization for professional film, television, video game, and musical theater composers and lyricists. The organization is focused on education and addressing the creative, technological, legal, newsworthy issues affecting the music for visual media community. For more information, visit the SCL’s website or go to thescl.com/scl-awards/.
Here’s the complete list of nominees and winners:
Outstanding original score for a studio film:
Nicholas Britell, Don’t Look Up, Netflix
Hans Zimmer, Dune, Warner Bros.
WINNER: Germaine Franco, Encanto, Walt Disney Pictures
Alexandre Desplat, The French Dispatch, Searchlight Pictures
Jonny Greenwood, The Power of the Dog, Netflix
Outstanding original score for an independent film:
Kubilay Uner, American Traitor: The Trial of Axis Sally, Vertical Entertainment
WINNER: Daniel Hart, The Green Knight, A24
Rachel Portman, Julia, Storyville Films/CNN
Alberto Iglesias, Parallel Mothers, Sony Pictures Classics
Jonny Greenwood, Spencer, Neon/Topic Studios
Outstanding original song for a musical/comedy:
WINNER: Nicholas Britell, Ariana Grande, Scott Mescudi, Taura Stinson, “Just Look Up,” Don’t Look Up, Netflix
Jamie Hartman, Jennifer Hudson, Carole King, “Here I Am (Singing My Way Home),” Respect, MGM/United Artists
Amie Doherty, “Fearless,” Spirit Untamed, Dreamworks Animation
Kris Bowers, Siedah Garrett, “Together All The Way,” Dear White People, Netflix
Lin-Manuel Miranda, “Home All Summer,” In the Heights, Warner Bros.
Outstanding original song for a drama/documentary
XWINNER: Billie Eilish, Finneas O’Connell, “No Time to Die,” No Time to Die, MGM/United Artists
XDiane Warren, “Somehow You Do,” Four Good Days, Vertical Entertainment
Rufus Wainwright, “Secret Sister,” Rebel Hearts, Discovery+
Diane Warren, “(Never Gonna) Tame You,” The Mustangs: America’s Wild Horses, Virgil Films
Shawn Carter, Scott Mescudi, Jeymes Samuel, “Guns Go Bang,” The Harder They Fall, Netflix
Outstanding original score for television:
Natalie Holt, Loki, Disney+
Jung Jae-il, Squid Game, Netflix
Nicholas Britell, Succession, HBO
Christophe Beck, Wandavision, Disney
WINNER: Cristabel Tapia de Veer, The White Lotus, Apple
Outstanding original score for interactive media:
Austin Wintory, Alien Fireteam Elite, Cold Iron
WINNER: Hildur Guđnadóttir & Sam Slater, Battlefield 2042, Digital Illusions CE, Electronic Arts
Germaine Franco, Kung Fu Panda: Land of Awesomeness, Universal Beijing Resort & Dreamworks Animation
David Raksin award:
Joy Ngaiw, Blush, Apple TV+
Anne-Kathrin Dern, The Claus Family, Netflix
WINNER: Stephanie Economou, Jupiter’s Legacy, Netflix
Spirit of collaboration award:
Recipients: composer Carter Burwell and filmmakers Joel Coen & Ethan Coen
