It is a daunting task to try and become a professional sound designer or music composer for television, film, and new media. A hopeful audio professional can face choice anxiety on how and where to find work, promote their art, and create a paying business even though music in media is clearly everywhere. The following step by step method is very simple but absolutely effective in moving from a bedroom musician or studio rat to a independent professionally paid music composer or sound designer.
1. Take the totality of your mixes and sounds and create a demo CD or online posting of 30 second clips organized by mood, genre, etc. to hand out to interested producers who need audio.
2. Build a website which includes demo samples, a short relevant bio, credits, and a video reel of any previous work.
3. Hunt out low paying or even free gigs in order to gain credits and experience, establish business relationships, and build your resume, using your demo and website for demonstration of your work.
4. Create a databank of prospects who have money for music and sound by contacting animators, producers, video editors, directors, and post-production companies. Discover these helpful folks by finding gigs on online posts, joining professional organization, asking friends and family, networking through film group forums, and cold emailing.
5. Reconnect with all of your prospects via email every few months and send out an -e-newsletter with updates on your work, services, and some items relevant or interesting to your audience.
6. Continue to learn different aspects of the audio industry such as audio sweetening and technical skills such as video conversion, FTP use, and sample rate and file conversion.
7. Make sure your music license agreements and invoicing system is ready to go as the clients and inquiries begin to roll in.
Use these steps to build a professional career as a sound effects designer or music composer. Music is licensed all day long throughout the world and with the internet the licensees are at your fingertips. From start to finish, the above steps may take two to three years of focused effort but will result in success if your skills and talents are in good order. The world of music licensing is vast but varied and often elusive. But, when your preparation meets the opportunities you make, your career of choice will be in your grasp.
1. Take the totality of your mixes and sounds and create a demo CD or online posting of 30 second clips organized by mood, genre, etc. to hand out to interested producers who need audio.
2. Build a website which includes demo samples, a short relevant bio, credits, and a video reel of any previous work.
3. Hunt out low paying or even free gigs in order to gain credits and experience, establish business relationships, and build your resume, using your demo and website for demonstration of your work.
4. Create a databank of prospects who have money for music and sound by contacting animators, producers, video editors, directors, and post-production companies. Discover these helpful folks by finding gigs on online posts, joining professional organization, asking friends and family, networking through film group forums, and cold emailing.
5. Reconnect with all of your prospects via email every few months and send out an -e-newsletter with updates on your work, services, and some items relevant or interesting to your audience.
6. Continue to learn different aspects of the audio industry such as audio sweetening and technical skills such as video conversion, FTP use, and sample rate and file conversion.
7. Make sure your music license agreements and invoicing system is ready to go as the clients and inquiries begin to roll in.
Use these steps to build a professional career as a sound effects designer or music composer. Music is licensed all day long throughout the world and with the internet the licensees are at your fingertips. From start to finish, the above steps may take two to three years of focused effort but will result in success if your skills and talents are in good order. The world of music licensing is vast but varied and often elusive. But, when your preparation meets the opportunities you make, your career of choice will be in your grasp.
About the Author:
In addition to publishing articles, SFXsource also offers vast amounts of royalty free production music which can be listened to Music Library and hosts an sfx library at Sound Effects
