OBJECTIVE:

• To create compositions conveying a sense of wonder and sophistication that felt cohesive with the animation style, all while supporting the overarching brand message of Butcher Box: to raise the bar on high-quality meat, delivered with ease.

PROCESS:

In collaboration with director Ben Severance, we put together a reference palette keying in on “Somebody that I Used To Know” by Gotye and the film scores of Joe Hisaishi (Studio Ghibli) and Michael Giacchino (Up). A blend of acoustic folk and orchestral instrumentation felt appropriate to the notion of a simpler path for the food that arrives at your table.

Working to the early stages of the animation we called upon composers and arrangers Darien Shulman, Christian Almiron, Eva Gertz, and Carmine Mattia to create traditional film scores. Additionally, we tapped James Beer and Dallas Thornton for a more pop-oriented approach that explored sampling orchestral elements as a nod to Gotye’s sampling of Luiz Bonfás “Seville” in the opening of their song.

After the first round of demos, we landed on a few select pieces to move forward with and tailored them as the animation approached its final iteration.

Our clients fell in love with a track called “Camden” written by Carmine Mattia and, once a final version was settled on, we booked a studio session at The Studio in Portland Maine to replace all the strings and woodwinds with live players. The depth and nuance this lent to the piece cannot be understated and, while the original sequenced version was good, the authenticity this added not only elevated the piece musically but spoke more directly to the ethos of the brand.