Music Supervisor.com Spotlights
Chris Mollere
Chris Mollere is music supervisor for the ABC/Disneys television series Kyle XY and Greek, as well as for films such as War Games 2: The Dead Code, and Dead Like Me.
Q: How has musicsupervisor.com helped you do your job?
A: I just log on, set up a project folder and search. I can work from anywhere. I'll download mp3s or just add them to my project folder. Then I'll go to the song info icon, and on the bottom it gives me the writers, the publishers, the splits, if they're BMI, ASCAP, etc. -- you guys make it really easy. You even have the song lyrics there, which is great because the Network's Standards and Practices department now wants to review all lyrics prior to air. It's one of the things that makes MS-Pro so useful.
Also, recently I have begun asking for digital delivery from music libraries -- you can only store so many CDs. When I get CDs I rip 'em into a hard drive store them in a catalog anyway. And so the CDs people send just sit there. The only useful parts are the booklets with information. With MS-Pro, I can get the final full .wav files and all the info I need at the website.
Finally, if I need some assistance, I like talking to you guys -- you do great searches for me. It's just nice knowing I have a resource like MS-Pro there for me any time of the day or night.
Q: What are the top two or three challenges you face as a supervisor?
A: The first would be deadlines, especially for TV because the turnaround time is so quick. The other biggest challenge is getting the producers to like more independent artists. Sometimes I like to give CDs to producers on TV shows, or directors on films, and expose them to the fact that there's a lot of great music out there. You don't have to be signed on a major record label to actually be good for the project.
Q: In TV, doesn't the short deadline make taking a new artist a lot easier?
A. The quick decision process demands that there isn't one thing that you can sit there and mull over.
Q: Have you experienced either Temp Track Song Burnout or Temp Love?
A: We had an episode of Kyle XY where we had a song temped in for two months. There were re-shoots. Although it was a great song, after awhile people had heard it so many times, they got tired of it, and we ended up switching it out.
Q: How much time in advance do you do clearance?
A: I generally do clearance about a week before we mix. It's a waste of paperwork and time if you do it too far out. If the song is with a major label, I give it more lead time, Sometimes there are co-publishers and multiple people who have to sign off on it. But that's where relationships come in. Hopefully you know the artists, the publishers, the label people -- and so you know what you can clear the song for and how fast.
Q: What was your work experience prior to Kyle XY and Greek?
A: I worked as a producer's assistant, music supervised a couple of indie films, worked for a TV composer and supervised a lot of commercials. Then I decided to go out on my own. You have to pay your dues. At first you have to have some other means of making money. When I moved out here I worked as an assistant to a lot of film producers. I learned a lot, working 80 to 90-hour weeks. But I wouldn't change it for the world. It taught me a lot about breaking down scripts, production, and I learned the broad spectrum of the entire industry very quickly.
Q: How did you get hired to do Kyle XY?
A: I became friends with one of the producers. We would always talk about music. She was talking to me one New Years Eve about it -- she had this show coming up. A couple of months later I got a call to see if I wanted to interview for the position. I went in, interviewed for it and got the job.
Q: What is it like coming in mid-stream to a show like you did on ABC Family's Greek?
A: You have to figure out the show's musical identity -- what they already have ingrained into the show. Musical identity can define a show. Certain music won't work for a show after awhile. Greek has more college rock, some indie, but it's still more mainstream. With Kyle XY, we have lots of singer/songwriter and alt and indie rock. If you look at the shows you might think Kyle would be more mainstream and Greek more independent. It's the opposite -- on Kyle we use a lot of British acts like Block Party, or acts like The Bravery. On Greek that doesn't fit in. Also, in the first season, Greek was more of a comedy with dramatic elements. Now it's shifted towards a dramatic show with comedic elements. It's transforming. Kyle XY is definitely dramatic with some comedy.
Q: Where did you go to school?
A: I went to college at University of Texas at Austin. A lot of people out here didn't like me a couple years ago with Texas facing USC for the National Championship. I was kind of worried about my work prospects. Incidentally, the creator on Greek also went to UT Austin -- it's nice to have a fellow Longhorn around.
Q: What advice would you give someone who wants to break into music supervision?
A: First of all you have to be into music! You are going to become a student of music. The most important thing is to learn the clearance side. Most people think music supervisors just put music into scenes for TV and film. They don't think about the business and legal aspects. You can get into a lot of trouble if you don't know them. There are great books like Kohn on Music Licensing, a very in-depth book. Music licensing and digital copyrighting is constantly changing. My advice is to go out and hear music supervisors speak. I took a course at UCLA to learn more about it, even after I'd already been doing it awhile.