Nicholas Britell and Hanz Zimmer Take Home First Major Wins at The Hollywood Music in Media Awards (HMMA)

The Hollywood Music in Media Awards (HMMA) are the first domino to fall in the long award season. The group that encompases such a wide range of scores and songs into the show, from genres like horror and fantasy to “independent film ” (lol). It’s a nice celebration of music in Hollywood.

As for predicting the Oscars, it’s fairly hit-or-miss and not something to deeply consider. Two of the last five years has the HMMA predicted the eventual Oscar winner (Black Panther and Joker). And in a year with so many viable candidates in the running, the winners translating into Oscar success is up in the air.

Score: Feature Film

WINNER: Don’t Look Up (Netflix), Nicholas Britell

King Richard (Warner Bros), Kris Bowers
Nightmare Alley (Searchlight Pictures), Nathan Johnson

No Time to Die (MGM), Hans Zimmer
Stillwater (Focus Features), Mychael Danna
The French Dispatch (Searchlight Pictures), Alexandre Desplat
The Last Duel (Walt Disney Studios), Harry Gregson-Williams
The Power of the Dog (Netflix), Jonny Greenwood

Notes: Nicholas Britell wins his second HMMA award (won for Moonlight in 2016). The win here is significant because he gets a win over Jonny Greenwood, Kris Bowers, and the three time HMMA winner and Oscar favorite Alexandre Desplat. However, Dune wasn’t eligible in this category.

Score: Animated Film

WINNER: The Addams Family 2 (MGM) – Mychael Danna and Jeff Danna

Spirit Untamed (Universal), Amie Doherty
The Loud House Movie (Netflix), Philip White
Vivo (Sony Pictures), Alex Lacamoire
Luca (Walt Disney Studios), Dan Romer
The Mitchells vs. The Machines (Iconic Events), Mark Mothersbaugh

Notes: Big night for Mychael Danna and Jeff Danna, who were double nominated and get a surprise win over Disney and Netflix films.

Score: Science Fiction/Fantasy

WINNER: Dune (Warner Bros), Hans Zimmer

Black Widow (Walt Disney Studios), Lorne Balfe
Cinderella (Amazon), Mychael Danna & Jessica Rose Weiss
Shang-Chi and The Legend of the Ten Rings (Walt Disney Studios), Joel P West
The Suicide Squad (Warner Bros.), John Murphy

Notes: Hanz Zimmer is going to be a force this awards season and winning here was a slam dunk for Dune. I’m looking forward to seeing Dune match up with the bigger Oscar contenders.

Score: Horror

WINNER: A Quiet Place II (Paramount Pictures), Marco Beltrami

Army of the Dead (Netflix), Tom Holkenborg
In the Earth (Neon), Clint Mansell
Last Night in Soho (Focus Features), Steven Price
Old (Universal Pictures), Trevor Gureckis

Notes: I love that Horror scores get their own separate category. Marco Beltrami is trending towards an Oscar win in the next few years and his win here is well deserved. The Last Night in Soho getting some recognition is nice too.

Score: Documentary

WINNER: Julia (CNN Films), Rachel Portman

14 Peaks: Nothing is Impossible (Netflix), Nainita Desai
Becoming Cousteau (Picturehouse), Daniel Bensi and Saunder Jurriaans
Operation Varsity Blues (Netflix), Leopold Ross, Nick Chuba, Atticus Ross
Oslo (HBO), Jeff Russo and Zoë Keating
Strip Down, Rise Up (Netflix), Lili Haydn
The Rescue (NatGeo), Daniel Pemberton

Score: Independent Film

WINNER: C’mon C’mon (The Searchers), Bryce Dessner & Aaron Dessner

CODA (Apple TV+), Marius de Vries
Nine Days (SPE), Antonio Pinto
The Card Counter (Focus Features), Robert Levon Been & Giancarlo Vulcano
The Green Knight (A24), Daniel Hart
The Tragedy of Macbeth (A24), Carter Burwell

Notes: Without seeing the film, I’ve been lucky enough to listen to Dressner’s score and I’m floored by the work. A sleeper pick in a DEEP original score category.

Score: International

WINNER: Parallel Mothers (Sony Pictures Classics), Alberto Iglesias

A Cross in the Desert (Aleksandrija Film), Ana Krstajic
Beneath The Banyan Tree (Lerfilm), Wei-San Hsu
Blast Beat (Vertical Entertainment), David Murillo R.
El Hoyo En La Cerca (Cine Canibal), Kyle Dixon & Michael Stein

Notes: Pedro Almodovar adds so much style with the composers he picks for his films. This will likely be the end of the line for Alberto Iglesias, but nice win for the film.

Song: Feature

WINNER: “No Time to Die” from NO TIME TO DIE (MGM) – Written by Billie Eilish and Finneas O’Connell. Performed by Billie Eilish

“Be Alive” from KING RICHARD (Warner Bros.) – Written by Dixson and Beyoncé Knowles-Carter. Performed by Beyoncé

“Every Letter” from CYRANO (United Artists), Written by Aaron Dessner and Bryce Dessner, Matt Berninger and Carin Besser. Performed by Peter Dinklage, Haley Bennett & Kelvin Harrison Jr.
“Guns Go Bang” from THE HARDER THEY FALL (Netflix), Written by Jeymes Samuel, Scott Mescudi (Kid Cudi), Shawn Carter (Jay-Z). Performed by Kid Cudi and JAY-Z
“Here I Am (Singing My Way Home)” from RESPECT (MGM), Written by Carole King, Jennifer Hudson & Jamie Hartman. Performed by Jennifer Hudson
“Just Look Up” from DON’T LOOK UP (Netflix), Written by Nicholas Britell, Ariana Grande, Scott Mescudi and Tara Stinson. Performed by Ariana Grande and Kid Cudi
“My Father’s Daughter” from FLAG DAY (MGM), Written by Glen Hansard & Eddie Vedder. Performed by Olivia Vedder

Notes: The field here was filled with potential Oscar players and the highest profile song takes it home.