Directed by Miguel Berg, Taylor Engel, Ed Tilden
Tormented by visions of death, a half-blind old man shares insight into the stories of two feuding brothers and a desperate magician in an attempt to save a young waitress from an impending fate unraveling right before his eyes.

The score for Before Your Eyes presented an interesting challenge. The film comprises three shorts each written and directed by a different person, and the score had to both match each of their visions and work cohesively for the whole. After completing a portion electronically, Alex decided to scrap it and compose the score for acoustic instruments (clarinet, piano, violin, and cello). A week of composition, a week of practice, and a single day of recording brought Before Your Eyes to life.

Please visit before-your-eyes.com for more information about the film.

Click to play excerpt of "People Don't Listen"
Click to play excerpt of "Tormented Soul"
Click to play excerpt of "Fishing Trip"
Click to play excerpt of "Insanity Looms"
Click to play excerpt of "Scheming at Home"
Click to play excerpt of "The Great Trick"

Performed by Brian Wilmer, Neil Ostenfeld, Kevin Rogers, and Kristian Ring (The Neapolitan Trio with Fudge). Conducted and recorded by Alex Wroten.

Directed by Alex Wroten
Dan, a recently-fired band director, decides to study the music of the spheres.

This short, awkward film needed an equally-awkward score. Quirky instruments such as drum machine, mellotron, and the Suzuki Omnichord were used to enhance this desired mood.

To view this film, click here.

Click to play excerpt

Directed by Matt Aughtry
A prisoner attempts to escape while being chased by law enforcement and dogs.

The score, composed for string quartet and guitar, is based on Will Thompson's hymn "Softly and Tenderly" to tie in with Philemon's biblical undertones. It is rhythmically active and dissonant to create heightened dramatic intensity. There is no dialogue in the film; therefore, this soundtrack is more raucous than usual.

Click to play excerpt

Performed by Kevin Rogers, Andrae Raffield, Kristian Ring, Alex Wroten.

Directed by Alex Wroten
A fighting couple bakes as the temperature continues to rise.

The score, completed in a matter of hours, consists of deep synthesized drones intended to create the intensity of rising heat.

To view this film, click here.

Directed by Alex Wroten
Oscar and Alfred are on a mission to assassinate three unwanted mascots: Sgt. Slaps, Pappy Crappy, and Adolph the Arbor Day Elf.

The majority of this score, which was completed in a matter of hours, consists of small, humorous incidental gestures and doesn't have much thematic material.

To view this film, click here.

Click to play excerpt

Directed by Alex Wroten
Kirk Mannican, a washed-up former movie star, is invited to endorse a cheap patriotic mug. But what starts out as a way to sell a warehouse full of uninspiring items soon turns into a way for Kirk to confront the reality of his situation, and to deal with the demons that have haunted him for 25 years.

The score for this film is primarily funk/progressive rock versions of American patriotic anthems. Guitars, drums, electric pianos, and violins provide the main instrumental palette.

Click to play excerpt of "maiL to the Chief"
Click to play excerpt of "Good Old Kirk"
Click to play excerpt of "Yankee Doodle Jamdy"
Click to play excerpt of "Sweet Land of Liberty Mug"

Performed by Alex Wroten and Kevin Rogers. For more information, visit welldang.com

Directed by Micah Troublefield and Matt Aughtry
A mad scientist tries a new approach at cloning his beloved.

Composed in a matter of hours, this short electronic soundtrack creates an eerie atmosphere through pulsing rhythms and vocoded percussion.

To view this film, click here.

Click to play excerpt

Directed by Alan Holloway
A clown can't seem to maintain a healthy relationship.

Holloway wanted a cheesy, romantic piano and violin score to emphasize the humor in the film. Due to time constraints during the project, the piano is synthesized.

Click to play excerpt

Violin performed by Kevin Rogers.

Directed by Jeremy Vanderknyff
A birthday clown is interrogated by the FBI because he has claimed that he is an assassin.

The score features electronic instruments and electric guitar.

Click to play excerpt

Directed by Alex Wroten and Matt Aughtry
An exploitation-style trailer for a film about a ninja who wants revenge against a corporation that ruined his life.

This score duplicates the instrumentation and mood of exploitation trailers while incorporating synthesized shamisen and pentatonic harmony to accentuate the Asian origin of the ninja.

To view this film, click here.

Click to play excerpt of "Creepy"
Click to play excerpt of "Ninja Battle"

Performed by Alex Wroten.

Directed by Joe Worthen
A group of friends chat about their lives. Meanwhile, another friend drives down the highway and encounters a serial killer.

Director Joe Worthen wanted a punk soundtrack for his film. Alex, having no familiarity with punk, requested examples to examine. The final music is the result of this studying.

Click to play excerpt of "Introduction"
Click to play excerpt of "Driving"

Performed by Alex Wroten.

Directed by Matt Aughtry
The Lifetime Channel presents an in-depth look at the upcoming blockbuster Speed 3: Back on the Bus.

The score for this film was composed and recorded in the wee hours of the morning due to little advance notice. The synthesized instrumentation parodies the scores to large blockbuster action films.

To view this film, click here.

Click to play excerpt of "Suspense"
Click to play excerpt of "Intense"

Directed by Matt Aughtry
Charlie Chaplin travels to the future to improve his life, but the future proves depressing.

This score imitates the improvised silent film soundtracks of the early 20th century to fit with the Charlie Chaplin content of the film.

To view this film, click here.

Click to play excerpt (synthesized piano)

Directed by Matt Aughtry
A group of friends deals with an alien race invading through their cell phones.

This score helps provide the mood of a miniature high-budget film which Dial I for Invasion attempts to create. Synthesized orchestral instruments and synthesizers form the atmosphere for the alien invasion.

To view this film, click here.

Click to play excerpt of "Battle"
Click to play excerpt of "Alien in Forest"
Click to play excerpt of "Ending"

Directed by Matt Aughtry
A man goes on a date with a mirror.

Director Matt Aughtry imitated French new wave film with Les Brisures and requested that Alex duplicate the mood of the films with his score. With only two nights to compose the entire eight-minute soundtrack, there was no time to gather performers and the result is synthesized.

To view this film, click here.

Click to play excerpt (synthesized)

Directed by Joe Worthen
A pink worm, popular with girls, is the victim of an angry bully.

Though director Joe Worthen used some of his own music in the middle of the film, he requested that Alex write score for the introduction and dramatic climax.

To view this film, click here.

Click to play excerpt

Directed by Alex Wroten
Seven recent high school graduates decide to celebrate by renting a cabin in the woods. The owner of the house seems strange, but as the kids start disappearing one by one, they have to wonder if the mythical Garbage Collector is somehow involved.

This soundtrack features both creepy mood music in the vein of 1970s horror and nine original songs that mix the gaiety of musicals with the instrumentation of horror scores.

Click to play excerpt of "Introduction"
Click to play excerpt from "Swimming is for Everyone"
Click to play excerpt from "Snacks"
Click to play excerpt from "And So The Story Ends..."

For credits, visit welldang.com

Directed by Joe Worthen
After letting her pet bird free, a mentally-disturbed girl creates a new pet.

This score features synthesized strings, pulsing synthesizers, and percussion to create the somber tone of the film. It builds to a techno-esque middle section at the request of director Joe Worthen.

To view this film, click here.

Click to play excerpt (synthesized)

Directed by Alex Wroten, Joe Worthen, and Chad Walker
Billy Bishop, an autistic kid, decides his purpose in life is to become a superhero, The Human Elbow. Billy's friend, Otis Carter, gets involved in his uncle's plot to get back at the bank that fired him. As Otis and his uncle gather a crew for the ultimate robbery, Billy's costume (and dedication) inspire the bank's president to allow him to provide security for the main branch. What happens when Billy the superhero security guard meets Otis the bank robber?

After the synthesized soundtrack for Tapeworm, Alex wanted to work with real instruments for his next film. This score reflects Billy's childishness through the simple melodic material and usage of toy xylophone in the main theme.

Click to play excerpt of "Billy's Theme"
Click to play excerpt of "Morgan"
Click to play excerpt of "Culmination"

For credits, visit welldang.com

Directed by Joe Worthen
Joe dances with a decorated bag on his head.

This score is steady building groove for Joe Worthen's strange dance film, featuring lo-fi drums and mellotron samples.

To view this film, click here.

Click to play excerpt

Directed by Alex Wroten, Joe Worthen, and Chad Walker
When Frank Frank loses his dog, he attempts to cope with his loss by filling his newly-empty house with four renters. At the same time, as instructed by the voice in his head, he embarks on a quest for happiness. Meanwhile, Frank's housemates begin creative pursuits of their own. Tapeworm chronicles the lives of these four strangers as they work together and separately to make their places in the world.

Although Alex had worked on soundtracks for many early childhood films, Tapeworm was his first serious film score. He used electronic and synthesized instruments to weave this strange soundtrack, including composing 54 short rap songs for one of the characters.

Click to play excerpt of "Main Theme"
Click to play excerpt of "Derrick"
Click to play excerpt of "Singing Fish Company"

All instruments synthesized. For more information, visit welldang.com