The Musical Idea Work Group: Production and Reception of Pre-existing Music in Film

Abstract How do filmmakers work with pre-existing music? To answer this question, I conducted interviews the musicians, composers, editors, sound designers, and music researchers for Lars von Trier's films. This article combines previously unpublished insider information an original analytical methodology to clarify working processes of contemporary who utilize music. build on Ian Macdonald's production-situated conception ‘Screen Idea Work Group’ posit ‘Musical Group’, a notional framework emerging from teams develop film-musical ideas. While previous film research tends analyse artists (persons) or (products), here focus contrasting descriptions highly collaborative prescriptive mechanisms reception. In way, demonstrate more holistic understanding filmic authorship while accounting constructions Trier as ‘auteur mélomane’ based critical perceptions how he utilizes