100 Skills Required To Be A Film & TV Composer

Here are at least 100 skills required to be a film & TV composer. Taken from industry pioneer and film composer agent Richard Kraft's blog Perspective. As I said in the first sentence "at least"100 skills. How do you measure up?

- DF

1. Coming up with musical concepts 2. Working with picture 3. Making dramatic decisions 4 Communicating with collaborators 5. Budgeting 6. Meeting deadlines 7. Acquiring work 8. Satisfying filmmakers 9. Building a team 10. Working within a team 11. Making revisions 12. Dealing with pressure 13. Addressing comments 14. Picking up on subtleties 15. Not taking things personal 16. Having structure 17. Trusting the process 18. Emotional maturity 19. Understanding clients point of view 20. Listening 21. Asking the right questions 22. Caring about collaborators 23. Staying up to date with new technologies 24. Being a psychotherapist 25. Stop wasting time on Facebook 26. Balancing work/life 27. Being a producer 28. Understanding how to get the recording as good as possible within the budget. 29. Knowledge of what studios/engineers to work with 30. Knowing what musicians to hire 31. How to mix 32. Planning 33. Delivering 34. Renegotiating as situations change 35. Estimating money 36. Estimating time 37. Prioritizing 38. Conveying progress 39. Project management 40. Building relationships 41. Being personable 42. Making mistakes 43. Maintaining your physical and mental health 44. Renegotiate as things change 45. Invest in equipment 46. Thinking like a entrepreneur 47. Marketing, promotion, publicity 48. Managing expectations 49. Learning the basics of visual design. 50. Leaving your ego at the door. 51. Learning how to emotionally detach. 52. Learning about filmmaking. 53. Being familiar with the terminology and techniques. 54. Learning empathy 55. Cue organization 56. Taking armor off and replacing with grounded confidence 57. Being curious 58. Being an interesting human being. 59. Being on time 60. Exceeding expectations 61. Practicing your craft 62. Practicing your storytelling 63. Practicing your compositions 64. Learning flexibility 65. Learning to listen before speaking 66. Stop announcing how slammed/exhausted you are 67. Learning to smile. 68. Knowing which obstacles are critical to overcome. 69. Learning to be the captain of their ship. 70. Knowing how many hands are needed on deck. 71. Knowing how to chart the course. 72. Knowing The difference between being abused and being criticized. 73. Learning that you are providing a service and learn to communicate accordingly. 74. Learning the importance of dealing with anxieties. 75. Being well-rounded 76. Developing your own voice 77. Learning to write in a variety of styles 78. Discovering fresh approaches 79. Rethinking dramatic ideas 80. Acquiring a wide knowledge of different music 81. Emerging oneself in cinema history 82. Translating non-musical discussions into musical ideas 83. Picking up on nuance 84. Learning how to read a room 85. Learning which battles to fight 86. Acquiring patience 87. Learning how to pace a sequence 88. Learning how to pace yourself 89. Learning how to convey emotional subtext 90. Learning how to enhance humor 91. Learning how to use temp tracks as a useful tool 92. Learning how to mock-up for presentation 93. Learning how to spot a film 94. Learning to create the unexpected 95. Learning how to hit your creative reset button 96. Learning to be bold 97. Learning to be subtle 98. Learning how and when and what to delegate 99. Addressing what you don’t know 100. Being the answer to questions that have yet to be asked. 101. Being a good hang.