If you don’t know Marlon Espino by name, you’ll know him by sound. He has contributed to the composition of music for many big films like, to name a few, Disney’s Moana, Planes, and Jon Favreau’s live-action remake of The Lion King. His first venture as a sole composer was for director Vaughn Stein’s Inheritance, a movie, starring Lily Collins, Simon Pegg, and Connie Nielsen, that Espino’s describes as an exploration of “the nature of legacy, the abstract importance of a family’s name, and money.”
Espino, himself a family man, was born and raised in West Texas, and, in fact, credits his upbringing to his “strong familial and cultural connection to music.” In our interview below, Espino details his parents’ and grandmother’s musical influence on him as a kid. And, now, with a daughter of his own, and with hopes of carrying on the musical family tradition, he alludes to a deeper “understanding of the emotional connection” and capacity of music.
It’s no wonder, then, that Stein has recruited Espino for his feature follow-up. Every Breath You Take, starring Casey Affleck, Michelle Monaghan, and Sam Claflin, is a psychological thriller that explores a family-in-tragedy and the limits to which grief and loss can push you. For the score, Espino “leaned on organic instruments” in order to “create the sonic landscapes and textures,” paying utmost—indeed, foremost—respect to the family-characters. The result: a sensitive and personal, and yet haunting and ethereal, sound, and, what’s more, an aural experience that pairs perfectly with the visual. Espino’s score, like a spectre, floats through the film, taking you—that is, if you allows yourself to submit to it—to the dark corners of love and loss.
Every Breath You Take is now available for rent or purchase on major streaming platforms.
Congratulations, first of all, on the film! Your resume, with its many film and tv credits, tells a story of growth, hard work, and opportunity, all of which seemingly lead to Every Breath You Take, your second film on which you were the sole composer. How does it feel? What does this elevated stage of your career mean to you?
Thanks for the kind words! Wow! It doesn’t feel elevated in the sense that my experience working on past projects, outside of being the sole composer, were any less worthwhile. Every project I have been a part of has been rewarding creatively, and every person I’ve been honored to work with on those teams are all multitasking, juggling, and executing multiple roles at once. Every Breath You Take did feel elevated in the sense that I was able to reunite with the endlessly talented director Vaughn Stein. Vaughn has the ability to elevate everyone around him. He challenged the team in a safe creative space, inspiring them to rise to their fullest potential. I feel very proud to be a part of his hard-working team. I feel together we created a truly thrilling and entertaining film.
This is your second time working with director Vaughn Stein (the first being Inheritance, which stars Lily Collins, Simon Pegg, and Connie Nielsen). One can, in fact, argue that Every Breath You Take feels like a thematic counterpart to Inheritance, in that both films are psychological thrillers that explore family, tragedy, and secrecy—what was the collaboration process with Stein like this time around, and how did it differ, if at all, from last time? In a broader sense, was it easier or more difficult to compose the music for a second Stein psychological thriller?
That’s a great question. While there are similarities between Inheritance and Every Breath You Take, both of these films stand independently and are unique to one another. Both films are psychological thrillers, with mystery, and reveals that surprise the audience. The films take you into a world of family tragedy, discovery, death, and betrayal. Inheritance was more about the nature of legacy, the abstract importance of a family’s name, and money. It explored the privilege, and protection money and status can offer. While Every Breath You Take follows an approachable family, who after tragedy isolated themselves, and started living their own separate lives within the same home. I tried to honor the family of Every Breath You Take with music that was fresh, original, and unique to their own feelings of loneliness, loss, and tragedy. I wouldn’t say one film was easier, or more difficult than the other. Both films had their unique challenges, spirit, feelings, and atmosphere. I was honored to work with Vaughn Stein again to collaboratively build the sonic landscape for the film. Working with Vaughn on both projects has been a dream! He is brilliant and simply put a great person.
What initially drew you to the film? How did you approach capturing the sound and tone of the score for this film? What were some of the things that especially inspired you during the composition process?
I love thrillers! When I discussed the story with Vaughn his vision attracted me to the dynamic mix of beautifully relatable characters, drama, mystery, and the ugly truth of what grief and obsession can drive us to do. I approached the sound and tone of the score purposefully. I didn’t want to lean on synths or electronic elements. I leaned on organic instruments such as cellos, vocals, woodwinds, and guitars to create the sonic landscapes and textures for the score. All the sounds, which would generally be electronic, are in this score played by musicians. I felt having real musicians gave the score an authentic quality, and a personal touch that is really special yielding an intimately organic, ethereal feel.
You were born in West Texas to a very musical family. Did you always know that you wanted to become a film composer? What is the Texas music scene like, and how does it influence your work currently?
The music scene in West Texas is much like anyone might imagine or assume. Luckily, music was a part of my life in a variety of different capacities, which has helped me develop the ability to adapt to different genres of film. Since having our daughter (in 2018) I have been reflecting a lot on how my family has influenced me and my work (so thank you for a very relevant question for me personally). Growing up in a small town in West Texas directly influenced how I play and arrange instrumentation. I resonate with the sounds of West Texas, both obvious and hidden sounds. For me the music scene and sounds of Texas are the songs my mom would hum while she cooked dinner in the kitchen, the piano scales my grandmother would practice with me at the piano, and the music my late father would play with our family and friends. I have a strong familial and cultural connection to music. Sharing the beauty of that connection influences my work, and hopefully resonates with the audience.
You and your wife welcomed a daughter in 2018—congratulations!—is it safe to say that you’ll carry on the family’s musical tradition and teach her everything you know? Has being a parent changed how you see music?
Ha! Yes! Thank you, our daughter has been the greatest gift! I don’t know if now I can safely say if she will carry on the musical tradition. She loves to sing, and I will probably endlessly spoil her with every instrument I can get her to hold! Only time will tell where her interests will lie. Being a parent has changed how I see everything. I am still fairly new to the parenting scene, so I am sure I have a long road to go when it comes to growth and change. But I feel it has deepened my understanding of the emotional connection with music. Globally we can all relate to how surreal the last year or so has been for everyone. We (like countless other families) experienced loss. Being a parent and going through loss, has given me a greater appreciation for time, and time spent with loved ones and family. The importance of expressing love, gratitude, appreciating the little things, and not sweating the small stuff. My daughter helped me recognize that music can communicate those feelings, which is truly a comforting gift.
Looking ahead, if you could pick a certain film genre, story, or filmmaker, to compose music for, what / who would it be, and why?
I love this question. If I could pick a future project, it would be one where I have the opportunity to create new sounds, inspire an audience to feel new emotions, and surprise the listener with something they haven’t heard before.
What’s next for you?
Right now we are finishing up on an American neo-Western drama based on a novel. Outside of that hopefully, going out to eat at a restaurant soon, watching a movie in the movie theater (missing movie theater popcorn!), and taking my wife and daughter to the aquarium!
