Kathryn Bostic Selected for Film Scoring Residency

Kathryn Bostic, a composer, singer/songwriter, pianist, and vocalist known for her work in film, TV, and live theater, has been named Berklee’s 2018–2019 Film Scoring Artist in Residence. Bostic is the first female African American film composer to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences. She is also a member of the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences and vice president of the Alliance for Women Film Composers. Bostic has composed for films and television shows including Dear White People, American Masters episode “August Wilson: The Ground on Which I Stand,” Middle of Nowhere, and Surviving Compton: Dre, Suge & Michel’le. Bostic has also written music for several August Wilson plays.

The Film Scoring Artist in Residence Program was made possible through a 2018 FilmCraft grant from the Academy Foundation of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. The aim is to support the careers of practicing film composers, prepare students as film scoring professionals, diversify the pipeline of talent to the film industry, and increase public awareness of the significance of the film scoring craft.

This issue of Berklee today went to press before Bostic’s residence started in the first week of October. She is scheduled to work closely with film scoring students through clinics, lectures, and workshops, including a special clinic for seniors in the major. Her participation in a demo orchestral recording session for film scoring students on the Shames Family Scoring Stage is also planned. Additionally, she will deliver a public keynote discussing inclusion, individuality, and imagination.

For the first time, Berklee’s film scoring residency will engage with high-school students participating in the Berklee City Music Program, an initiative that provides high-quality contemporary music education, mentoring, and scholarship opportunities to youth from underserved communities at no or low cost. Bostic will spend a day with City Music students at the Boston Arts Academy, exploring film scoring as a career and discussing educational pathways that can lead to success in the field. City Music students will also have the opportunity to receive mentorship from Berklee film scoring students after the clinic.

“We are incredibly grateful to the Academy Foundation for its continued support of our Film Scoring Artist in Residence Program and we could not be more excited to welcome Kathryn Bostic,” said Alison Plante, chair of Berklee’s Film Scoring Department. “Kathryn has local roots, having studied music at Tufts University and the New England Conservatory of Music. She is accomplished in a range of styles, which I think our students will relate to. She is excited to engage with our students and with the young people in the City Music program. We look forward to a rewarding experience for all.”

The academy’s FilmCraft grants were established to identify and empower future filmmakers from nontraditional backgrounds, cultivate new and diverse talent, promote motion pictures as an art form, and provide a platform for underrepresented artists. Previous grants from the Academy Foundation have enabled Berklee to bring several leading film composers to campus for multi-day residencies, including Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire composer Patrick Doyle in 2016.