Precisely because so much money is riding on a project, a host of money-interests control the end product. Graduate Marco Beltrami '93, who got his first break in 1996 with Wes Craven's Scream, says the film industry isn't an inventive medium, it's big business, primarily concerned with return on investment. Lately I've found directors are very receptive to creative stuff, but so much emphasis is placed on test screenings, you end up writing for a group. Bernstein, current president of the Film Music Society and one of a handful of composers honored with a star on Hollywood Boulevard, takes an even dimmer view. In the past, the function of music was to serve the film.
People are greedy.
Everybody hopes some song will jump out and make them a lot of money. Another thorny issue, also attributable to the bottom line, is the popularity of synthesizers. Love them or hate them, though, synths are here to stay, and skill in composing for and playing them is a necessity. Most of the music jobs in television are synth jobs. Even when the final score will be played by a 90-piece orchestra, directors and producers expect to hear a synthesized version first.