A deep dive into the interplay between cinema and music, showing how rhythm guides storytelling and evokes emotion across film genres.
Panellists: Suad Bushnaq, Ben Frost, Gustavo Santaolalla
Moderated by Mikey Muhanna from afikra | عفكرة
Panellists: Suad Bushnaq, Ben Frost, Gustavo Santaolalla
Moderated by Mikey Muhanna from afikra | عفكرة
Suad Bushnaq is an internationally acclaimed, multi-award-winning Jordanian–Canadian composer of Bosnian, Palestinian and Syrian roots, praised by Hans Zimmer as an ‘incredible artist’. With 12 wins and 15 nominations, honours include two Hollywood Music in Media Awards, four Canadian Screen Award nominations and two Canadian Screen Music Awards. Recent highlights include the BAFTA/Emmy-winning ‘Secret World of Sound with David Attenborough’ (CSMA winner; HMMA nominee) and the Syrian series ‘Al Batal’ (CSMA winner). She also scored Egypt’s Oscar submission ‘Flight 404’ and Iraq’s ‘Hanging Gardens’. A McGill graduate and CFC/Cannes alumna, she has 60+ credits and teaches worldwide.
Ben Frost is a composer, sound artist and stage director born in Melbourne and based in Reykjavík. Over the past two decades, he has developed a practice encompassing studio recordings, performance, installation, and collaborations in dance, theatre, and film. Albums include ‘Theory of Machines’ (2007), ‘By the Throat’ (2009), ‘Aurora’ (2014) and ‘Scope Neglect’ (2024). Screen credits include ‘Sleeping Beauty’, ‘Palestine 36’, ‘Raised by Wolves’, ‘1899’ and ‘Dark’. A Rolex Arts Initiative protégé of Brian Eno (2011), he collaborated with Richard Mosse on ‘The Enclave’, ‘Incoming’ and ‘Broken Spectre’, and wrote the operas ‘The Wasp Factory’ and ‘The Murder of Halit Yozgat’.
Gustavo Santaolalla is an internationally acclaimed Argentine composer, producer, and musician. A two-time Academy Award winner for ‘Brokeback Mountain’ (2006) and ‘Babel’ (2007), he has also received a Golden Globe, two BAFTAs, two Grammys, and 19 Latin Grammys. As one of the most influential producers in the Spanish-speaking world, he has shaped Latin American music through over 100 albums. He founded Bajofondo, a collective blending tango, electronic, and Río de la Plata traditions. In audiovisual culture, he’s known for scoring ‘The Last of Us’ video games and HBO series. Currently, he is touring globally with the Ronroco Tour, celebrating 25 years of his iconic album ‘Ronroco’, which launched his cinematic music career.
Mikey Muhanna is the Founder and Executive Director of afikra | عفكرة (afikra.com), a global movement reframing narratives about the Arab world through community events, academy courses, podcasts and its magazine ‘Daftar’. Muhanna advises and serves as a trustee for institutions across the Middle East. He previously worked at Morgan Stanley and PwC in New York, led the MENA-based Muhanna Group, is an Associate of the Society of Actuaries, and holds a BS (2007) from Duke University in Economics and Jazz Piano.
Ben Frost is a composer, sound artist and stage director born in Melbourne and based in Reykjavík. Over the past two decades, he has developed a practice encompassing studio recordings, performance, installation, and collaborations in dance, theatre, and film. Albums include ‘Theory of Machines’ (2007), ‘By the Throat’ (2009), ‘Aurora’ (2014) and ‘Scope Neglect’ (2024). Screen credits include ‘Sleeping Beauty’, ‘Palestine 36’, ‘Raised by Wolves’, ‘1899’ and ‘Dark’. A Rolex Arts Initiative protégé of Brian Eno (2011), he collaborated with Richard Mosse on ‘The Enclave’, ‘Incoming’ and ‘Broken Spectre’, and wrote the operas ‘The Wasp Factory’ and ‘The Murder of Halit Yozgat’.
Gustavo Santaolalla is an internationally acclaimed Argentine composer, producer, and musician. A two-time Academy Award winner for ‘Brokeback Mountain’ (2006) and ‘Babel’ (2007), he has also received a Golden Globe, two BAFTAs, two Grammys, and 19 Latin Grammys. As one of the most influential producers in the Spanish-speaking world, he has shaped Latin American music through over 100 albums. He founded Bajofondo, a collective blending tango, electronic, and Río de la Plata traditions. In audiovisual culture, he’s known for scoring ‘The Last of Us’ video games and HBO series. Currently, he is touring globally with the Ronroco Tour, celebrating 25 years of his iconic album ‘Ronroco’, which launched his cinematic music career.
Mikey Muhanna is the Founder and Executive Director of afikra | عفكرة (afikra.com), a global movement reframing narratives about the Arab world through community events, academy courses, podcasts and its magazine ‘Daftar’. Muhanna advises and serves as a trustee for institutions across the Middle East. He previously worked at Morgan Stanley and PwC in New York, led the MENA-based Muhanna Group, is an Associate of the Society of Actuaries, and holds a BS (2007) from Duke University in Economics and Jazz Piano.
