Embers, directed by Claire Carré, has received a long list of awards for the ingenious way in which it employs a sci-fi landscape to explore memory and what we would be—as humans, as partners, as higher thinking beings—without it. The film’s score was created by Kim Henning and Shawn Parke, multi-genre composers living in Portland who have found the beautiful place inside eeriness. They wrote the score before a single frame was shot and yet managed to stretch their minds to create the perfect sonic accompaniment to the film’s scenes, creating answers to impossible questions by way of sound—like, “What role does memory play in who we are? Is there sometimes redemption in forgetting? What do we lose or gain if the collective cataloging of culture disappears? Who are we if stripped of everything but our instincts?”
The duo spoke to Aquarium Drunkard about their influences, explaining what they pulled from each with a candor that gives a very intriguing look into their creative process.
