BEYOND THE SCREEN with Mirjam Skal

How would you describe the music for “ENJOY YOUR STAY”?

In a nutshell, it’s a “female-empowerment-Tagalog-rap film score”. There is very little music in the film. The cues are sparse and precisely timed; director Dominik Locher and I set them in detailed, frame-accurate sequences. It was important to us that the music did not add to the film’s emotionality. This makes the final song – which I wrote and produced together with Filipino rappers Fateeha and Miss A from Morobeats in collaboration with producers Michael Hirst, Hannes Bachofner and Gabor Toth – all the more meaningful and powerful. The song also features the voice of the lead actress Mercedes Cabral and my own voice.

An important element is the Filipino folk song ILI ILI. It’s told from the perspective of two sisters who are waiting for their mother. They believe she just went to the market – but as the song progresses, it becomes clear that the mother will never return. The lyrics thus tie in with the film’s plot very well. Although both the lyrics and the music are melancholic, the song is given a new perspective by the strong rap vocals of the two singers.

You are a synesthete; you experience sounds in colours and shapes and see colours when you listen to and compose music. What colour scheme did you use for “ENJOY YOUR STAY”?

I was influenced by the images in ENJOY YOUR STAY, but also by the expressive acting. Although the film takes place in the most beautiful mountain landscapes and luxurious ski resorts, the colour tones, camera angles and grading have something slightly oppressive about them – mirroring the protagonists’ perspective. In terms of sound, I perceive the music as cold, raw and in the green-yellow-grey spectrum.  My synesthesia is most pronounced with animated films. In LOST TOUCH by Justine Klaiber, the music completely reflects the colour scheme of the images: blue, purple, violet, pink – spellbinding, with many textures and an ethereal beauty.

Do you basically have carte blanche, or how much freedom do directors and production teams give you?

That varies greatly and depends largely on the project. Some directors have a very clear idea of the function and mood of the music; others merely provide references – and then there are others who give me complete freedom. I really enjoy finding a soundscape for a film based entirely on my gut feeling.

For the documentary film FREIGHT, director Max Carlo abbey liked my musical style and my previous compositions, and I was able to draw freely from my palette of sounds. That said, clear guidelines from the director can also be very inspiring. This is how the percussive elements in THE COURAGEOUS came about, which director Jasmin Gordon had expressly requested – sounds that I would not have come up with on my own.

Do you have a favourite chord that you always come back to?

No – quite the opposite. I consciously try not to repeat myself (even if, of course, I never quite succeed). But I also mean this especially in terms of my working method: my approach to every new film is to discover something new and exciting with a great deal of curiosity. 

You often build your soundscapes with unconventional instruments. How do you choose them?

For FREIGHT, director Max Carlo Kohal and I had the concept of creating an almost science-fiction-like atmosphere for the world on giant freighters. To achieve this, I used shrill metal and glass sounds, fragile viola tones and powerful basses, which worked very well aesthetically with the ships. The ship should feel like a microcosm: a strange, special world with its own rules and tonal interactions. Oscar van Hoogevest’s brilliant sound design flowed seamlessly into the music; sometimes I could hardly tell whether a sound came from the music or the audio track.

Sometimes method-scoring also comes into play when choosing instruments: for Sarah Horst’s documentary film SAFE SPACES, which accompanies three women on a journey of sexuality and intimacy, I recorded the buzzing of a vibrator with a microphone in the studio and used it to build a beautifully distorted synthesiser. I then supplemented the sound with other instruments and created intimate, sensual music. 

For the Zurich Tatort episode VON AFFEN UND MENSCHEN by Michael Schaerer, I recorded my entire kitchen with a microphone and transformed it into virtual instruments, including a Bialetti coffeemaker, toaster, pan lid and carrot peeler. With their uniqueness, these sounds create a playful backdrop that brings a relaxed and unexpected atmosphere to the film music.

You won two awards for FREIGHT in 2025. How has that affected you?

Both the German Documentary Film Music Award and the Zürcher Filmpreis came as a big surprise to me. Although the music for FREIGHT had some powerful moments, it is rather subtle and understated. That’s why I was surprised that the music was noticed by the juries. This recognition confirms that I can trust my gut feeling. For a long time, I had doubts about whether I was on the right track and struggled to believe in myself as a film music composer. Encouragement like this feels like the red and white markings when hiking in the mountains: a clear sign that I am on the right path.

Which instrument do you prefer to play or develop motifs on?

I often work with my own voice. Sometimes I hum melodies that are played on another instrument, or weave echoing vocal textures into a composition as an additional layer. In this way, the voice often becomes a slightly distorted orchestral instrument rather than a solo element. The human voice is the most primal instrument, and everyone has access to it, perhaps having been sung lullabies by their mother at their bedside as a child. For me, it is a means of connecting with the audience on an emotional level.

I found working on Marina Klauser’s documentary film series THE ANGEL MAKER particularly moving. I was able to give a musical voice to the survivors of abuse in the Methernitha religious community. The melody of the main theme reflects not only the victims, but also the perpetrator. A deep, male voice begins to hum a melody reminiscent of a lullaby. Gradually, higher, female voices join in. This symbolises the young girls, called “angels” in the religious community, who were ensnared, manipulated and imprisoned by the perpetrator, Paul Baumann – similar to the Pied Piper of Hamelin. By singing the melody with my own voice, I feel a very strong connection to the story and the protagonists – I find access to the film through my own emotions and transfer these to the soundtrack through my own voice.

What projects are you currently working on and what can we look forward to?

In 2026 several film projects that have already been completed will be released: in addition to ENJOY YOUR STAY, the feature films SAFE SPACES by Sarah Horst and 111 – ECHOES FROM HALIFAX by Mauro Müller will also celebrate their premieres. For the latter, I recorded the film music in London at Abbey Road Studios, which was a tremendous pleasure for me. Working with live musicians is a special highlight for any film music composer – the decades of the instrumentalists’ expertise on their instruments, some of which are a hundred years old, give the music a very distinctive quality and emotionality. This was particularly important to me in a film like 111 – ECHOES FROM HALIFAX, which deals with the catastrophic Swissair plane crash in 1998.

In addition, the two series BLIND by Christian Johannes Koch & Barbara Kulcsar and THE ANGEL MAKER by Marina Klauser, both of which are still in production, will be broadcast on television. All these projects have completely different film scores. For me, it is a huge privilege to be a musical world traveller and to be able to give each film its own unique soundscape.