George Kallis
George Kallis is a film and TV composer. He grew up on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus, where he studied classical piano and violin while also being influenced by world, heavy-metal and jazz. He now specializes in cinematic music composition and production. By the age of 18 George had already won several musical competitions and he was awarded a scholarship at Berklee College of Music in Boston, where he graduated with a BM in Composition and Film Scoring. Soon after he was accepted to study with acclaimed British composer Joseph Horowitz at the Royal College of Music in London where he graduated with a Masters of Music in Composition.
Feature Films
George is just finished the score to GAGARIN, the $10mil biopic of the first cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, recording with the Russian State Symphony Orchestra and Choir. His previous work includes the music for HIGHLANDER THE SOURCE (Lionsgate) directed by award-winning director Brett Leonard, and the UK prison drama SCREWED (Lionsgate), directed by Reg Traviss who he also collaborated on the WWII feature JOY DIVISION (Momentum Pictures). He also scored the Scandinavian Christmas blockbuster JULEFROKOSTEN (Fridthjof Films) starring Thure Lindhardt (Angels & Demons) and supermodel Helena Christensen. George’s score for the independent road drama DRY RUN features spacious acoustic guitars and distorted harmonicas, and in October 2012 he conducted the BUDAPEST SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA for the score recordings of the African movie A PLACE IN THE STARS, directed by Steve Gukas.
Documentaries and TV
George was the chosen composer to score the opening titles of the BAFTA and EMMY awarded series HORIZON on BBC2. The music was composed to celebrate its 40th year running. His other work for the BBC was the opening titles for the children series MY LIFE produced by BAFTA winning producer Kez Margie. This year, George scored the series INSIDE THE GANGSTER’S CODE (DISCOVERY CHANNEL) produced by NERD TV. In addition he collaborated with Emmy award winning producer Virginia Williams, where he provided music for the IMOW’s GLOBAL MOTHERHOOD/MATERNAL HEALTH exhibition. THE RED KITE PROJECT was also a fascinating project for George, exploring theatrical initiatives, which improved the lives of children with autism. The documentary was directed by award winning filmmaker Kerry Shaw Brown. George’s other doc work includes music for the Danish Drengen Dre Ville k Krig, which was part of the international award winning series, Vores Krig (Our War) and music for CNN AFRICAN JOURNALIST AWARDS in 2009, inspired by the struggles journalists face in Africa.
TV Spots and Trailer Music
Amongst many others, George’s TV spot work includes the sci-fi music for the US campaign for MCDONALDS’ EARTH’S TREASURE (MOROCH), the US campaign for TOSHIBA’S 3D LED CINEMA TV DISPLAYS and the Sydney Council’s ZERO WASTE campaign. Trailer music includes GARFIELD’S PET FORCE (20th Century Fox) and INTO THE WHITE (ZENTROPA). George is currently launching SUPERIOR MUSIC AUDIO, a music production house and publisher specializing in high-end music for motion picture advertising from his base in London, with a permanent move over to Los Angeles in early 2013.
Licensing / Music placements
George’s composition are also regularly licensed worldwide on major international and high profile TV shows including EMMY and BAFTA awarded programs such as THE FIFTH ESTATE on CBS, FETCH on PBS, ULTIMATE FIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIP (UFC), AMERICA’S MOST WANTED (20th Century Fox), FARAH’S STORY (NBC/C4), WILL & GRACE (NBC) to name a few.
Songwriting
George was introduced to composition through songwriting and won various awards while growing up in Cyprus. His debut CD WHERE THERE IS A CHILD, which included lyrics by Nobel-Prize nominated writer Kypros Chrysanthis earned George a GOLD CD RECORD by Galaxy Music. George donated all the album’s proceeds for the relief of children who suffer from leukemia. During his studies, George represented Cyprus as a songwriter in THE EUROVISION SONG CONTEST in Jerusalem, which was watched by over 40 million people worldwide. George’s recent song, THE SUN IS GONNA SHINE, was the theme tune for HIGHLANDER THE SOURCE, sung by JOHN SLOMAN (URIAH HEAP).
Filmography
- A Place in the Stars (2014)
References
Adrian Paul (2006-06-29). "Scoring The Source". AdrianPaul.net. Archived from the original on 2006-12-07. Retrieved 2007-01-13.
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