(November 3, 2009)
The Catalan Academy of Cinema awarded Roger Julià the Petit Gaudí. This was the first edition of the awards, which the Academy gives to Catalan people working in the Hollywood industry. The ceremony happened at the Egypthian Theatre, Los Angeles. Other awardees are actress Claudia Bassols ("The Eagle Path"), producers Julio and Carlos Fernandez ("The Machinist"), the animators Jordi and Carles Grangel ("The Corpse Bride"), and the animator Xavier Pineda ("The Simpsons").
(March 12, 2008)
Roger completed the music for the feature "The Garden Of Eden", directed by John Irvin (Hamburger Hill, Shiner), starring Mena Suvari (American Beauty), Caterina Murino (Casino Royale), Jack Huston (Factory Girl), and Carmen Maura (Volver).
The film is about a suspenseful romance set in the jazz age years, prior to the depression, and follows a successful young American writer, David Bourne (Huston), and his beautiful new wife, Catherine (Suvari), on their honeymoon in the Mediterranean coast of France. Catherine soon becomes restless and starts to test her husband's devotion, pushing him to the limits of her imagination, up to the point that Catherine brings a sultry Italian girl, Marita (Murino), to spice things up. How will this romance "a trois" finish? We will have to find out on the big screen.
The book by Hemingway has a parallel story to the romance between the Bournes and Marita, about the hunt of an elephant during David Bourne's childhood, and his relation with his father (Matthew Modine of Full Metal Jacket). Roger wrote an original combination of African percussion, choir and other ethnic instruments, and the orchestral legacy of occidental music.
Roger wrote half the score at his studio in Los Angeles and the other half at Dean Street Studios in London. The score features some extremely beautiful erotic-dramatic melodies for symphony orchestra. Some of the music was recorded in London and all the orchestral music at Windmill Lane Studios in Dublin, Ireland.
Legendary mixer Dick Lewsey, of John Barry's James Bond 007, mixed the score at Phoenix Sound, from Pinewood Studios in London. Mark Stevens conducted the orchestra and Don Gallacher supervised the scoring.
(January 24, 2008)
Veteran composer Phil Marshall has finished scoring Glen Pitre's new feature "The Man Who Came Back", a story about murder, conspiracy, revenge, and one of the most bloody labor strikes in the history of the United States. Roger Julià collaborated with Mr. Marshall writing the music for the film, produced by Eric Braeden, star of "The Young and the Restless", one of the most acclaimed series in the United States.
