Blight

Role: Composer

"Blight," an ambitious short film written and directed by German-American filmmaker Markus Hoeckner, delves into the depths of a crumbling society plagued by food shortages and global warfare. In this dystopian thriller, two brothers confront a pivotal decision: to embrace the uncertain future of a mass exodus from Earth or seek solace amidst the remnants of their shattered world.

The film stars Somali-American actor Barkhad Abdirahman who is best known for his acclaimed roles in the Academy Award nominated Tom Hanks thriller, Captain Phillips (2013), Musa Syeed’s award-winning feature film A Stray (2016), and the short film Watu Wote, which won the Student Academy Award and was nominated for Best Live Action Short at the 2018 Oscars. Along with telling a gripping and authentic story, this Minnesota-made film looks to change longstanding negative representations of Somali characters in films.

The film is still in production, but I have provided below several previews of the music I have composed for it.

T-Mobile 5G&Me

Role: Composer/Sound Designer

In collaboration with Envoy, Waveplant (Joel Corelitz & myself) devised the audio strategy and designed all the music and sounds for T-Mobile’s 5G&Me Experience Center, a 4,000-square-foot immersive space that I often describe as T-Mobile's version of Tomorrow Land. The project took over a year to complete and required the production and implementation of hundreds of audio assets ranging from branded musical effects, user interaction sounds, environmental ambiance, and traditional foley-based sound effects.

Below is a video presenting Waveplant's contributions to this project. All the sounds (minus Joel's voice narrating the video) were designed and composed by me.

Beam Suntory

Role: Composer/Sound Designer

Working with Joel Corelitz and Troupe Gammage as Waveplant, we composed and designed the sounds for an audio/visual installation at Beam Suntory's US headquarters.

Here are some examples of my contributions to this project.

Jellyvision - Alex

Role: Composer/Sound Designer

Below is a video presenting Waveplant's contributions to this project. All the sounds (minus Joel's voice narrating the video) were designed and composed by me.

The Last Clockwinder

Role: Sound Designer

A recent VR game, created by Pontoco, where you solve puzzles by building contraptions out of your own clones. Joel Corelitz composed the music, then he and I worked in collaboration to design all the sounds of the game. Since its release, the game has gone on to win numerous awards: Meta’s Best of Quest Best Game of 2022 and a selection for the Best Narrative Game of 2022, Road to VR’s Best PC VR Game of 2022, Hardcore Gamer’s Best VR Game of 2022, a finalist in DICE’s 26th Annual Game Awards category for Immersive Reality Technical Achievement, Honorable Mention in Raindance Immersive’s Best Immersive Games of 2022, and an official selection for INDIE CADE 2022 the International Festival of Independent Game.

Humancraft - Heartbeat

Role: composer/programmer

Working in collaboration with Humancraft and Waveplant, I composed all the music and programmed the software that allows the musical systems to respond in realtime to the sensors embedded in this physical installation. 

Below you'll find more information about the installation, an explanation of the musical system, and see an example of the installation in action.

Theorem

Role: Sound Designer/Engineer

Centered around Theorem, an art book by Elizabeth Bradfield and Antonia Contro, our work as a collective has been holistic in nature and wholly transformative: we began with a deep investigation of our various artistic practices and consideration for what each might bring to this work, and we have followed that toward a new, performative vision. From fall of 2019 through fall of 2021, we developed our approach, workshopped concepts, and built materials. In fall of 2022, during a residency at the Ragdale Foundation, we mounted staging workshops and previews.  Images from that residency are below.

The Theorem Collective is comprised of artist Antonia Contro (antoniacontro.com), violinist Clara Lyon of Spektral Quartet (spektralquartet.com), composer Eliza Brown (elizabrown.net), poet Elizabeth Bradfield (ebradfield.com), animator Joseph E. Merideth, designer/art director Andrew Boyce (andrewboycedesign.com)​, and sound designer/engineer Daniel Dehaan.

ENIGMA

Role: Sound Engineer/Designer

Performed live in concert halls and planetariums around the world by the multi-GRAMMY-nominated Spektral Quartet, ENIGMA is a hypnotic collision of music and film, tempting audiences to investigate the secret alcoves of their own minds. Distinguished on 2021 Best of lists by NPR Music and The New York Times, ENIGMA combines the mysterious sounds of internationally-acclaimed composer Anna Thorvaldsdottir with the cryptic visuals of video artist Sigurdur Gudjonsson (Venice Biennale 2022).

Swing Suck Swaddle Side Sound

Role: Composer

Released in the late fall of 2020, "Swing Suck Swaddle Side Sound" was Script Records first compilation album featuring new electronic works from artists/composers around the nation. Each artist was asked to explore the idea of white noise as a potential source for a lullaby. For the album, I composed an original composition that explores the idea of corrupting sounds through iteratively copying them through various form of media formats (e.g., magnetic tape, mp3, laptop speakers).

All sales were donated to My Block My Hood My City: a Chicago-based organization which provides underprivileged youth an awareness of the world and opportunities beyond their neighborhood by taking students on explorations on arts & culture, citizenry & volunteerism, health, community development, culinary arts and entrepreneurism. For more information, visit their website www.formyblock.org/mission