Ryuichi Sakamoto

From small beginnings in 1974 as a local cinema and university event, Film Fest Gent has grown yearly in stature and is now recognised as one of the major destinations for the film industry. A vital component is the celebration of film music in the shape of the World Soundtrack Awards which honours the very best composers at work in the world of cinema. In 2016 the award goes to one of the most brilliant composers of his generation, Ryuichi Sakamoto.

A tribute album by composer, bossa nova guitarist, and music producer Goro Ito, featuring his arrangements of songs by his close friend Ryuichi Sakamoto. Co-leading the album with Ito are cellist Jaques Morelenbaum and vocalist Paula Morelenbaum.

A ravaged high school piano, soaked by the tsunami, sat stoically after the Great East Japan Earthquake. Renowned musician Ryuichi Sakamoto came across it when visiting the disaster area. The sounds were divorced from conventional tonality, and Sakamoto employed them in his first album in 8 years. He also attached sensors to the keys, transforming the instrument into a machine that converts seismic waves into sounds. It was his way of conveying the message that the disaster should never be forgotten. Watch and listen as the teacher and a student who had used the "tsunami piano" before the quake react to its new melodies.

Milan Records will release a soundtrack album for Proxima. The album features the film’s original music composed by Academy Award winner Ryuichi Sakamoto (The Revenant, The Last Emperor, Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence, Snake Eyes, Femme Fatale). Proxima is written and directed by Alice Winocour and stars Eva Green, Matt Dillon, Zélie Boulant-Lemesle, Aleksey Fateev, Lars Eidinger and Sandra Hüller. The movie centers on an astronaut and mother who grapples with her commitment to her daughter as she undergoes gruelling physical training for a one-year stint in space. The drama premiered at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival and will be released in French theaters next Wednesday, November 27. No word yet on a domestic distribution deal.

Milan Records will release a soundtrack album for the Korean thriller Rage (Ikari) in the U.S. The album features the film’s original music composed by Academy Award winner Ryuichi Sakamoto (The Last Emperor, The Revenant, Snake Eyes, The Sheltering Sky). A CD version is currently set to be released on October 27, 2017 and is now available for pre-order on Amazon. The soundtrack has previously been released in Korea and Japan last fall. Rage is directed by Sang-il Lee and stars Ken Watanabe, Mirai Moriyama, Kenichi Matsuyama, Go Ayano, Suzu Hirose, Aoi Miyazaki, Satoshi Tsumabuki and Takara Sakumoto. The movie tells the story of a grisly unsolved murder that links three seemingly unrelated stories in three different Japanese cities. The thriller premiered at last year’s Toronto Film Festival and was released in several Asian markets in 2016.