It blows my mind how often music is treated like an afterthought in the production process.
We all know music is the thing that brings the emotional weight. It drives the moment, defines the energy, and sticks with the audience long after the credits roll. And yet… how many times have you heard:
“We just used a placeholder and ran out of time.”
“We couldn’t clear anything else, so we kept it.”
As I’m learning more about the sync world, I’m realizing this happens a lot—not because music isn’t valued, but because it’s not prioritized early enough. It feels backwards. Music isn’t just filler. It’s the heartbeat of a scene.
What’s one sync moment where the music truly made the scene for you?
And have you ever lost a placement to a placeholder because they “ran out of time”?
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Totally agree with you Kat Spencer it was not always like that. In the early days of film the music was front and center.
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Mark Deuce We should get it back to that :)
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That is for sure Kat Spencer
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Classical radio station KUSC.org often features music from the movies, and now even games as well. All still in the vein of classical.
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Yes, music has such an impact on the final effect of a film! I also understand budget often plays a role in song selection, since well known tracks have significantly higher licensing costs than others.
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Ayanna Anene very true! which means, it should be easier for us little guys to get placed. hahahaha
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Probably way too many, Kat.
Those Temp tracks are really stuck in ‘some’
Producer’s head. (Some).
The other part is waiting for Post Production/
Lock … or unlock - lol (smiles).