In Contention

Tag: Best Music

  • TECH SUPPORT INTERVIEW: the crafts of ‘Slumdog Millionaire’

    Tech Support at In ContentionGarnering 10 nominations last week confirmed “Slumdog Millionaire”’s established status as the frontrunner for this year’s Best Picture Oscar.  Unusually for a Best Picture winner, the film failed to nab any acting nominations.  Its high tally counts comes from seven nominations in the crafts fields.

    I recently had the chance to speak to three of those below-the-line nominees: composer and songwriter A.R. Rahman, cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle and film editor Chris Dickens.  All are first-time nominees and all must be considered in genuine contention for statuettes, if not favored to win.

    Rahman, a self-proclaimed introvert, has already won Golden Globe and BFCA awards for his score, which has become massively popular.  Though very humble, it is clear he is relishing the opportunity to have his music exposed to such a wide audience.

    “I was attracted to the film right away,” he says.  “It is about modern India, young people and optimism.  There’s a kind of urge to it.  It’s not a laid-back score.  It needed something edgy and experimental to create interest in the whole thing.”

    Dickens also was attracted to the film right away, not only because of the story but because of the unique way it was to be told.  “Basically, the film was designed that way in the script,” he says.  “Though there was always a doubt in my mind as to how it would work when you saw it.  There are lots of different scenes that the audience had to understand to get to know where they were with the story.  The intention was always to shoot in different formats and different styles.  I found that fascinating.”

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  • TECH SUPPORT: The aftermath

    Tech Support at In ContentionSo the nominations have descended upon us. “The Dark Knight,” “Slumdog Millionaire” and “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” as expected, all did phenomenally well, garnering seven crafts nominations each. The only absolute shock, in my opinion, was “Wanted” managing to show up in the sound fields.

    Allow me a few comments on each category…

    Best Art Direction
    As expected, “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” “Changeling” and “The Dark Knight” all managed to score nominations.

    My “Frost/Nixon” hunch and “Slumdog Millionaire” gamble, however, were incorrect. Rather, Michael Carlin’s lavish sets for “The Duchess” and Kristi Zea’s recreation of 1950s suburbia on “Revolutionary Road” managed to overcome guild snubs and find a home here.

    Best Cinematography
    My hunch that the guild and the AMPAS branch would not match 5/5 was right on as Tom Stern managed to prevent a second consecutive double nomination for Roger Deakins. Stern’s work on “Changeling” was his sixth collaboration with Clint Eastwood this decade; a nomination seemed inevitable eventually.

    Joining him, as expected, are Chris Menges and Roger Deakins for “The Reader,” Claudio Miranda for “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” Wally Pfister for “The Dark Knight” and Anthony Dod Mantle for “Slumdog Millionaire.”

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  • TECH SUPPORT: Final preview special, part two

    Tech Support at In ContentionThis is part two of my last glance at the year’s tech category contenders.  For part one, click here.

    Best Music (Original Score)
    Now here is a category where there are no locks. Nonetheless, considering the success of their films and scores in awards season to date, A.R. Rahmen (for “Slumdog Millionaire”) and Alexandre Desplat (for “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button”) seem solid bets.

    Thomas Newman, despite only having a BAFTA nomination to his credit so far in the awards season, often scores when the precursors don’t coming calling so I think he’s in for “WALL-E.” Alternatively, he could get in for “Revolutionary Road.”

    The rest of the Golden Globe nominees strike me as facing challenges. Clint Eastwood has performed well this season with “Changeling” but I am doubtful he will ever be embraced by the music branch. James Newton Howard’s compositions for “Defiance” may be lost with his film while Hans Zimmer’s Globe citation for “Frost/Nixon” seems more like a tribute to the composer, a Globe favorite.

    I would actually wager that Zimmer and Howard have a better opportunity with their fantastic “The Dark Knight” collaboration. Zimmer has been campaigning hard. Even so, I’m skeptical the duo will score. Co-composers receiving Oscar nominations is extremely rare. (Though, in all fairness, so is co-composing.)

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  • Thumping ‘Slumdog’ soundtrack to be released

    Cover of Slumdog Millionaire original motion picture soundtrackThank God.  I was hoping Fox Searchlight would find a way to market this amazing material.  It worked well for them last year, albeit in the grungy, alt-rock vein.  But the music in “Slumdog Millionaire” is like a two-hour celebration, and it’s dying to be collected.

    The track listing, from MTV, has a lot of the A.R. Rahman stuff, of course (all of it exciting).  But M.I.A. pops up on there as well.  “Paper Planes” is put to great use in a montage that you wish would never end mid-film.

    The final track, as expected, is “Jai Ho,” the Bollywood number Searchlight is hoping will make some noise in the Best Original Song category.

    Check out the full story at MTV.  Here’s the track listing:

    1. “O… Saya” Performed by A R Rahman & M.I.A.
    2. “Riots” by A R Rahman
    3. “Mausam & Escape” by A R Rahman
    4. “Paper Planes” Performed by M.I.A.
    5. “Paper Planes” DFA REMIX Performed by M.I.A.
    6. “”Ringa Ringa” by A R Rahman featuring Alka Yagnik & Ila Arun
    7. “Liquid Dance” by A R Rahman featuring Palakkad Sriram & Madhumitha
    8. “Latika’s Theme” by A R Rahman featuring Suzanne
    9. “Aaj Ki Raat” Performed by Sonu Nigam, Mahalaxmi Lyer & Alisha Chinoi
    10. “Millionaire” by A R Rahman featuring Madhumitha
    11. “Gangsta Blues” by A R Rahman featuring BlaaZe & Tanvi Shah
    12. “Dreams on Fire” by A R Rahman featuring Suzzanne
    13. “Jai Ho” by A R Rahman featuring Sukhvinder Singh, Tanvi Shah & Mahalaxmi Iyer

  • WB scores available at awards site

    In the wake of the James Newton Howard and Hans Zimmer’s disqualification no less.  But fuck it, it’s a fantastic piece of work and you can listen to the whole damn thing at the Warner Bros. awards site, so rise up and feel the righteousness.

    The ‘Gran Torino’ score has been tossed up as well, an expectedly low-key composition by Kyle Eastwood and Michael Stevens.

  • TECH SUPPORT: Best Original Score — Volume One

    Tech Support at In ContentionMusic is one of few of the “tech” awards cited by the Academy that tends to result in passionate discussions among moviegoers, including non-cinephiles. Awarded in the Best Original Score category, the film music composer has one of the most difficult and lonely jobs in filmmaking. Almost always arriving at the end of the editing stage, and typically the most expendable element of the mixture, he or she has to fashion music appropriate to the mood and, hopefully, serve as a nice commentary for the on-screen goings-on.

    AMPAS musicians tend to have their favorites, however. This is notoriously one of the most insular branches (though it has warmed up slightly in recent years). It also tends to award music that features prominently in the films. Subtle scores rarely find a home here.

    A cardinal rule of this category is “never bet against John Williams.” The 45-time nominee has been recognized for all but two eligible years since 1976! Having been ineligible for two consecutive years now, Williams would seem a good bet this year for “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.” The music was notable and he was nominated for all the predecessors in the series. That having been said, for some reason I’m still not convinced of this. Perhaps that’s because of the strength of other contenders.

    Thomas Newman is another favorite – an eight-time nominee — though he is still awaiting this first statuette. He could very well double-dip this year with “Revolutionary Road” and “WALL-E.” The former seems like it could be a big player this year, while music was absolutely pivotal in the latter. Newman was a double nominee for “Little Women” and “The Shawshank Redemption.” (Newman is also credited as a songwriter on “Down to Earth” from “WALL-E,” so he could even be up thrice this year!)

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  • 11/20 Oscarweb Round-up

    Simon Beaufoy• Kim Voynar talks to Simon Beaufoy about adapting “Slumdog Millionaire.” [Movie City News]

    • Patrick Goldstein hearts “Australia,” but suggest it is “perhaps too ambitious for its own good.” [The Big Picture]

    • John Horn surveys the Oscar season films from the perspective of studio (read: dollar) appeal. [Los Angeles Times]

    • Tim Gray wants to rob hard-working professionals of their day of televised glory. [Variety]

    • Actors mimicking political elite this season. [Variety]

    • One more comeback story for Mickey Rourke. [Variety]

    • Stuart Levine on the art of the Oscar clip. [Variety]

    • And an eye on the music races. [Variety]

  • Studios can solicit with music CDs once again

    A press release from the Academy indicates new rules for the music branch.  It seems campaigners will be allowed to send CDs directly to voters, a change from recent regulations that forced members to vote based on their reaction to track usage in the context of a film.

    Last year, the AMPAS tried a “bake-off” scenario, where voters had to come view film clips showcasing the musical numbers in order to vote on the Best Original Song category.  But attendance was apparently too low and the Academy is buckling once again (Gold Derby’s Tom O’Neil points this out here).

    The real issue this raises is the typically lax sense of responsibility within the Academy.  These cpeople can’t even be bothered to view the content in its intended form, therefore, they don’t take their roles as Academy members seriously.  Quite frankly, it’s sickening, and hardly news, but it’s also a whole other can of worms.

    Here’s a bit from the release:

    For 2008, CDs of eligible scores may be distributed to voting members of the Music Branch anytime prior to the nominations announcement on Thursday, January 22, 2009. Following the announcement, the nominated scores may be distributed to all voting members of the Academy. In both cases, each music track must be titled, include the name of the composer(s) and be identical to the music used in the finished film. The CD may contain only music written by the eligible composer(s). Music written by other composers, licensed music or music that is otherwise ineligible for award consideration is not permitted.

    CDs of nominated songs also may be distributed to all voting members, following the same guidelines as for nominated scores. Distribution of eligible songs prior to the nominations announcement is not permitted, though as a result of a rule change announced in June, the Academy itself will be sending DVDs containing film clips featuring the songs to Music Branch members during the nominations balloting phase. The DVDs will contain the same clips to be screened at the annual voting event at which branch members may cast their nominations ballot in person.

    More at the Academy’s official site.

  • INTERVIEW: ‘Appaloosa’ composer Jeff Beal

    Jeff BealLike a number of film music composers, Jeff Beal makes his home north of Los Angeles in the rocky, canyoned city of Agoura Hills.  One feels a sense of the old west before even seeing the ranch-style houses in his neighborhood and the tail-flipping horses tied out back.  Questions about his work on “Appaloosa,” Ed Harris’s latest entry in the western genre, seem to manifest out of thin, dusty air by the time we make it downstairs to his efficient but Spartan studio.

    At the beginning of the process, Harris told Beal he was not interested in anything overly romantic or mythic.  The mandate was the relationships, the conflict they bring about and the intimate world the characters inhabit.  It was a unique vision for Beal, but one he was more than willing to explore.  He had his share of wells to draw upon, but his work in high-end television projects really stuck out.

    “The only thing I can think of that was sort of similar was [HBO’s] ‘Rome,’” Beal said.  “It was a similar approach creatively because you were dealing with a historical genre, a genre that’s been done a lot, sometimes with a lot more overt flare.  And this was more like the ground view of these people.”

    To that end, Beal set about constructing a theme with little harmonic movement, something that would carry the feeling of the audience being visitors in the world of Virgil Cole and Everett Hitch.  Spring-boarding off a life-long interest in folk music (American or otherwise), Beal wanted to make the music reflect the story-telling nature of the narrative.

    “There was actually a second half that became more of a traditional piece of music because at the end of the day we decided we don’t need that because it’s better to have just a clean, simple statement,” he said.  “These guys are men of action.  It’s all about a process, one step in front of the other.  It’s a journey.  One of the phrases Ed gave me when we were starting was ‘rough elegance,’ which I loved.  A lot of the music sprang from that inspiration.”

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  • Paul Cantelon’s beautiful ‘W.’ score

    Cover of W. Original Motion Picture SoundtrackA huge thank you to commenter Markku who points us to emusic.com’s sampling of Paul Cantelon’s original score for Oliver Stone’s “W.”

    I have to say, it’s a beautiful piece of work on the whole.  Lots of haunting melodies, plenty of southern flavor here and there, a nice waltz thrown in to emphasize the bumbling nature of the “protagonist.”  I’m loving this stuff!

    Cantelon, by the way, is having a hell of a year way, WAY under the radar.  His work on Justin Chadwick’s “The Other Boleyn Girl” is still one of the better scores from 2008.  If he keeps this up, he’ll find himself on a fast-track to awards success just like Alexandre Desplat did after bursting onto the scene in 2004 and 2005.

    I should be seeing “W.” any day now.  The film has been screening for various journalists, I just haven’t been considered cream of that crop to date.  But we will definitely be covering all the “W.” goings on from the London International Film Festival as Guy brings us the daily latest.  So keep an eye out for that later this month.

  • ‘Set to Screen’ series at Apple spotlights ‘Australia’ techs

    This is actually quite amazing, and take it from those of us who’ve been covering the tech categories for years, it’s refreshing to see a major outlet paying attention as well.

    It seems Apple has started a new series called “Set to Screen,” which focuses on the various behind-the-scenes design elements of a given film.  “Australia” is the first subject, with detailed looks at on-set still photography, production and costume design, location shooting, cinematography and sound recording.  Podcasts about music composition and sound recording are still outstanding, with a “coming in September” notation.  I also assume the music playing over the various clips are snippets of David Hirschfelder’s work, but I’m just guessing.  Sounds lovely.

    Check it all out at Apple.  The clips are on YouTube as well, but I figured the best example would be the cinematography spotlight, where we finally get to meet Ms. Mandy Walker:

    I think it’s obvious by now that this film, regardless of major category potential, will be the tech giant of the year.

  • TECH SUPPORT: Fall and Winter Contenders

    Tech Support at In ContentionLast week we took a look at the films that have already been released and now appear to be in contention for crafts nominations come Oscar time.  Now that the dust is settling from the Toronto and Venice Film Festivals, it’s time to look ahead…

    Very often we see films dominate the crafts categories and end up with many nominations.  Recent examples include “The Aviator,” “Memoirs of a Geisha” and “Dreamgirls” though, in all fairness, not to the extent expected.  Such films tend to be set in period, large in scope and contenders in the main categories as well.  And a number of upcoming efforts are aiming for that kind of recognition.

    Baz Lurhmann’s “Australia” seems the obvious example.  Lurhmann is a visual master and this film could be an amazing palette.  Cinematographer Mandy Walker and production designer/costume designer Catherine Martin (Mrs. Lurhmann) strike me as likely nominees.  This is not to mention great opportunities in sound, editing, makeup and a potential return to the game for Aussie composer David Hirschfelder.

    David Fincher has the opportunity to finally break through with Oscar in a major way with “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.”  His films have — shamefully, in my opinion — received a grand total of three Oscar nominations to date.  While a few hasty bloggers gave some cold knee-jerk assessments of a reel of footage at Telluride, I’m willing to give it the benefit of the doubt for now.

    Moreover, “Button” should prove to be visually spectacular.  The cinematography, editing, visual effects and makeup will likely be integral to the plot.  The sets and costumes will span 80 years.  This sounds like the makings of a potential crafts category behemoth.  And don’t forget the score from Alexandre Desplat, my favorite working composer.

    Edward Zwick’s “Defiance” is another film that could be a massive player in the crafts fields.  While Zwick’s films are notorious for their flat critical receptions, they almost always involve themes the Academy loves and “Defiance” should prove no exception in this regard.  Indeed, his films usually take at least three nominations in the crafts categories.

    Zwick has not disappointed in amassing a slew of respected artists who have been recognized by the Academy in the past: cinematographer Eduardo Serra, costume designer Jenny Beavan, film editor Steven Rosenblum and composer James Newton Howard.  Veteran production designer Dan Weil seems bound to be nominated eventually, while the still undocumented sound designers are sure to be top notch.

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  • TECH SUPPORT: Kicking off the new year

    Tech Support at In ContentionWell here we go again. Welcome to the third year of “Tech Support” here at In Contention, still the Oscarweb’s only weekly column devoted strictly to the crafts elements of filmmaking and the awards process that surrounds them.

    The Toronto International Film Festival will be commencing tonight in my hometown and I am yet again “up the creek” (the creek being Lake Ontario) in Kingston. TIFF is correctly acknowledged as the true starting point of awards season so the next few weeks will really be an intro to the year ahead posing the intial questions that the oncoming season will eventually answer. The crafts categories will be no exception in that regard.

    So before we get there, perhaps stating the purpose of Tech Support, for both new and veteran readers, is a good place to start.

    Consider camera work. Sets. Costumes. Editing. Sound. Visual Effects. Makeup. Music.

    It goes without saying the absence of either element would negate the film-going experience. It might be true that the average moviegoer will see a film because of its director or its stars and not its
    cinematography but that does not take away from the work that crafts artists do behind the scenes to
    bring a movie to life, to improve it and to push the medium of film forward.

    Tech Support is an attempt to give the artists behind this work a more prominent role in the media, a role they almost never find themselves in. At In Contention, our focus is obviously on the awards side of the filmmaking industry. Discussing phenomena seen in the categories that award these disciplines, discussing particular categories and interviewing those “in contention” are frequent subjects of the weekly debate and discourse.

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  • Perennial Oscar snubee Danny Elfman gets another shot at missing the list with ‘Wolf Man’

    Danny ElfmanIt really is a shame that Danny Elfman hasn’t received the proper amount of recognition for the consistently screwed-up music branch of the Academy.  Well over two decades of quality work and three measly nods…neither of them for his top tier efforts.

    This is a guy who put together probably the greatest film score of all time (and kudos to Andy Trudeau for agreeing with me).  At the very least he’s carved a spot as one of the most prolific (if at times derivative) composers in the industry, instantly recognizable and always working the thematic context of the films he scores.

    Anyway, I just stumbled across the news that Elfman will be scoring Joe Johnston’s “The Wolf Man” (via /Film).  Personally I think it’s an awesome choice and a natural fit for Elfman.  I don’t know what sort of quality we can expect from the film, though.  Johnston took up the reins on the flick after Mark Romanek walked and makeup artist Rick Baker has already done his share of bitching about the on-set experience.  But I thnk we can all agree Elfman will elevate the atmosphere with his generally epic and creative work.

    Before “The Wolf Man,” by the way, will be  Gus Van Sant’s “Milk.”  Elfman was nominated in 1997 for Van Sant’s “Good Will Hunting,” so maybe lighting will strike again.  Maybe.

  • AMPAS sort of cleans up music and foreign categories

    Oy.  We’ve got a long way to go.

    According to the hot-off-the-presses release, the two categories that received the most nipping and tucking were these two infamously flawed arenas.

    Here’s what they have to say regarding the composers:

    Three items of note were altered in the Original Song rules.  First, while there continues to be no limit on the number of songs from a given film that can be submitted for consideration, no more than two songs from any one film may be nominated for an Academy Award.

    Good.  No cuts out the possibility of another poor track (*coughhappyworkingsongcough*) pushing out far superior work (*coughsocietycough*).  But there’s more:

    Also, in addition to the annual screening event at which members of the Music Branch view clips featuring the eligible songs as they appear in the films and vote, DVDs of those same clips will be made available to branch members who are unable to attend the screening; ballots will accompany the DVDs and must be returned by mail.

    Also good.  Maybe some informed decisions can be made by a larger majority.  But there’s no accounting for taste, so we’ll see how it goes.

    No alteration of that pesky, subjectively rendered Rule 16B that keeps biting artists in the ass.

    Music Branch members who have one or more songs in contention for nominations do not vote in that phase of the balloting.  They remain eligible to vote on the final ballot to select the winner.

    Got that, Shaiman?

    On to the foreign language film category, where the Academy seems to be putting a band-aid on a broken arm:

    The only other category with a notable change is the Foreign Language Film Award and as was the case in 2006, the alteration is a procedural one rather than one in the rules per se.  For the 81st Academy Awards, the two-phase process by which the nominees are selected will remain intact.  However, the Phase I committee – which is open to any voting member who views a minimum number of the eligible films – will now vote to determine only six of the nine films that will ultimately go to the Phase II committee.  The other three titles will be determined by those members of the 20-member Foreign Language Film Award Executive Committee who have qualified to vote in the category.  The executive committee’s selections will be made after the Phase I voting has been tallied.

    Again, there’s no accounting for taste.  We’ll see how it goes.

  • Peter Gabriel: Best Original Song contender?

    Reading through David Poland’s mid-Disney presentation…thing…I was reminded of a potential Best Original Song contender that slipped my mind in recent months.

    Peter Gabriel is working on a song for Disney’s “Wall-E,” and it could be a contender to watch as the season unfolds. Of course, Poland reports that it is a closing track (I wasn’t aware of this), and since the rule shift a few years back, closing tracks don’t find much head-way unless they’re used in some way elsewhere in the film to creative purpose.

    In any case, it’d be great to have Gabriel back in the fold. He hasn’t been too prevalent in the cinema world since his superb score for Rabbit-Proof Fence” in 2002. And who can forget his unexpected work in “The Last Temptation of Christ” two decades ago? I don’t know why, but he seems like a perfect fit for “Wall-E.”

    Chalk him up as a possibility.

  • INTERVIEW: Three 6 Mafia

    Three 6 MafiaWhen hip-hop artist Eminem was nominated in 2002 for the Best Original Song Oscar for his track “Lose Yourself” from Curtis Hanson’s 8 Mile, he did not attend the ceremony and therefore the song was not performed per tradition. Musician and co-nominee Luis Resto was on hand to accept the award.

    Three years later, the door is open for Memphis rap group Three 6 Mafia to become the first hip-hop artists ever to perform at an Oscar ceremony.

    Jordan “Juicy J” Houston takes charge in an interview setting, speaking with a rapid fire delivery that gets his point across with the right balance of professional sincerity and conversational candor. His fellow nominee Paul “DJ Paul” Beauregard casually adds to the discussion here and there, remaining quiet the majority of the time. Nominated along with Cedric “Crunchy Black” Coleman for their song “It’s Hard Out Here for a Pimp” from the Hustle & Flow soundtrack, the group seems genuinely moved by the attention.

    “That’s so big,” Houston says. “Right now I think I’m dreaming. And it’s going to be a clean show, you know. No one’s got anything to worry about.”

    Swept up in a media frenzy following the nod to the film’s organic track, Houston and his collaborators can’t seem to go a waking moment without further exposure and regard for the accomplishment.

    “It’s a blessing, man. We’ve been getting a lot of congratulations from our hometown. It seems like we’ve been on the news every day. As a matter of fact, I was on the news just yesterday giving an interview. It’s crazy, man.”

    Craig Brewer’s sophomore effort also received a nomination for Best Actor for the film’s breakout star, Terrence Howard. The film debuted at Sundance over a year ago and has generated genuine love and respect, both for the performances (nominated en masse by the Screen Actors Guild in the Best Ensemble category), and for the music so integral to the viewing experience.

    The nominated song’s key moment in the film comes during an in-studio collaborative session that sees actors Howard, Taraji P. Henson, Anthony Anderson and DJ Qualls putting the track together piece by piece. Houston and Beauregard had plenty of experience working with established musicians, but this proved to be slightly unfamiliar territory.

    “We’ve dealt with all types of artists,” Houston affirms. “Working with artists like Ludacris and then working with the actors, Terrence and Taraji, it was a little different. Terrence is a musician. He plays guitar and he knows music, and Taraji is a singer, so they picked it up fast.”

    He continues, “They told us what the film was going to be about – a pimp struggling to be a rapper – and then we went and wrote the song. I wasn’t there when they filmed the scene, but Craig took it like it was a missing piece in a puzzle and fit it right in. He’s a brilliant director.”

    If you haven’t had the pleasure as of yet, Hustle & Flow tells the story of a Memphis pimp, DJay (Howard), who dreams of reaching higher and making something more of himself. Witnessing the quick success of hometown hero Skinny Black (Ludacris) in the hip-hop arena, DJay discovers he has a voice and he wants it to be heard as well. The question is how accurate is the film to a true hip-hop artist’s experience?

    “It’s real accurate,” Beauregard chimes in immediately. “It’s very real.” Houston backs him up, adding “That’s pretty much how every rapper got started. And that concept goes farther, into filmmaking, or doing what you do, everything’s a struggle. I’ve been through every single thing in that movie, trying to get your demo out there, get someone to play it…I’m not going to say I’ve been a pimp or anything, but the rest of it, yeah.”

    Working on the film gave Houston the chance to talk with one of his personal icons, Isaac Hayes, who plays the role of dive owner Arnel.

    “My influences are Al Green, B.B. King, you know, all the Memphis musicians. But Isaac Hayes has always been my favorite. I’d seen him before around town, you know, at the car wash. I was in the scene in the bar, I played Ludacris’s brother, and me and Isaac got a chance to talk. That was big.”

    The most colorful scenario one could imagine involving Three 6 Mafia this year would have to be the annual nominees’ luncheon, which saw the group in the same room as Hollywood’s elite. It was a surreal experience for Houston and the rest of the group to say the least.

    “I was thinking, ‘What am I doing here?’ You know, you’re used to sitting in the studio with a bunch of guys drinking beer and smelling like something they shouldn’t be smelling like, and then you pull a switcheroo and you’re in Hollywood in a room with Steven Spielberg and Reese Witherspoon. And she’s sexy, man.”

    I had to include that last bit, as it goes to show the genuine awe the Memphis group finds themselves in while still maintaining their personal sense of reality. Fish out of water? Perhaps. But still surrounded by fellow artists nonetheless.

    The Hustle & Flow experience has been a welcome one and an exciting one for Three 6 Mafia. As is typical in the city of dreams, further doors have been opening upon the success of the film. Houston isn’t too keen on talking specifically, but the ball seems to be rolling regardless.

    “Right now we have some stuff on the table. We’ve had some meetings at Paramount and Revolution Studios. I hope you’ll be hearing our songs in some future films.”

    In the meantime, Houston, Beauregard and Coleman are off to the Kodak Theater. They’ll be performing “It’s Hard Out Here For a Pimp” along with actress Taraji P. Henson (Howard opted out of performing at the ceremony, but looks forward to Three 6 Mafia’s performance all the same). Many think they have a genuine shot at taking the gold, as very few songs are such a hot button topic of discussion around town. But winning the award seems to be the furthest thing from Houston and Beauregard’s mind.

    “We really haven’t made an acceptance speech. We’re real superstitious. We’re not really thinking about winning, we’re just having fun. But if we win, we’ll know who we’ll thank when we get up there.”

    The Oscar ceremony is this Sunday, March 5, and one thing is certain. Three 6 Mafia’s mark will be left when the show draws to a close, win, lose or draw. Hip-hop will have arrived at the Kodak Theater in the form of Memphis crunk.