Award-winning composer, Federico Jusid, is a multifaceted artist with many titles including concert pianist, conductor, and film and theater producer. He is best known for scoring the Academy Award-winning Best Foreign Language film, The Secret in Their Eyes, which Federico composed with Emilio Kauderer. During TIFF, I had the opportunity to converse with Federico. We talked about his early influences, his work for television, and film.

Federico most recently completed the score for This Is Us creator Dan Fogelman’s upcoming drama, Life Itself, starring Olivia Wilde and Oscar Isaac, premiering in theatres September 21.

His work for Life Itself, required that he rearrange the work of Bob Dylan. The film’s arc includes the stories of multiple couples over numerous generations, and how they are all connected by a single event. The challenge for Federico here was to create original pieces that suit the melodramatic story while transcending time and space. Federico’s music in one of the redeeming aspects of the film.

Thanks to his versatility, ability to work under pressure, and prolific nature, Federico has worked on other cinematic projects, including scoring Spanish dramas such as, Loving Pablo, starring Javier Bardem and Penelope Cruz, La noche de 12 años, and Ola de crimenes. In addition to scoring film and TV, Federico has lent his skills as a multi-instrumentalist to the soundtracks of Misconduct starring Al Pacino and Anthony Hopkins, Neruda with Gael García Bernal, Everybody has a Plan with Viggo Mortensen, and many others.

As a concert artist, Federico has toured around Europe, Asia, the U.S. and South America. He has conducted and performed in some of the most prestigious halls worldwide such as the Carnegie Weil, the Saint Petersburg Philharmonic Chamber Hall, National Auditorium of Spain, and Eglise Saint-Séverin. To learn about and hear Federico’s many other works, please visit federicojusid.com.

Title photo courtesy of Impact24 PR.