Quotes from James Newton Howard

One day I was watching some pundits screaming at each other on a news show. It suddenly reminded me of this painting on my wall, of balloons with goofy faces rising - pundits screaming at each other and arguing off into the ether.

Something different happened to me when I started to write music to images. It was a feeling of excitement and connection and a sense of being in the right place that I never had before.

Disney movies have had a tradition of excellent music since the beginning. Some of my favorites are 'Fantasia,' 'Dumbo,' 'The Lion King' and 'Toy Story.'

Becoming a father allowed me to become a much better composer, because it allowed me to have tremendous patience. I have much more tolerance for opposing opinions, short attention spans, changes of heart. And faith in the future.

The trick with 'Nutcracker' was figure out how much, and where, we could the Tchaikovsky - using as much as we possibly could and still support the storytelling.

That's what keeps me going: those moments of solving a problem, of what happens to a movie when the right music is added - and what happens to the music when the movie's working with it.

Tchaikovsky was one of the great melody writers of all time.

One of my biggest goals in writing the music for 'Fantastic Beasts' was to create memorable melodies. J.K. Rowling's world has always had a great musical legacy and I was hoping to continue that tradition.

I think to do anything out of one's comfort zone, there has to be some aspect of it that feels inspiring and challenging in a positive way.

Jerry Goldsmith, I have to say, is my single favorite composer of all time. He was one of the most innovative guys ever to do it. You go back to 'Planet of the Apes' and it is just a monumental score - the sound design and approach to percussion was just so extraordinary. One of his great scores for me was 'Alien.'

I've been lucky to have been given opportunities in different genres. And most of the time I've felt that the exploration, the composing, the collaboration, was a move forward.

In most multiple composer situations, you find it because someone got nervous about the music and insisted that somebody else come in and help.

Gamelan instruments are exotic and mysterious.

I like to pace myself at about two minutes of music a day. With 'Waterworld' it was closer to five minutes a day, which is uncomfortable and slightly terrifying.

Music can help uncover that tone that's in the fabric of the movie. Sometimes it's very plain to see, sometimes it's not.

I absolutely loved 'The New World.'

As a film composer I deal with short bursts of musical ideas that are defined to a large extent by what's happening on the screen, by not only narrative and action, but staying out of the way of dialogue, sound effects.

Every movie you score you hope is unlike anything you have done before. You are always trying to not sound like yourself.

My earliest memories are listening to my Grandmother playing the piano at our house as I jumped up and down on the couch. She was a violinist with the Pittsburgh Symphony in the 30s and 40s, and was a huge influence on me.

I try and write a fair amount in the beginning without the movie. And then when I do get the movie I create these demos, just mock-ups, and I throw them up against the picture and some of it sticks and some of it doesn't. But I'm very careful before I play anything to picture, because that's such a profoundly important moment.

The first 'Hunger Games' movie was one of those rare films to combine epic storyline, memorable characters and challenging musical opportunities.

With any movie at all the challenge lies in the storytelling.

I believe very strongly in having melodic hooks, whether they're short or intricate, that you really remember in a movie.

I really don't think about the Oscars.