Award-winning film and TV music composer Thomas Newman has scored such classics as The Shawshank Redemption, Finding Nemo, and American Beauty.
∙ He’s part of a musical family dynasty that includes his father, the legendary film composer Alfred Newman, and singer-songwriter cousin Randy Newman, also known for movie music. ∙ His first music-scoring gigs included an episode of the TV series The Paper Chase and the 1984 film Reckless. ∙ Composer John Williams personally asked Newman to create music for Darth Vader’s death scene in Return of the Jedi. ∙ He has scored films for such directors as Ron Howard, Robert Altman, Steven Soderbergh, and Sam Mendes. ∙ In 2002, Newman won an Emmy Award (Outstanding Main Title Theme Music) for the series Six Feet Under. ∙ He has won six Grammy Awards, including one for the WALL-E song “Down to Earth,” which he cowrote with Peter Gabriel.