Ballinasloe native becomes first woman to score a DreamWorks film!
By Adrian Cusack
Ballinasloe native Amie Doherty has made film history by becoming the first female composer ever to score a DreamWorks animated feature!
The Los Angeles-based musician worked on the score for 'Spirit Untamed', which was released in cinemas here on Friday, collaborating with actors Eliza Gonzalez, Isabela Merced, and Jake Gyllenhaal on the recording of the title song 'Fearless'.
During an interview with Oliver Callan on RTE Radio One's Ryan Tubridy Show last Friday morning, Amie said she had booked a special private screening of the film, for her family, in Athlone's IMC Cinema.
"At this stage, I think there's about 40 of them (attending)... all my aunts and uncles and cousins are coming from all over the country and they're going to pack into a cinema in Athlone for the big premiere!" she laughed.
"Hopefully I'll Zoom in (for the screening). I'm just delighted. I think I have the most supportive family and friends on earth. They're constantly on the sidelines cheering me on, and they really keep me going.
"I definitely would love to be at home to go and see it with them, but I'll get there before the year is out, hopefully," she said.
Creating the music for 'Spirit Untamed' is just the latest milestone in a glittering career to date for Amie, who has previously worked on projects with Lady Gaga and rapper 50 Cent.
Her music across a range of genres can be heard in both film and TV, on the likes of the 2020 festive rom-com 'Happiest Season', the 2018 film 'Here and Now' starring Sarah Jessica Parker and Renée Zellweger, and series such as 'Picard', 'Star Trek: Discovery', 'The Umbrella Academy' and 'Fargo'.
Speaking on RTE radio on Friday, she said she had grown up in a very musical household in Ballinasloe.
"My Mam (Martina) is from a big family, she's one of ten, and they all live in and around Ballinasloe. Everyone is just really musical. All of our cousins play instruments and every party we had was centred around music.
"My Mam and uncle Noel are part of running the local town band, and Mam writes musicals for the local schools. Our whole family is just very involved in music in the community, and Ballinasloe, in general, is a great place for music."
Amie said she had grown up playing the piano from a very young age, and that her teachers Nellie Hurley and Marie Power had a huge influence on her.
She spoke about how music composition for film and TV remained very much a male-dominated industry. "They say that 2 to 3% of the composers working on studio-level films are women. Hopefully, it's changing, because there's a lot of work being done to encourage more women to come into this field.
"It's so lovely to be the first female to score a DreamWorks film, but hopefully in a few years' time that will not be a thing anymore," she commented.
'Spirit Untamed', which was released in the US in June, but only reached cinemas in Ireland and the UK last week, is a spinoff to 2002's 'Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron' and the recent Netflix series 'Spirit Riding Free'.
"The whole message behind the film is about female empowerment, just empowering young girls to be brave and be adventurous," said Amie.