Nettwerk Music Group has released more than 30 song-driven soundtracks during its three-decade history, including music from the TV series Veronica Mars, Nip/Tuck, Everwood and Rescue Me and such movies as Away We Go and Inventing the Abbotts.
But until January, Nettwerk had never released a soundtrack primarily comprising an instrumental score. That changed with the film soundtrack to Still Alice, the story of a woman struggling with early-onset Alzheimer’s disease, portrayed by Julianne Moore, who won the best actress Academy Award for the role.
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The poignant score of Still Alice, written by British composer Ilan Eshkeri, spoke to Nettwerk co-founder/CEO Terry McBride and his partners, but its release also signals a new business direction for the company.
While many labels are stepping away from releasing instrumental scores because of diminished sales, “we are walking solidly toward them,” McBride says. “This is based on our understanding of this different business model and the thought that performance is the actual driver. I’m looking at it from a publisher point of view.”
Nettwerk receives a performance royalty every time the movie plays in a theater — and the score is ripe for licensing for film trailers, advertising and other ancillary revenue streams.
McBride says he “absolutely” expects to release more scores and soundtracks. “We’re going to pick quality movies and quality scores, because for a score to pay off inside a performance [royalty] paradigm, it needs to have a long tail.”
Nettwerk also is celebrating the success of Patricia Arquette, who won the Oscar for supporting actress for her portrayal of a single mother in Boyhood. Although the soundtrack to the acclaimed film was released by Nonesuch Records, the album features Coldplay’s 2000 hit “Yellow,” for which Nettwerk owns the master, and Family of the Year’s current single, “Hero,” a song prominently used in the movie and its trailer.