Laura Karpman: Center Stage 2

Laura Karpman and hip-hop group The Roots collaborate on the soundtrack for Center Stage 2, Sony Pictures and Laurence Mark Productions' follow up to the 2000 picture which took place at the American Ballet Academy in New York. The sequel stars Rachele Smith, Kenny Wormald and Sarah Jayne Jensen and is directed by Steven Jacobson, who was second unit director on Dreamgirls. Christopher Violette is the music supervisor on the film. He and Karpman has recently collaborated on another film, Ace Ventura Jr. Karpman is best known for her epic orchestral video game scores (Everquest II and Untold Legends: Dark Kingdom) and the music for Steven Spielberg's TV series Taken.

Michael Wandmacher: Punisher - War Zone

Punisher: War Zone, Lions Gate's follow-up to the 2004 Marvel action adventure The Punisher, gets an original score composed by Michael Wandmacher, whose previous credits include Never Back Down, Cry Wolf and The Killing Floor. Lexi Alexander (Green Street Hooligans) directs Punisher: War Zone, which features Ray Stevenson in the title role with supporting cast members including Dominic West and Julie Benz. Film is scheduled to premiere on December 5. Among Wandmacher's other upcoming films are My Bloody Valentine 3-D and Train.

Thomas Newman: Brothers

Thomas Newman has been hired to compose the original score for the US remake of Susanne Bier's acclaimed drama Brothers, which featured an award-winning score by Swedish composer Johan Söderqvist. The remake is directed by veteran helmer Jim Sheridan (My Left Foot) who is working with Thomas Newman for the first time. Jake Gyllenhaal, Natalie Portman and Tobie Maguire top the impressive cast of the film, which is scheduled to premiere on December 4, distributed by M-G-M. Thomas Newman, who recently scored Pixar's latest hit, Wall-E, also has the score for American Beauty director Sam Mendes Revolutionary Road coming up.

John Frizzell: The Lodger

John Frizzell has recently recorded his orchestral score for The Lodger, David Ondaatje's film which is based on the novel by Marie Belloc Lowndes, previously reworked for the silver screen by Alfred Hitchcock in 1927. Rachael Leigh Cook, Simon Baker and Shane West star in the thriller where a couple begin to suspect that the young and mysterious man who rents their room is a psychotic murderer. Michael Mailer Films produces for release by Sony, release date to be confirmed. Frizzell's other recent scores include Evil Angel, 100 Feet and Henry Poole Is Here. He is best known for Office Space, Alien: Resurrection and Ghost Ship.

Aaron Zigman: The Proposal

The Proposal, a romantic comedy starring Sandra Bullock, Ryan Reynolds and Mary Steenburgen, gets an original score by Aaron Zigman (The Notebook, Sex and the City, Alpha Dog). The film, presenting a story about a boss who forces her young assistant to marry her in order to keep her Visa status in the U.S., is directed by Anne Fletcher, a choreographer/director who previously worked with Zigman on Step Up. Scheduled to premiere on June 19, 2009, the film is produced by Mandeville Films and Touchstone Pictures. Zigman, one of Hollywood's busiest composers, also has Flash of Genius and My Sister's Keeper on his list of upcoming films.

James Newton Howard: Gnomeo and Juliet

Walt Disney Pictures has confirmed to Upcoming Film Scores that James Newton Howard has been hired to compose the original score for the Elton John-produced animated feature Gnomeo and Juliet. The film is now on Disney's table again, after a couple of years on the shelves, and Shrek 2 helmer Kelly Asbury is set to direct the fantasy take on Shakespeare, set in the world of warring gnomes. James Newton Howard's previous scores for Walt Disney include Dinosaur and Treasure Planet. Among his other current projects are Defiance and Confessions of a Shopaholic (also for Disney).

Guy Farley: Book of Blood

British composer Guy Farley, who recently had his score for the Richard Gere thriller The Flock released by MovieScore Media, is currently working on the original orchestral score for Clive Barker's Book of Blood, produced by the author and directed by John Harrison, a filmmaker who is also known as a film composer in his own right (Creepshow, Tales from the Darkside). Farley, who is best known for his melodic scores (Modigliani, Madre Teresa, The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey) has recently focused on darker subjects (The Flock is one example, The Broken and Knife Edge two others) and is writing for an orchestra excluding violins, featuring among other instruments ethnic flutes and percussion, a low brass quartet (tuba, cimbasso, contrabass trombone, bass trombone) and the unusual instrument Monochord. Recording should take place in London later this month. The film is produced by UK's Matador Pictures and stars Jonas Armstrong, Sophie Ward and Paul Blair.

Hans Zimmer: The Burning Plain

Hans Zimmer has composed the music for The Burning Plain, the feature film helming debut of Alejandro González Iñárritu writing partner Guillermo Arriaga (Babel, 21 Grams, The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada), according to the Gorfaine-Schwartz Agency. Other music team members include music editor Joanie Diener and music supervisors Annette Fradera and Dana Sano. The film stars Kim Basinger and Charlize Theron as a mother and daughter who try to reconcile after many years of difficulties and conflicts. The film will premiere at the Venice Film Festival. Hans Zimmer other upcoming films include Dreamworks Animation's Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa, which he is co-scoring with Black Eyed Peas frontman Will.i.am.

Randy Miller: Jack and the Beanstalk

The upcoming live action version of the classic tale Jack and the Beanstalk, starring Chevy Chase and Christopher Lloyd, gets an original score by Randy Miller, a versatile composer whose previous credits include Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth and who has orchestrated and conducted scores such as The Fast and the Furious and Driven. The film is directed by Gary J. Tunnicliffe, a make-up effects wizard who also worked on Hellraiser III and a lot of other genre movies, including Sleepy Hollow, Blade and Exorcist: The Beginning. Randy Miller has also composed the music for Uncross the Stars, a drama comedy starring Ron Perlman and Barbara Hershey, directed by Kenny Golde.

Henry Jackman: Monsters vs. Aliens

Yet another Hans Zimmer protegé is ready to fly solo: Henry Jackman, who has worked on Zimmer scores such as The Dark Knight, The Simpsons Movie and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, has been hired to compose the original score for Dreamworks Animation's upcoming sci-fi adventure Monsters vs. Aliens. Directed by Rob Letterman (Shark Tale) and Conrad Vernon (Shrek 2), this is Dreamworks Animation's first 3-D feature, telling the story about a young girl who turns into a giant monster when hit by a meteorite from outer space. Voice cast members include Seth Roger, Reese Witherspoon and Kiefer Sutherland. Dreamworks Animation has confirmed to Upcoming Film Scores that Hans Zimmer is also onboard the film supervising the music. In related news, Jim Dooley is doing the music for Activision's Monster vs Aliens video game which is going to come out around the time of the film's release, March 27 next year.

Dickon Hinchliffe: Last Chance Harvey

Dickon Hinchliffe, one of the founding members of alternative pop group Tindersticks, has been writing quite a few film scores lately - credits include the Rowan Atkinson comedy Keeping Mum and last year's crime drama Married Life. He is now doing the music for Last Chance Harvey, a romantic drama starring Dustin Hoffman and Emma Thompson. Written and directed by Joel Hopkins, the film tells the story about an American man who visits London to celebrate his daughter's wedding and falls in love with an English woman. Overture Films produces for release on December 18.

Steve Jablonsky: Friday the 13th

Steve Jabonsky reunites with director Marcus Nispel, for whom he wrote the score for the 2003 Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake, on the Michael Bay-produced Friday the 13th, which has been described as an "update" of the popular horror series scored by Harry Manfredini. Cast members include Jared Padalecki, Danielle Panabaker and Amanda Righetti and the film is scheduled to be released on February 13. According to the publicist on the film, Jablonsky is also doing the score for Rogue Pictures' The Unborn, another horror film produced by Michael Bay, directed by David S. Goyer (whose latest credit is the story for The Dark Knight). The Unborn stars Odette Yustman, Gary Oldman and Jane Alexander. Steve Jablonsky has worked extensively with Michael Bay both on films he produced and directed; their latest project film was Transformers.

Trevor Rabin: Race to Witch Mountain

Trevor Rabin has been hired to score Walt Disney Pictures' Race to Witch Mountain, the studio confirmed to Upcoming Film Scores today. The sci-fi adventure, which is directed by Andy Fickman (The Game Plan), stars Carla Gugino, Dwayne Johnson and AnnaSophia Robb and is based on the novel by Alexander Key. The film is a remake of the 1975 Disney film which was scored by Johnny Mandel. Race to Witch Mountain, which will be released in March next year, is Trevor Rabin's second Disney assignment within the past few weeks - he has also taken over scoring duties on the Disney/Bruckheimer action project G-Force.

Paul Cantelon: W.

Oliver Stone's upcoming political satire about president George W. Bush, W., gets an original score by French composer Paul Cantelon, who recently wrote the acclaimed score for costume drama The Other Boleyn Girl. The film is sure to cause some controversy, as it chronicles the life of George W. Bush with a lot of A-list actors portraying the politicians surrounding him: Richard Dreyfuss as Dick Cheney, Scott Glenn as Donald Rumsfeld, Jeffrey Wright as Colin Powell, Ioan Gruffudd as Tony Blair... the part as Bush himself is played by Josh Brolin, and his father is done by James Cromwell. The screenplay is by Stanley Weiser, a regular Stone collaborator who previously wrote the script for Wall Street. Paul Cantelon got his big break with the French art house movie The Diving Bell and the Butterfly in 2007 and also wrote the music for the 2005 independent hit Everything Is Illuminated. W. is scheduled to premiere on October 17, distribution is handled by Lionsgate.

Theodore Shapiro: Jennifer's Body

The upcoming thriller comedy Jennifer's Body, starring Magan Fox, Amanda Seyfried and Adam Brody, has been added to Theodore Shapiro's resume at the Gorfaine-Schwartz Agency web site. The film is directed by Karyn Kusama, the Aeon Flux helmer who previously worked with Shapiro on Girlfight. Jennifer's Body, a tale about a cheerleader who turns into a vicious killer, is the new project from Juno writer Diablo Cody and producer Jason Reitman. It's scheduled to be released next year, distributed by Fox Atomic. Theodore Shapiro is also doing the music for comedy I Love You, Man, directed by John Hamburg.

Harry Gregson-Williams: Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time

Harry Gregson-Williams has been signed to score Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time for Walt Disney Pictures and Jerry Bruckheimer Films. The big budget action adventure, which is based on the popular video game, is directed by Mike Newell and stars Jake Gyllenhall, Gemma Arterton and Ben Kingsley. Supposed to premiere next summer, Prince of Persia tells the story of an adventurous prince and a princess who team up to stop an evil ruler from unleashing a sandstorm that could destroy earth. Signing on to score Prince of Persia, Gregson-Williams also withdraw from scoring duties on G-Force, the other big Disney/Bruckheimer 2009 action flick, where Trevor Rabin (National Treasure) takes over the responsibility for the film's original score. Harry Gregson-Williams other upcoming films include The Taking of Pelham 123 and X-Men Origins: Wolverine.

Trevor Rabin: G-Force

Walt Disney Pictures has confirmed to Upcoming Film Scores that Trevor Rabin has replaced Harry Gregson-Williams as the score composer on G-Force, the Jerry Bruckheimer/Walt Disney Pictures action adventure which combines live-action with CG. The signing of Rabin to score G-Force co-incides with the assignment of Gregson-Williams to score the two studios' other big 2009 action project, Prince of Persia. Trevor Rabin has enjoyed great success scoring the two Disney/Bruckheimer National Treasure hit movies. G-Force, which will come out next summer, features the voices of Nicolas Cage, Penélope Cruz and Steve Buscemi.

Brian Tyler: Final Destination 4

The Gorfaine-Schwartz Agency has added another project to Brian Tyler's filmography: Final Destination 4. The first three films in the series were scored by Shirley Walker, who passed away in 2006. David Richard Ellis, who previously directed the first sequel as well as Snakes on a Plane, is helming Final Destination 4, scheduled to premiere next summer. Brian Tyler certainly is no stranger to the horror genre: among his previous credits are Aliens vs Predator: Requiem, Bug, Frailty and Darkness Falls. One of the most prolific of Hollywood's composers, Tyler also has the scores for films such as Dragonball, Eagle Eye and Fast and Furious coming up.

Jeff Cardoni: Playboys

Jeff Cardoni, the up and coming composer whose recent credits include Firehouse Dog and two American Pie movies, has been hired to write the music for Playboys, a Fox Atomic comedy directed by and starring Zack Cregger and Trevor Moore. Cardoni is also going to score The Vicious Kind, a drama comedy about a man obsessed with his brother's girlfriend. Lee Toland Krieger directs, Brittany Snow, J.K. Simmons and Alex Frost star. The composer recently finished work on Beer for My Horses, a comedy directed by Michael Salomon.

Mark Mothersbaugh: Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist

According to Greenspan Artist Management, Mark Mothersbaugh of Devo fame has been signed to score Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist, a drama comedy starring Michael Cera and Kat Dennings as two teenagers who tries to locate the venue of their favorite band's secret show in New York. Peter Sollett (Raising Victor Vargas) directs for release via Sony on October 3. Mark Mothersbaugh, who is best known for his scores for Wes Anderson's films (The Royal Tenenbaums and The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou), also has the scores for Fanboys and Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs coming up.

Ryan Shore: Lower Learning

Ryan Shore, the composer of the recent scores for Numb, The Girl Next Door and Prime, has several new films coming up. He is doing the music for Lower Learning, a comedy about what is possibly the worst elementary school ever, starring Jason Biggs and Eva Longoria Parker, directed by Mark Lafferty. Ambush Entertainment produces for release by Anchor Bay. Shore is also scoring another comedy: Made for Each Other, starring Patrick Warburton and Danny Masterson. Daryl Goldberg directs. The composer's other recently completed scores include Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer and Shadows.

John Powell: Ice Age - Dawn of the Dinosaurs

John Powell will compose the score for the third entry in the animated Ice Age series, Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs. Powell already scored the second film, Ice Age: Meltdown, taking over the series from David Newman, who wrote the music for the first 2002 picture. Dawn of the Dinosaurs is Powell's third project for animation director Carlos Saldanha, who directed Meltdown as well as Robots in 2005. John Powell's other future films include Disney's animated Bolt and Paul Greengrass' Green Zone.

John Debney: They Came from Upstairs

20th Century Fox has confirmed to Upcoming Film Scores that John Debney will compose the original score for the studio's upcoming sci-fi comedy They Came from Upstairs, directed by John Schultz (The Honeymooners, Drive Me Crazy). The film is about a bunch of kids who fights to protect their vacation home from invading aliens. Cast includes Ashley Tisdale, Robert Hoffman and Austin Robert Butler. John Debney recently scored another sci-fi comedy for Fox, Meet Dave, starring Eddie Murphy. They Came from Upstairs is expected to hit theatres in February next year.

Angelo Milli: Seven Pounds

The upcoming Will Smith drama Seven Pounds, co-starring Rosario Dawson and Woody Harrelson, gets an original score composed by Angelo Milli. His previous credits include 2006 independent thriller Unknown and the recent acclaimed drama Paraiso Travel. Produced by Columbia Pictures, Seven Pounds tells the story of a man "who will change the lives of seven strangers" according to the plot official summary. Gabriele Muccino, who directed Smith in The Pursuit of Happyness, is helming the project for release in December.