From: Robbie Teehan

Toronto, Canada

Dear friend,

You’re a professional composer for film, TV, or video games.

You’ve invested years of your life learning how to write amazing music to picture.  You love your work, and nothing makes you happier than bringing a powerful story to life. 

Maybe you’ve been in this industry for a long time, or maybe you’re just getting started -

But either way, chances are you’ve noticed something in the last year:

There seems to be way less work to go around.  

Things are slower for composers, and therefore more competitive at every level. 

You’re not imagining it. 

The industry is in a contraction, or even a recession, due to the effects of the strikes and the streaming wars ending.

There used to be so many new TV series and films being commissioned by the big streamers that top composers couldn’t keep up with the demand.  Now, they’re laying off assistants and tightening their operations.

And if you’re a composer who didn’t have a lot of work to begin with, you might be wondering if this is the moment to leave the industry and get a 9-to-5 job to pay the bills.

Here’s the thing, though.  

Contractions happen in all industries, all the time.  It’s just a fact of life.  And some businesses will go under, while others survive and thrive through the difficult times.

Times like these expose the weaknesses - and strengths  - of your business.

If you were relying on a few creators calling you every near for new projects, and never bothered learning how to network and market yourself, you might be wondering what on earth you’re going to do now that the phone has stopped ringing.

But composers that have a solid marketing system are doing just fine.

My client Philippe Gerber booked 12 feature films this year with rising star indie directors and is booked solid until 2026. 

My other client Josh Santos booked 18 projects including 2 features in just his first year, at age 22! 

Along with 50+ others...

How did they do it? 

Social media.

I know what you’re thinking - 

“That’s not for real composers and real projects.” 

Wrong. 

My client Sean James Boyer was hired on a major Netflix series using a connection he made on LinkedIN.  And my client Tom Hawk booked a AAA game scoring gig directly from his YouTube channel, without any major credits.

“Well, I don’t want to dance around like an idiot and make dumb videos all day.”

You don’t have to. 

It’s the connection and engagement tools that are most powerful.  One of my most successful clients, Roberto Mengoli, used Instagram to launch his career from rural Italy, and hardly posts on the platform at all. 

“I don’t have time for this.”

Do you have an hour per day?  That’s all it takes when you have a plan and a strategy.  

Look, I get it. 

I was terrified of social media myself. I’m 42 years old, and I remember the world before social media, and sometimes wished we could go back to those simpler times.

I resisted using social media because I was afraid of being ridiculed, bullied, harassed, judged, criticized, or worse, ignored.

But I’ve seen the power of social media firsthand. 

I built a six-figure career coaching business on Facebook alone. 

My very first Instagram reel led directly to a four-figure record deal.  And almost all of my new film scoring work comes through connections on these platforms.  

In short, social media has changed my life, and it’s transforming the careers of the composers I work with.

If you’ve been telling yourself “I don’t do social media”, you might as well tell yourself “I don’t do business in 2024.” 

Because your dream clients are on these platforms, right now, looking for their next composer.  Without a presence on social media, they may never find you.

But, if you’re willing to learn some new skills and get over your fear of putting yourself out there, social media might just be the magic bullet you were looking for that drives exciting new scoring work into your business in 2025 and beyond.

In those dark moments when you wondered if your dream was over, and you prayed for your career to pick up -

What if the answer had been right in front of you this whole time, and all you needed to do was reach out and grab it?