The grant funds were used to support the music production for Solo Mio, a feature film starring Kevin James with a wide theatrical release planned. As with many independent productions, resources were limited and timelines were tight—this grant helped bridge critical gaps and allowed me to fully focus on delivering a heartfelt and detailed original score.

The funds supported key areas of the scoring process, including creative development, music production, and collaboration with a small but mighty music team. With the grant’s help, I was able to commit the time and energy needed to write, revise, and refine the score through many rounds of feedback, as well as manage the logistics and coordination necessary to see the music through from composition to final mix.

I’m incredibly grateful for this support—it allowed me to bring a level of care, depth, and storytelling to the project that would have been difficult to achieve otherwise. The score became a true emotional backbone for the film, and the grant helped make that possible.

The score for Solo Mio blends timeless romance with lighthearted charm, featuring warm string ensembles, solo guitar, mandolin, percussion, vocals, and lush orchestration to support the film’s themes of love, hope, and second chances. Set in Italy, the story called for a musical approach that honored its cultural backdrop while still feeling personal and emotionally resonant.

I recorded the score with a live 50-piece orchestra in Budapest, alongside intimate solo performances by mandolin, guitar, and percussion. The music dances between sweeping lyrical passages and playful rhythmic textures, mirroring the emotional highs and lows of the characters’ journeys.

Working within a modest budget, I focused on creating intimacy and authenticity, allowing the score to breathe and reflect the humanity of the story. The thematic material evolves throughout the film, with subtle variations that track the characters’ emotional arcs and deepen the storytelling.

It was important to me that the music felt like a character itself—sometimes leading, sometimes supporting—but always speaking to the heart of the film.

As a composer, I’m deeply inspired by culture and emotion—how music can evoke identity, memory, and longing. For Solo Mio, I set out to craft a score that honored the film’s Italian-American roots while capturing the bittersweet, nostalgic tone at its heart.

I immersed myself in classic Italian folk music and romantic film scores, drawing from the traditions of Nino Rota and Ennio Morricone. Their work helped guide the emotional palette of the score, while I layered in a modern sensibility—fresh harmonies, unexpected orchestrations, and rhythmic pacing that speaks to today’s audience.

What moved me most about scoring Solo Mio was its emotional core. Beneath the humor and chaos, it’s a story about love’s resilience and the quiet power of second chances. That inspired me to write melodies that feel both timeless and deeply personal—music that invites the audience into the characters’ inner lives. Every instrument choice, every harmonic turn was meant to reflect vulnerability, warmth, and the kind of gentle hope that carries us forward.

___

Joy Ngiaw is a Malaysian film and TV composer known for emotionally rich and inventive scores. She first gained recognition for Blush (Apple TV+), Skydance Animation’s inaugural short film, which earned her the Best Music Award from Hollywood Music in Media and an Annie nomination. She later received a second Annie nomination for scoring the sci-fi adventure WondLa (Apple TV+), collaborating with industry icons such as John Lasseter (Toy Story). Joy made history as the youngest composer to score a major studio logo for Skydance Animation. Her other credits include Barbie Mysteries (Mattel/Netflix), Glamorous (Netflix/CBS), and Rescued by Ruby (Netflix). Recognized as a leading voice among a new generation of composers, Joy was nominated for the 2022 David Raskin Emerging Talent Award, selected for the NBCUniversal Composers Initiative, and named a 2024 BAFTA Breakthrough USA honoree. She also serves on the executive board for the Composers Diversity Collective.