Icelandic composer Hildur Guðnadóttir has become a game-changing force in the field of film music.Her soundtrack to Todd Phillips’ 2019 film Joker not only captivated listeners but saw her making history with a successive sweep of awards, witness to her galvanizing art and shattering longstanding industry glass ceilings to smithereens.Guðnadóttir’s otherworldly soundscapes for Joker were met with unanimous acclaim, and she became the first solo female composer to take home an Academy Award for Best Original Score since the category was consolidated in 2000.This was soon accompanied by victories at the Golden Globe Awards, BAFTA Awards, and Critics’ Choice Awards, sweeping the high-octane awards for her work on the film.
Expanding the scope of aspirations beyond Joker, Guðnadóttir’s aspiration as a composer is highlighted in her work on the HBO miniseries Chernobyl, on which she won a Primetime Emmy Award as well as a Grammy Award.Her avant-garde approach to scoring, often by the use of incorporating her own cello performances and unusual methods, has redrew the sonic landscape of modern visual media.Guðnadóttir has employed award acceptance addresses to remind with frequency the importance of women’s representation within the music industry.She encourages young women composers to make their voice heard, saying, “To the girls, to the women, to the mothers, to the daughters who hear the music bubbling within, please speak up.We need to hear your voices.”Hildur Guðnadóttir’s record-breaking achievements not only bear testament to her individual genius as an artist but throw open doors of inclusivity and diversity on the contested territory of film composition.
