"Go-to" composers for cable shows?

[Cruciform]

I'm wondering about this slew of "Go-to" listings for cable. My understanding is cable pays less than network for royalties.

The amount of work in making quality rock/orchestral (in particular) tracks is significant and I currently reserve these for trailer focused libraries where large syncs and little to no PRO is the order of the day.

Is there anyone with experience placing music into 'popular cable shows' happy to comment on whether there is cost/benefit justification in this arena?

Thanks in advance if anyone is willing to share.

[pboss]

Hi Rob,
I remember an example where Matto described in a Rally panel having a smaller cable show repeat a placement of his, where the show was on very frequently, and in the end the cumulative royalty was more than a higher-profile placement paying more royalty per show, because of the frequency of the cable show playing his music. I don't have those details but it seems like you never know where the aggregation of dollars can grow from, and in some cases it seems ironic.

[mazz]

I have a fair amount of music placed as a go to composer for reality shows. I can say pretty confidently that the requests for big rock/orchestra extravaganzas are very few and far between. Mostly they look for music that leaves a lot of room for talking, which means that simpler (but by no means lower quality) music is typically the order of the day.

Watch a few of these shows to get a feel for what they use. I'm sure you'll hear a few big pieces but it's mostly simple rock stuff, small ensemble Dramedy, quirky stuff and solo instruments as well.

Edit: I'll amend a bit since I read the listing after I wrote my post. Doh! I don't think this is only for reality shows, there are a lot of cable shows besides reality and they have promos for shows that would use this kind of stuff.

Also, there are ways to make this kind of music without making it as complex as the stuff you'd do for big trailers. Plus getting faster is not a bad thing.

Cable doesn't pay as well as network, but network is much harder to get since those shows usually have score composers. Cable shows use a TON of library music.

[Cruciform]

Thanks for your replies Patty and Mazz. Useful info to think about for this next listing. Appreciated, cheers.

[DesireInspires]

Is there anyone with experience placing music into 'popular cable shows' happy to comment on whether there is cost/benefit justification in this arena?

Cable shows always pay more than network shows. There are more cable networks than major networks, meaning that there are more shows that need music.

You can forget about large sync fees if you do not have a relationship with a producer of a show. It is easier and cheaper for most shows to just use library music.

Remember, quantity pays.

[Casey H]

Is there anyone with experience placing music into 'popular cable shows' happy to comment on whether there is cost/benefit justification in this arena?

Cable shows always pay more than network shows. There are more cable networks than major networks, meaning that there are more shows that need music.

You can forget about large sync fees if you do not have a relationship with a producer of a show. It is easier and cheaper for most shows to just use library music.

Remember, quantity pays.

Just to clarify… For a given single airing, the PRO royalties for network placements are MUCH more than for cable ones. But as mazz said, the competition is much stiffer. I imagine all of us will see many more cable placements than network ones.

You do not have to have a direct relationship with the show's producer to get a decent sync fee. There are higher end selective libraries that do place tracks on network TV and collect sync fees. Taxi has some client libraries that have earned nice sync money for their writers, for example.

Quantity is important but not at the complete sacrifice of quality.

Casey

[DesireInspires]

I do not think there are any go-to composers.

[Casey H]

I do not think there are any go-to composers.

Not true at all. Some libraries do keep a list of go-to composers and send them requests for custom cues on as as-need basis. There are folks right here on this forum that are involved in that.

[davewalton]

Cable shows always pay more than network shows.

Ignore that man behind the curtain.

As a general rule you can count on network placement paying more than cable. Payment amounts are all over the map but I'm looking at my BMI statement and I'm seeing, for example, a 20 second network placement paying $207.06 and a 40 second cable placement paying $4.37. Over the whole royalty statement the lowest payment is $0.06 (cable) and the highest is the $207.06 (network).

Here's the thing with cable. Each placement doesn't pay much but a lot of shows tend to repeat frequently. I have music in Ancient Aliens for example, and I'm seeing a total of 18 repeats on my last statement. So a single placement may only pay an average of $7.00 or so but the total for all the Ancient Aliens this last quarter was $121.87 and that's been happening just about every quarter. And that's just one show. There are SO many shows on cable that being a "go to" composer makes sense because all those little amounts can add up.

I guess what I'm saying is that unless you're John Williams or Hans Zimmer there's no good reason to turn down (or turn away from) opportunities on cable television. They're all good placements and those little amounts add up.

A 0:30 placement on a network broadcast of CSI will always pay more than a 0:30 placement of a cable broadcast of Modern Marvels but why not have a well-rounded portfolio and go for both?

I do not think there are any go-to composers.

Shhhh... nobody's figured that out yet. Let's just keep that secret between you and me.

[Casey H]

Dave
You are officially banned from employment in the Department of Misinformation.

Casey