This film takes a vital look at how boys become men in 2019. It revisits the moments from toddler to teenager—familiar to many boys and their parents—that shape the life of a young man. From the moment he’s told that “boys don’t cry” at an early age, he’s molded to fit an outdated construct of masculinity and to look and act in a way that betrays what he really feels. As the film progresses, we see in tragic detail how a boy with such brilliant potential is emotionally compromised—slowly and deliberately formed to become nothing more than an alpha predator.

To heighten the film’s powerful story arc, we needed an original piece of music. This was the easy decision, but scoring the music was staggeringly more complex. The score employs a ¾ time signature with an incredible 140 tempo changes over 3 minutes. Tempos range from 76 bpm and peak at 497 bpm. We felt this added to our hero character’s journey and descent into toxicity. The track is mainly composed of Classical instrumentation—lead solo violin, lead baritone violin, and orchestral elements—but we also layered-in modern synths to add a touch of aggression and discomfort. In the second half of our score, the baritone violin plays counterpoint to our lead violin. It pushes and pulls at the lead violin to further increase the intensity of the struggle, resulting in a track that’s emotionally raw.