J2 Film Music

SOME OF THE FILMS WE'VE SCORED, music-directed, OR CONTRIBUTED MUSIC TO

DOCUMENTARIES

On the Divide (full score and music mix) — This is a feature-length documentary about three Latinx people who have different connections to a women’s reproductive health clinic in McAllen, TX, on the Texas/Mexico border. One has been a security guard for the clinic, one has been an escort for women coming to the clinic, and the third has been a clinic protester and has a complicated past. The clinic is the only one within many hundreds of miles, and through the stories of these three people, the film addresses a number of critical national issues with a focus on declining access to women’s reproductive health clinics and the services they provide, especially for low-income women of color. It’s a very powerful, special film made by two amazing young women, Maya Cueva and Leah Galant. On the Divide was named an official selection by The Tribeca Film Festival, 2021, where it premiered as one of only eight films selected for the documentary film competition — https://tribecafilm.com/films/on-the-divide-2021 It aired nationally on the PBS program POV (Point of View) in April of 2022: http://www.pbs.org/pov/onthedivide And, it has been an official selection at numerous other festivals (e.g., Santa Fe Independent Film Festival, where it received the Best Documentary Feature award; New Orleans Film festival, where it received the Jury Award for Best Documentary; St. Louis International; San Francisco Latino; Dallas Docufest; Boston Latino International; Hot Springs Documentary; Heartland International; Tallgrass; rePRO; and Woods Hole). For more about the film: www.onthedividemovie.com/

Kiyoshi Kuromaya: The Wonderful Fabulous Life of a Civil Rights Zelig (full score and music mix) – a 60 minute radio documentary/podcast about an extraordinary civil and human rights activist whose work addressed the U.S. war in Vietnam, the AIDS crisis, LGBTQ rights, and more. First broadcast on WPPM in Philadelphia on World AIDS Day, 2021.

George Henry White: Searching for Freedom (partial score — Judy composed, Jeff mixed) — A PBS, UNC-TV production related to an earlier documentary we scored, about New Bern, NC. The film focuses on the life of a notable African American, George Henry White, who was a lawyer in New Bern when he was elected as one of the early African American representatives to the U.S. Congress. In 1900, he was the first member of Congress to introduce legislation making lynching a federal crime, but despite his passionate pleas, the bill was defeated. First aired in June, 2022, and now available at the national PBS website.

New Bern: Spirit of Freedom (score — Judy composed, Jeff mixed) — A PBS, UNC-TV production about New Bern, NC, a small city with a unique and complicated racial and multiethnic history. Many historians feel New Bern was one of the most important sites during the U.S. Civil War, in the struggle for freedom from slavery. Original score is by Judy Hyman with additional music written and/or performed by Kevin Locke, the McIntosh County Shouters, Rhiannon Giddens, Dirk Powell, Jake Blount, Tatiana Hargreaves, Jeff Claus, Rachel Eddy, and Hasee Ciaccio. The film was shown on television in June of 2020, and can now be viewed at the national PBS website.

The Hammocks (full score — Judy composed, Jeff mixed) — A PBS, UNC-TV documentary about a North Carolina coastal state park, Hammocks Beach State Park, with a history that mirrors the nation’s history of racism and the struggle for civil and human rights. The film is full of great interviews with Black Americans connected to the story plus recent Black scholarship. It shows the resilience and resistance of Black Americans involved and the role of whites willing to cross the color line. The film was shown on television in February, 2018, and can now be viewed at the national PBS website.

Guardian (music editing and mixing and additional composing) — A story about the erosion of government-sponsored environmental monitoring in Canada's remote west coast of British Columbia, an area of vast wilderness and streams that support the salmon population and native fisheries. The film tells the story of the nationally sponsored Guardian Program which once had 150 men and women living on boats, observing, canoeing and walking streams to collect data and monitor conditions related to the health of the salmon fisheries. The program is being cut out and is now down to seven Guardians. The film follows three of them, capturing their deep understanding of this beautiful, ethereal world, their commitment to the work, and the coming loss of the knowledge they've developed over the decades. In the process, the film also tells a story of declining fish populations; the impact of climate change, pipelines, ports and tanker traffic related to the export of natural gas; and more. This is one of our “pro bono” projects, and we’re very pleased for director, Courtney Quirin, that her film has been well received at numerous festivals, including the EKOFILM festival in the Czech Republic, the Planet in Focus Festival in Toronto, the Mendocino Film Festival, Festival de Cine Verde de Barichara (Colombia), the Byron Bay International Film Festival (Australia), the SF IndieFest in San Francisco, where it received the Jury Prize for Best Documentary Feature, and the Eugene Environmental Film Festival, where it received the Audience Choice Award. It has also been picked up for distribution, purchase, and online streaming, by Bullfrog Films, a leading distributor of environmental documentaries. For more about the film, go to: www.guardianthedoc.com/ To stream: Amazon

Tracy’s Vision (full score — Judy composed and Jeff mixed) — A short film that highlights the commitment of the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to hiring people with disabilities by profiling the personal courage of Tracy Minish, a branch chief at NASA’s Mission Control Center at the Johnson Space Center, Houston, Texas who is sight impaired. Available for viewing on Vimeo.

Dear President Obama: The Clean Energy Revolution Is Now (contributed a few pieces to the score) — a powerful, feature-length documentary by environmentalist filmmaker and activist, Jon Bowermaster, about the negative effects of and alternatives to hydrofracking for natural gas -- recipient of the American Environmental Film Award at the LA Documentary Film Festival

Through Deaf Eyes (full score and music mix) — PBS documentary about the history and civil rights struggles of deaf culture in the U.S. — received a duPont-Columbia award. To stream: YouTube

Frederick Law Olmsted: Designing America (full score and music mix) — PBS documentary about the man who designed NYC's Central Park and many other major U.S. parks and neighborhoods in an effort to create more public access to and appreciation of the natural environment), To stream: PBS

Audubon: Drawn by Nature (full score and music mix) — PBS documentary for the American Masters series about naturalist and artist, John James Audubon. Winner of The Silver Chris. Best of its Division from the Columbus International Film & Video Festival. To stream: Daily Motion

The Cultivated Life: Thomas Jefferson and Wine (full score — Judy composed, Jeff mixed) — Judy received an Emmy award for the music — PBS documentary about Jefferson's efforts to establish a winemaking tradition in the U.S.

Childe Hassam and the Isles of Shoals (full score — Judy composed, Jeff mixed) — PBS documentary about this unique American painter, often thought of as an "abandoned genius" -- nominated for an Emmy. To stream: PBS

The War of 1812 (full score — Judy composed, Jeff mixed) — PBS documentary offering a rethinking of the history of this war and its relevance to the present. To stream: PBS

Rising Voices (partial score and some music mixing) — PBS documentary about efforts to save the Lakota language from extinction. To stream: YouTube

The Hungry Heart (licensed songs) — a powerful documentary about the problem of prescription drug addiction and one doctor's efforts to address it. to stream: PBS

Buck (licensed songs) — Sundance award-winning documentary about Buck Brannaman, an extraordinary horse whisperer, trainer and life philosopher. To stream: Amazon

The Return of the Cuyahoga (partial score and music mixing) — PBS documentary about the death, clean-up and rebirth of one of America's most polluted rivers). To purchase: Amazon

On Thin Ice in the Bering Sea: Polar Science and Yup'ik Culture (full score and music mixing) — NOVA documentary about how climate change is affecting the indigenous Yup'ik way of life

Dream Anatomy (full score — Judy composed, Jeff mixed) — National Library of Medicine — an interesting history of anatomical drawing

FEATURE FILMS

Lost Nation (music supervisors – in post-production) – About a free Black woman, Lucy Prince, and her family, living in Vermont in the years leading up to the Revolutionary War. Historical fiction based on real people and events, with: Eva Ndachi (Beautifully Broken), Rob Campbell (The Crucible, Winter’s Tale, Hedwig and the Angry Inch), and Kevin Ryan (The South Westerlies, Guilt, The Guru and the Gypsy).

Jack London’s Martin Eden (Judy composed and Jeff co-mixed) — based on a novel by Jack London — Annet Mahendru (The Americans, The Romanoffs), Andrew Richardson (A Call to Spy, The Independent, Killer Among Us, Daughter of the Bride), Hayley Griffith (Law and Order, Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll), Rebecca Faulkenberry (The Irishman, Madam Secretary), Missy Yager (Manchester by the Sea, Mad Men). The film premiered June, 2021 at the Nantucket Film Festival and has played the Woods Hole Film Festival and the Boston Film Festival, where it received the Best Picture and Best Director awards.

Wetware (full score and music mix) — based on the sci-fi novel of the same name, by Craig Nova — Jerry O'Connell (Jerry McGuire, Stand By Me), Cameron Scroggins (Nashville, The Deuce), Morgan Wolk (The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Orange is the New Black, The Affair), Nicole Shalhoub (The Good Wife, Madame Secretary), Bret Lada (Law and Order), Gordon Clapp (NYPD Blue), and Garrett Lee Hendricks (The Americans). To stream: Amazon

Blood Brothers: Civil War (Originally titled Peter and John, but retitled for licensed release) (music directors, editors, mixers, and additional composers) — an adaptation of a Guy de Maupassant story — Jacqueline Bisset (Bullitt, Inchon, Airport, The Thief Who Came to Dinner) , Diane Guerrero (Orange Is the New Black, Jane the Virgin), Christian Coulson (Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, The Hours), Gordon Clapp (NYPD Blue). To stream: Amazon

Northern Borders (full score and music mix) — Bruce Dern (The Great Gatsby, Nebraska, Django), Genevieve Bujold (Anne of the Thousand Days, Murder by Decree, Obsession), Jessica Hecht (Breaking Bad, Friends, The Sinner). To stream: Amazon

Disappearances (full score and music mix) — Kris Kristofferson, Genevieve Bujold, Charlie McDermott, Luis Guzmán. To stream: Amazon

The Year that Trembled (full score and music mix) — Martin Mull, Fred Willard, Marin Hinkle, Henry Gibson

A Stranger in the Kingdom (full score and music mix) — Martin Sheen, Ernie Hudson, Jean Louisa Kelly, Carrie Snodgrass. To purchase: Amazon

Any Given Sunday (licensed music) — director, Oliver Stone — starring Al Pacino, Cameron Diaz, Jamie Foxx, LL Cool J, Dennis Quaid, James Woods

Where the Rivers Flow North (full score) — Michael J. Fox, Rip Torn, Tantoo Cardinal, Treat Williams -- Sundance Film Festival participant and American Indian Film Festival Eagle Spirit Award. To purchase: Amazon

We're proud to have worked with a number of directors and producers, primary among them award-winning feature filmmaker and screenplay author, Jay Craven (two Emmy's, multiple NEA grants and fellowships, Sundance, SXSW, screenings at Lincoln Center and the Smithsonian, and more) and award-winning documentary filmmakers, Larry Hott and Diane Garey, of Florentine Films/Hott Productions (an Emmy, two Academy Award nominations, a duPont-Columbia Journalism Award, the George Foster Peabody Award, five Ameri­can Film Festival Blue Ribbons, and 14 CINE Golden Eagle awards).

We’ve also done workshops on filmscoring with and for Cinema Sarah Lawrence, Movies from Marlboro (Marlboro College), and Semester Cinema (Northern Vermont University), all programs in which students from a number of colleges and universities spend a semester working with professionals in the making of a feature film. And, we’ve done filmscoring workshops at the Middlebury New Filmmakers Film Festival, Ithaca College, the Finger Lakes Environmental Film Festival, and for the Hanoi Doc Lab, a university documentary film group at the Goethe Institute in Hanoi, Vietnam., which was an incredibly rich and rewarding experience.

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SOME THINGS WE'VE DONE IN ADDITION TO FILM WORK

~ In 2020 we produced an album, Spider Tales, for a young musician, Jake Blount, who we think is ultra-talented and creative as well as a great activist and human being. We’re excited for Jake that it’s received exceptionally good reviews and coverage, including in many year end lists and in such places as: The Guardian, Rolling Stone, NPR, No Depression, Paste, Billboard, Broadway World, and Strings Magazine.

~ As members of the Horse Flies we’ve performed at numerous festivals, including: Central Park Summerstage (New York City, US), Brooklyn Academy of Music Next Wave Festival (Brooklyn, New York), WOMAD Festival (Toronto, Canada), Big Beat Festival (Vienna, Austria), the Telluride Festival (Telluride, Colorado, US), Independence Days (Berlin, Germany), Smithsonian Festival of American Folk Life (Washington, DC, US), Lotus World Music and Arts Festival (Bloomington, Indiana, US), Festival International de Louisiane (Lafeyette, Louisiana, US), Philadelphia Folk Festival (Philadelphia, PA, US), Festival of American Fiddle Tunes (Port Townsend, Washington, US), Vancouver Folk Festival (Vancouver, Canada), Winnipeg Folk Festival (Winnipeg, Canada), Clearwater Festival (Croton, New York, US), Floydfest (Floyd, Virginia, US), Falcon Ridge Folk Festival (Hillsdale, New York, US), Birmingham City Stages (Birmingham, Alabama, U.S.), Rhythm and Roots Festival (Cranston, Rhode Island, US), Lake Eden Arts Festival (Black Mountain, North Carolina, US), Tonder Festival (Denmark), Grassroots Festival of Music and Dance (Trumansburg, New York, US), and RockyGrass (Lyons, Colorado, US),

~ In The Horse Flies or in other groups/configurations, together or individually, we’ve also appeared on a number of national radio and television programs, including: MTV News, MTV's Week in Rock, Late Night with David Letterman, Prairie Home Companion, All Things Considered, E-Town, Mountain Stage, Michael Feldman's Whad'Ya Know?, The Entertainers (Canada), Radio Bremen (Germany), and more.

~ As members of The Horse Flies, we've been written about in Rolling Stone, The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, The Boston Globe, The Boston Herald, The New Yorker, The Chicago Tribune, Musician Magazine, The Washington Post, New Musical Express (London), Melody Maker (London), Folk Roots (England), Rootstime (Belgium), and other publications.

~ Judy's recorded two albums with singer Natalie Merchant (Leave Your Sleep and House Carpenter's Daughter) and has toured and performed with her in support of these albums and on numerous other occasions.

~ Judy was featured in Electronic Musician, June 2010, for her film composing, and has been the subject of two articles in Fiddler Magazine, (Fall 2013, and a cover article in Fall 2004). She was also selected by Fiddler Magazine in 2013 as one of the top 20 fiddlers they featured in celebration of their 20th anniversary. The magazine commissioned her to write a waltz for their 25th anniversary in 2018.

~ Jeff's been written about in Acoustic Guitar Magazine, and one of his songs, "Sally Ann," is the opening track on Natalie Merchant's CD, The House Carpenter's Daughter. Merchant and band (including Judy) also performed the song on Late Night with David Letterman, and the song is included on Merchant's Retrospective album. And, a piece Jeff composed, with Judy and a friend, Ben Wittman, for the film, Where the Rivers Flow North, was used in Oliver Stone’s film, Any Given Sunday.

~ We’ve made 8 albums with The Horse Flies (2 on a major label); 2 with Boy with a Fish; 3 soundtrack albums; and Judy and her father, jazz pianist Dick Hyman, released an album of Judy's waltzes, Late Last Summer, in 2012.