Directed by Ramin Bahrani, 2nd Chance is a documentary about the inventor of the modern bulletproof vest. Richard Davis was a brash, charismatic salesman who proved his product worked by shooting himself in the chest, point-blank 192 times. The film, which screened at Sundance, traces his rise, his fall and the effect he had on the people around him.
T. Griffin
Brooklyn-based composer T. Griffin scored the film. Griffin, who is also a songwriter and producer, has composed music for over 50 feature-length films, including documentaries and live multidisciplinary projects. We spoke to him about his work on 2nd Chance.
How early did you get involved, and how did that help?
I started working in July and the film locked in October. We then continued to work on the music all the way into December. I like to come on a project early and really marinate in the material. I was also working on several other projects simultaneously, so the long runway was necessary.
What direction were you given in terms of the score?
Ramin used the word “haunting” a lot when we spoke about the score he imagined. I interpreted that to mean that the music should express the moral dimension of the story, not the more outrageous, theatrical elements.
Can you describe the score? What were the influences?
I think of it as medieval gothic country. We talked about [Italian composer Ennio] Morricone a lot as we started the project, particularly his genius with combining seemingly contradictory instruments.
What instruments does it include?
Bassoon, pedal steel, banjo, piano, percussion (including circular saw blades) and some guitar.
T. Griffin
Can you talk about your process? What instrument do you start out on?
I usually start by watching the film and talking to the director and editor about what the central driving purpose of the film is. If a director is going to burrow into a story for two years of their life, I want to know what about it really hooks them. All my instincts about instrumentation or harmony need to flow from really listening to that.
Then I watch the film a bunch. Then I turn the movie off and make as much music as I can as fast as I can in response to the film. I never start by scoring to picture. Once I have some music I like, I share it with the director, and usually some of my sketches attract them and some don’t. I take the ones that do and see where they might fit into the film.
What feedback did you get from the director, Ramin Bahrani? Can you give an example?
My initial sketches were very focused on folk instruments — guitars and banjos, pedal steel and piano. Ramin asked me to try to find an instrument that could give voice to the conflicts within Richard Davis. He suggested the English horn, which I had to Google. I didn’t know an English horn player, but I had just worked with a fantastic bassoonist, Joy Guidry, on another project, so I wrote a couple of bassoon themes. When paired with the pedal steel, it turned out to be a perfect match.
Was there something particularly challenging about this project?
We really needed music to help maintain some of the momentum of the film but never to interfere with the intimacy, so it had to be both energetic and invisible. That’s a tricky combination, and the only way to find the right balance is trial and error.
