Oscar-winning director Oliver Stone and Grammy-winning composer Craig Armstrong will participate in a keynote Q&A session that will open the 2006 Hollywood Reporter/Billboard Film & TV Music Conference on November 14. This two-day event is taking place on November 14-15 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles. Stone and Armstrong will kick off this conference by sitting down with Tamara Conniff, Billboard\'s executive editor and associate publisher, to discuss their collaboration on the emotionally riveting film "World Trade Center," which just won the "Hollywood Movie of the Year Award" at the 10th Annual Hollywood Film Festival. This dynamic team will explain how music was used to underscore one of the 9/11 incidents, and will examine the increasingly important role of music in film.
Oliver Stone is one of the most celebrated directors in today\'s film industry. Born in New York, Stone has won Academy Awards and Golden Globes for directing "Born on the Fourth Of July" (1989) and "Platoon" (1989), and for writing "Midnight Express" (1978). He has also received a Golden Globe for directing "JFK" (1991), and an Emmy Award for producing the HBO film "Indictment: The McMartin Trial."
Throughout his impressive career, Stone has directed and written or co-written numerous feature films such as "Any Given Sunday" (1999), "The Doors" (1991), "Wall Street" (1987), "Evita" (1996), and "Natural Born Killers" (1994). He has produced or co-produced movies including "The People vs. Larry Flynt" (1996) and "Blue Steel" (1990), directed three documentaries: "Persona Non Grata" (2003), "Comandante" (2003), and "Looking for Fidel" (2004), and wrote a novel in 1997 entitled "A Child\'s Night Dream" (St. Martin\'s Press), based on his experiences as a young man.
Craig Armstrong is one of the most sought after composers and arrangers in the world of popular music. Prior to scoring "World Trade Center," he studied piano, violin and musical composition at the Royal Academy, and then branched into theatre and became resident composer at the Tron Theatre in Glasgow. Since that time, he has enjoyed an incredibly diverse career, and his work in film has resulted in numerous awards. Armstrong recently picked up a Grammy Award for his score for Taylor Hackford\'s biopic "Ray" (2004). In addition, he won a BAFTA and an Ivor Novello for Baz Luhrmann\'s "Romeo + Juliet" (1996), collected a Golden Globe, a BAFTA and an American Film Institute Award for his work on "Moulin Rouge" (2001), and won a second Ivor Novello for his music for Phillip Noyce\'s "The Quiet American" (2002).
Armstrong is also known for his work with the likes of Madonna, U2, Massive Attack, and Pet Shop Boys. In 1998, he released his solo debut album "The Space Between Us," followed by "As If To Nothing," which included collaborations with Evan Dando, Liz Fraser, David McAlmont amongst others. Both releases arrived via Massive Attack\'s label, Melankolic. Armstrong has also released "Piano Works" via Sanctuary Records, and "Film Works" (a compilation of his best film compositions) via Family Recordings.
"Oliver Stone\'s and Craig Armstrong\'s powerful film \'World Trade Center\' showcases their incredible ability to connect film with music," says Conniff. "These two creative individuals are the cream of the crop in their respective professions, and we\'re thrilled they\'re participating in this year\'s conference."
Now in its fifth year, The Hollywood Reporter/Billboard Film & TV Music Conference focuses on the evolving role of music in film and television, and provides a dynamic forum for the exchange of ideas among the entertainment industry\'s most influential executives and creative talents including award-winning composers and directors, top-name music supervisors, key studio, network, record label and publishing professionals, and VIPs from the advertising, gaming and commercial fields.
This two-day industry event will feature Q&A sessions with Melissa Etheridge, Terence Blanchard and Danny Elfman, a compelling "Master Class: Women in Music" panel discussion with Olivia Newton-John, networking cocktail parties, roundtable sessions, and live artist performances.
Sponsors of this year\'s conference are ASCAP, APM, Berklee College of Music, Pump Audio, Elias Arts, BMI and SESAC.
For information about The 2006 Hollywood Reporter/Billboard Film & TV Music Conference, visit www.billboardevents.com. For information on registration and group discounts, contact Erin Parker at 646-654-4643. For sponsorship information, contact Karl Vontz at 415-738-0745. For hotel information, contact The Beverly Hilton Hotel at 310-274-7777.