Elton John, Edward Berger collaborator Volker Bertelmann and the composers of Emilia Perez are among the first wave of nominees for the 25th edition of the World Soundtrack Awards (WSA).
The winners will be announced on October 15 at the WSA ceremony and concert, held during Film Fest Gent in Belgium.
Clément Ducol and Camille are nominated across two categories this year for their work on Emilia Pérez – film composer of the year and best original song for ‘El Mal’, winner of the parallel category at this year’s Oscars. They share the latter nomination with director Jacques Audiard, who also has songwriting credits.
Bertelmann also spans two categories, nominated for best composer for films Conclave and The Amateur, and for TV series The Day Of The Jackal, Dune: Prophecy and The Count Of Monte Cristo. He won the film prize in 2023 for credits including All Quiet On The Western Front, which also earned him the respective Oscar.
Also nominated in this category is John Powell, returning to the How To Train Your Dragon franchise with the live-action reboot, and The Brutalist’s Daniel Blumberg, winner of best original score at the Oscars.
Martin Phipps is nominated for his work on the Netflix series Black Doves. He was a nominee for television composer of the year in 2024 for the final season of The Crown. The soundtracks of Severance, The Lord Of The Rings: The Rings Of Power, The Last Of Us and Dying For Sex are also recognised.
In original song, John’s ‘Never Too Late’ from his same-titled documentary is joined by Miley Cyrus’ ‘Beautiful That Way’ from The Last Showgirl. Other nominations include ‘I Lied to You’ from Sinners, and ‘Winter Coat’, performed by Saoirse Ronan in Steve McQueen’s Blitz.
The second wave of nominations will be announced next month.
World Soundtrack Awards nominees 2025 - first wave
Film composer of the year
Volker Bertelmann, Conclave, The Amateur
Daniel Blumberg, The Brutalist
Kris Bowers, The Wild Robot
Clément Ducol & Camille, Emilia Pérez
Alberto Iglesias, The Room Next Door
John Powell, How to Train Your Dragon
Television composer of the year
Volker Bertelmann, The Day Of The Jackal, Dune: Prophecy, The Count Of Monte Cristo
David Fleming, Gustavo Santaolalla, The Last Of Us: Season 2
Ariel Marx, Dying For Sex
Bear McCreary, The Lord Of The Rings: The Rings Of Power (S2)
Martin Phipps, Black Doves
Theodore Shapiro, Severance (S2)
Best original song
‘Beautiful That Way’ - The Last Showgirl, Andrew Wyatt, Lykke Li, Miley Cyrus
‘El Mal’ - Emilia Pérez, Clément Ducol & Camille, Jacques Audiard
‘I Lied To You’ - Sinners, Ludwig Göransson, Raphael Saadiq
‘Never Too Late’ - Elton John: Never Too Late, Elton John, Brandi Carlile, Andrew Watt, Bernie Taupin
‘Winter Coat’ - Blitz, Nicholas Britell, Steve McQueen, Taura Stinson
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