American Film Composer · Partner in Storytelling
Hybrid orchestral and electronic film scores written in close collaboration with directors. Emotionally-charged, theme-driven, and built to live inside the story, not on top of it.
Now Scoring The Extinction Rule
Listen to the scoresPress
One of the single most powerful sequences I've seen in a horror film.
Reminded of the flavour of Jerry Goldsmith's score for Poltergeist. Both creepy and beautifully orchestrated.
Theme after theme that reflect the characters at the heart of the movie.
Luscious and stirring. One of the strongest elements of the film.
A dark score carrying hefty doses of melodic emotion.
Now Playing
A new original cue from the score library. Press play.
The Process, In Motion
New sketches, scoring sessions, and cues caught mid-build. This is the pre-production musical sketch at work; themes written while a scene is still being shaped, so you can hear the score find the film in real time rather than arrive after the edit.
About
David Stone Hamilton is a classically trained American film composer known for emotionally-charged hybrid scores that move fluidly between rock, electronic, and orchestral worlds. He treats sound design and music as a single canvas, and joins directors as a creative collaborator from the first read of the script.
Across more than fifteen feature films, including the symphonic space thriller Solis, the supernatural family drama Dark Encounter, the dystopian sci-fi The Jurassic Games trilogy, and the family adventure Adventures of Rufus: The Fantastic Pet, David has built a reputation for theme-forward writing that critics have compared to Jerry Goldsmith's Poltergeist. His scored films stream on Netflix, Prime Video, Apple TV, Peacock, Hulu, and Tubi, with distribution through Lionsgate, Vertical Entertainment, and Blue Fox Entertainment, and soundtrack releases on MovieScore Media. Television music credits include Dateline NBC, Ancient Aliens, and Last Call with Carson Daly.
David has also contributed additional music to Wilde Salomé, Al Pacino's docudrama starring Jessica Chastain. Beyond film, he has scored immersive brand experiences, including the Delta Air Lines × LA28 Olympics projection-mapped spectacle on the Griffith Observatory in collaboration with VTProDesign. He has been honored with Best Original Score at the Melbourne Independent Filmmakers Festival for Army of Frankensteins, and Best Score from DJI Creative Studio / Wanda Studios China for The Teacher.
Watch trailers and listen to the scores
Featured Score
A supernatural family drama exploring themes of guilt and loss. The score weaves avant-garde vocals and choral textures into an emotionally devastating sonic landscape.
"A dark score carrying hefty doses of melodic emotion. It can be done! I believe this score makes the movie a hell of a lot better." Main Titles
Now Streaming
A synth-driven hybrid orchestral soundtrack. Brutal, dystopian, and pulsing with tension. In a future where death is entertainment, survival is the only prize.
Featured Score
A symphonic space thriller score that delivers theme after theme, reflecting the characters at the heart of the movie as well as the building urgency of the narrative.
"A very satisfying blend of classic film music techniques with modern elements. If you love scores packed with multi-layered themes, Solis is well worth adding to your collection." Review Graveyard
Family Adventure
A heartfelt family adventure about a young girl who discovers a ghost dragon. The score balances whimsy with emotional depth, creating a magical sonic world for this supernatural tale.
Additional Music
Al Pacino's docudrama exploring Oscar Wilde's controversial final play, with Jessica Chastain in the title role. David contributed additional music to the film.
Horror Thriller
A psychological horror score built on restraint, layering sparse string textures and electronic shadow against the silence. The music waits, then cuts.
Psychological Thriller
A dual-timeline thriller about a woman piecing together a fractured memory. The score moves between taut electronic tension and lyric orchestral warmth, music as the thread holding two realities together.
Branded Experience
Custom music and sound design for Delta Air Lines' announcement as an inaugural founding partner of the LA28 Olympic Games. A stunning projection-mapped spectacle on the Griffith Park Observatory celebrating the journey to Los Angeles 2028.
Looking for custom film music for your project?
Get a Free ConsultationSoundtrack Library
Stream every original soundtrack David has released. Press play, close your eyes, and the films come back.
Selected Scores
Philosophy
I don't think of myself as a vendor delivering audio files at the back end of post-production. I think of myself as a creative partner. A collaborator who joins the conversation early, listens harder than I talk, and writes music that lives inside the story rather than sitting on top of it.
Every film carries an emotional secret. My job is to help directors find it, name it, and let an audience feel it before they understand why.
Genre, runtime, and budget matter, but the real brief is always emotional. Existential dread. The ache of guilt. The lift of a small, hard-won hope. I score the feeling first, and let the technique serve it. That's how a moment becomes unforgettable instead of just well-orchestrated.
The strongest scores are written in pre-production, not after picture lock. I want to be on the call when the script is still shifting, when the director is wrestling with tone, when an actor needs a temp cue to play a scene against. The earlier the music joins the conversation, the deeper it lives in the final film.
Classically trained, but raised on rock and electronic music. I move freely between a string section and a modular synth, between a haegeum and a Juno, between a 60-piece orchestra and a single piano with the lid open. The palette serves the story, never the other way around.
I treat sound design and music as the same instrument. Ambient textures bleed into thematic statements. A breath becomes a bowed string. The result is an immersive sonic world your audience steps into rather than listens to.
The director is the author of the film. My ego stays at the door. I bring strong opinions and stronger themes, but everything I write is in service of someone else's vision. The work is collaborative because the work is theirs.
The film music industry has drifted toward atmospheric tension beds without melody. I still write themes. Themes that belong to characters, themes that develop, themes that an audience can hum on the way out of the theater and feel something real when they hear them again a year later.
"A 15-minute, beautifully scored, nearly dialogue-free sequence which elevates the entire film. One of the single most powerful sequences I've seen in a horror film."
The Geek Goddesses · Dark Encounter
Custom original music composition for your project, from initial concept through final delivery.
I create custom film music for projects of all sizes:
A collaborative approach from start to finish:
Complete deliverables for your production:
By Genre
A hybrid orchestral and electronic voice that adapts to the emotional demands of each genre, grounded in real feature and television credits.
Dread built from restraint. Sparse string textures, avant-garde vocals, and electronic shadow that waits, then cuts. As an indie horror and supernatural thriller composer, David scores fear through character and silence, not just stingers.
Dark Encounter · Voices · 88
Synth-driven hybrid orchestral scores for the future and the void; pulsing, dystopian tension fused with sweeping symphonic themes. David's sci-fi and space thriller work pairs modern electronics with real orchestral weight.
Solis · The Jurassic Games · The Jurassic Games: Extinction · Dinosaur World
Music that carries a true story without overselling it. David has written score and music for factual and documentary television, letting the real material lead while the score gives it shape and momentum.
Dateline NBC · Ancient Aliens · Last Call with Carson Daly
Warmth, wonder, and whimsy with real emotional depth underneath. For family and adventure films, David writes themes kids remember and parents feel, balancing playfulness with genuine heart.
Adventures of Rufus · Ghoster · The Adventures of Jurassic Pet
Press & Recognition
Critics, festivals, and the trades, on David's scores.
One of the single most powerful sequences I've seen in a horror film. A 15-minute, beautifully scored, nearly dialogue-free elevation of the entire film.
I was reminded of the flavour of Jerry Goldsmith's score for Poltergeist. It shares common roots and gives off the same emotional connection. Both creepy and beautifully orchestrated.
Theme after theme that reflect the characters at the heart of the movie as well as the building urgency of the narrative. If you love scores packed with multi-layered themes, well worth adding to your collection.
A dark score carrying hefty doses of melodic emotion. It can be done. This score makes the movie a hell of a lot better.
Luscious and stirring. Hamilton's score for the FrightFest premiere of Dark Encounter is one of the strongest elements of the film.
David Stone Hamilton on Solis. A long-form conversation on scoring the symphonic space thriller, the col legno strings, the haegeum, and the musical sketch process David brought into pre-production.
From first read to final mix, let's find the sonic voice that brings your film to life. Send a quick note about your project and I'll reply personally within two business days. Indie features, festival shorts, documentaries, brand work. Everything starts with a conversation.
Email: david@davidstonehamilton.com
Questions
David Stone Hamilton is an American film composer known for emotionally-charged hybrid orchestral and electronic scores. He has scored more than fifteen feature films, including Solis, Dark Encounter, the Jurassic Games trilogy, Army of Frankensteins, and Adventures of Rufus, with soundtrack releases on MovieScore Media.
Hybrid and unmistakably his own. Classical orchestral writing fused with electronic texture and avant-garde vocal and choral color. Theme-forward, melody-driven, and character-led, built to live inside a story rather than sit on top of it, and always in service of the film.
As a creative partner from the first read of the script through final mix. He develops a musical palette during pre-production so directors and actors have music to work with on set, and he treats sound design and score as one unified narrative element. The director is always the author. David's job is to serve the vision.
Yes. Most of David's work has been with indie features and mid-budget productions. Every story deserves a great score, and the right collaboration matters more than the budget. He works with filmmakers to find solutions that fit their creative vision and the realities of indie production.
Costs vary based on project scope, runtime, instrumentation, and whether live musicians are involved. The first conversation is always free. David provides a custom quote after he understands what your project actually needs.
Typical timelines run 4 to 12 weeks depending on length and complexity, but earlier engagement is always better. The strongest scores come when the composer is involved during pre-production, long before picture lock.
Initial conversation. Spotting session to identify where music should appear. Theme development and demos for feedback. Full production with revisions built in. Final mix and delivery: full stereo mixes, stems for re-editing, 5.1 surround when needed, and music cue sheets for licensing.
Feature films, television, documentaries, short films, video games, commercials, and immersive brand experiences. Genres include sci-fi, horror, supernatural thriller, action, family adventure, and emotional drama. Past brand work includes the Delta Air Lines × LA28 Olympics projection-mapped spectacle on the Griffith Observatory with VTProDesign.
His own voice. David writes hybrid orchestral and electronic scores that are theme-driven and emotionally direct, real orchestral writing fused with electronic texture and avant-garde vocal and choral color, built around character instead of generic tension beds. He is not trying to sound like anyone else. The aim is always a score that belongs to your film and could only have come from him.
As a way to talk, not a template to copy. A temp track is useful shorthand for what a scene needs, its energy, emotional direction, and pace. David takes that as the start of the conversation, then writes something original that serves your story and stands on its own. You get his voice working for your film, never an imitation of someone else's score.
Selected credits • Full filmography on IMDb
