Meet Chris Casillas

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Chris Casillas a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Chris, thank you so much for opening up with us about some important, but sometimes personal topics. One that really matters to us is overcoming Imposter Syndrome because we’ve seen how so many people are held back in life because of this and so we’d really appreciate hearing about how you overcame Imposter Syndrome.

Truth be told, I don’t believe imposter syndrome is something anyone ever overcomes. We are human, and it is natural to compare ourselves to others— especially if we are in artistic fields. Imposter syndrome is something that is constant that we, over time, get better at ignoring. All it is is just a made up voice in our head telling us we don’t deserve success. Why should we listen to it? There’s no such thing as a perfect composition, song, story, or painting. Art is always subjective!

Once I realized this, it became a lot easier to silence that voice telling me I didn’t belong in film scoring. If you give the same scene to 100 different composers you will get 100 completely unique scores. Additionally, directors will have all kinds of different tastes, some of which may align with yours and some of which may align with others. Sure, sometimes you may have to compete with other composers, but truthfully, you can never fully determine if one composer is better than another. It’s a case by case basis, and one may be better suited for certain projects than others and there are a lot of projects to be scored. Do I have days where I feel like I could be doing a lot more than I am? Do I have days where my insecurities feel stronger than normal? Of course I do. But every day is a new day, and all we can do is get to work, do the best we can, and believe in ourselves.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?

I am a composer for film, TV, video games, or any other visual media. This means that I write the music for these kinds of projects. If you’ve ever watched Star Wars or Pirates of the Caribbean; if you’ve ever played any Super Mario or Pokemon games, you’ll understand the important role music plays in making these films and games iconic. That is the power of music in media. It has the ability to further immerse audiences in the story and adds a whole other realm of emotion to the project. That’s one of the things I love about the art of film scoring, and music in general. I adore its ability to evoke so much emotion, and I love being able to connect with people on this level with my music.

Growing up, I was obsessed with movies like Star Wars, Transformers, and How to Train Your Dragon. Those movies brought me so much joy, and as I got older I realized a big part of what drew me in so much was these movies’ scores. None of these movies would be the same without their scores, and it’s the music that makes many of their key scenes so powerful. Anakin and Obi-Wan, once friends, now fighting to the death as enemies. Optimus Prime majestically transforming from a truck into a giant robot before our eyes. Hiccup epically flying with toothless for the first time. All of these magical moments wouldn’t be what they were without their scores behind them. Let’s not forget video games either. Pokemon Mystery Dungeon Explorers of Sky has one of my all time favorite video game scores, and that game is a key reason why I got into scoring.

I dream that one day my music will give people the same feelings I got from these scores. I have had a taste of that dream already after Bucking on the Rez, a documentary I scored, screened at DOC NYC. There unfortunately were no music awards at this festival, but the fact I got to score a documentary that made it to that festival and all the support I got from its audiences was more valuable to me than any award ever would have been.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

The first, and most helpful, thing to realize when going into a creative field such as film scoring is that no piece of art is ever perfect and no piece of art will please everybody. I consider myself a recovering perfectionist, because I used to get lost in my work trying to perfect every little detail. I didn’t realize I was fighting a losing battle. The more time I spent obsessing over tiny, insignificant details, the more tedious things would seem, the more frustrated I would become. This would lead to burnout and negative mindsets which would begin to negatively affect my work. One of my former professors used to say “artwork is never completed. It is abandoned.” On the surface that may sound bleak, but what he means is that we can’t let ourselves get caught up in the vicious cycle of perfectionism. All art is imperfect, and it is those human imperfections that make it beautiful. I guarantee that even John Williams or Hans Zimmer could find things they would change about their impressive scores.

Have writer’s block? Feeling anxious? Sit down and work. It all goes away. Nine times out of ten when I am feeling stressed about my workload or anxious in general, if I start writing music all the turmoil melts away. Sitting down and doing honest work is the cure-all for any kind of funk you’re in. I’m not saying to pressure yourself to write the best thing ever, but sitting down, working, and not thinking about perfection will always help to get you back on track. It will invite inspiration in and give you something to focus on. Usually when I have writer’s block, if I just start writing—even if I don’t like what I come up with—it jogs my brain, and I end up with new musical ideas. I can then tweak these ideas to make them better later if needed. The act of sitting down and working is how you combat writer’s block or anxiety. Usually for me, the two go hand in hand.

When networking, don’t meet people with the mindset of “they will get me work.” Throw that out the window. Make friends. Find an interest in other people. Focus on meeting people with whom you genuinely get along. It will help you seem less desperate, less shallow, and you’ll end up forming stronger connections. This mindset has helped me relax so much more at networking events. I am someone who already struggles with social anxiety, and often the pressure I’d put on myself to meet “the right connection” was too much for me. Once I started letting go of this mindset, I found that it was so much easier to go up to people and talk to them, and, ironically, when I let go of the pressure to meet “the right connection,” I ended up making better connections, and more of them.

One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?

I am always looking for more directors or game developers to collaborate with. I am currently based out of New York, but I can very easily work with people remotely. I love it when a director is really passionate about their work. It’s really great working with someone who is super excited about where their project is going. Usually what ends up happening is that excitement rubs off on me and it makes working on the film a whole lot easier. It’s also great working with someone who’s able to make decisions and knows what they want. This usually makes the composing process much easier and lets me know whether or not we’re a good fit for each other.

As far as genres go, I am pretty adaptable and happy to compose music for any style needed. That being said, my usual favorite genres to work with are fantasy, adventure, sci-fi, and action. I definitely enjoy composing anything that calls for big orchestras, rock and metal elements, synths, and Celtic folk instruments such as bagpipes or tin whistles. I’m very eclectic when it comes to my use of instruments, and enjoy incorporating many different kinds in my scores. This stems from my performance background as a multi-instrumentalist and studio musician. If any of this sounds up your alley, please reach out to me on Instagram or any of my other social media accounts! You can also leave me a message on my website where you can learn more about me, hear some of my music, and read the responses to questions I get asked frequently.

Contact Info:

Image Credits

January Yucheng Li

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