When Point Cook’s Chee-Wei Tay was growing up in Singapore, his parents wanted him to be a doctor or an engineer.
He rebelled with dreams of chasing a career in music, and it’s all paying off.
Chee-Wei, now a successful composer, has been awarded the Gold Remi Award for Best Music Score at WorldFest Houston – an international film and video festival in America – for his work on Singaporean horror flick Bring Back the Dead. It’s the second consecutive year he has won a Remi.
“From a young age, I was mesmerised while watching movies and seeing how the score actually helps the story,” he said.
Each job requires him to get in the mind of his director, understanding their vision for each character and the story.
“This is the hardest part,” he said. “Watching the film without music is quite dry then I discuss with the director what goes from there.”
Like any creative job, Chee-Wei often suffers from stress of deadlines and mental block. He meditates to clear his mind. The finished product, he says, makes it all worthwhile.
“It’s great when the director says they like your work, but it’s even better when the audience also says it. That’s a great feeling.”
Today, with a number of international awards under his belt, Chee-Wei says his parents have changed their mind about his chosen career.
“Ironically, yes, they’re now very proud of me,” he laughs.
Check out Chee-Wei’s work at www.cheeweitay.com
