We recently connected with Anton Manuel and have shared our conversation below.

Anton, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

I was lucky enough to be born into a musical family, with my parents migrating from Ukraine to Australia in the early ’90s. Music was always around me — my dad is an opera singer and I had piano teachers on both sides of the family. I began private classical piano lessons at the age of 4, as well as studying at the YAMAHA School of Music. Through YAMAHA, I was introduced early on to improvisation, composition and ear training. Free improvisation quickly became my creative outlet.
I got into jazz early, playing both jazz piano and trumpet, and was actively involved in big bands and jazz ensembles throughout high school. For as long as I can remember, I’ve known I wanted to pursue a career in music and create. I was composing piano music for many years and gradually expanded into writing for chamber ensembles, jazz groups and orchestra. I’ve always been captivated by film music and as a passionate fan of movies, I knew as a teenager that I wanted to become a film composer. My parents were always supportive of this dream, even though they knew it wouldn’t be an easy path. Being a pianist is something I’ve never planned on giving up — to this day, I continue to perform jazz piano and my original compositions.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

With a background in both classical and jazz music, as well as strong Eastern-European roots, my music draws inspiration from many worlds. In Western art music, some of my biggest influences include Beethoven, Brahms, Shostakovich, Rachmaninoff, Debussy, Ravel and Bernstein. In jazz: Bill Evans, Miles Davis, Brad Mehldau and Hiromi. Among my favorite film composers are John Williams, Ennio Morricone, Alexandre Desplat and Vladimir Cosma.

In my own work, I strive to combine a rich melodic and harmonic language with my unique musical voice to tell stories and evoke emotions that often go beyond words. Studying at Berklee College of Music was the ideal environment to develop that voice further. There, I pursued a double major in Film Scoring and Composition, with a minor in Conducting.

Before Berklee, I was fortunate to study with a number of inspiring teachers, including Tony Gould, Mikhail Solovei and Keiko Fujii. At Berklee, I continued my studies with Alla Cohen (composition), Vadim Neselovskyi and Giorgi Mikadze (jazz piano), and Sheldon Mirowitz, Tim Huling and Andreas Bjork (film scoring). I also had the opportunity to take classes with Ed Tomassi and masterclasses with Miguel Zenón and Missy Mazzoli.

One of my recent works, The Mystic Forest (for violin and piano), was awarded the Debussy Platinum Prize and the Excellent Creativity Special Award by the Debussy International Music Competition. I was also honored to receive the Millican Endowed Scholarship for Drops of Nostalgia — a prestigious Berklee award recognizing an orchestral work that blends classical and jazz styles — and the Berklee Pianist/Composer Award for my original solo piano piece Enigmatic Impressions. Some of my compositions have also been featured on Australia’s classical radio station 3MBS.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

My ultimate goal is to become a screen composer in Hollywood and collaborate with some of the most talented directors and production teams in the industry. I’m constantly exploring new musical languages and techniques to make my work distinctive and to develop a personal voice. I’m inspired whenever I hear a score that feels truly fresh — whether it’s Jerskin Fendrix’s Poor Things or Alexandre Desplat’s score for del Toro’s Pinocchio.
I aim to create a new sound in film scoring — one that respects the traditions of classical orchestration and the 20th-century orchestral film scoring style, while also embracing the textures of hybrid electro-acoustic music and the colors of ethnic instruments. Melody and harmony are central to my work and aspects I have always prioritized, and I intend to continue to do so as my career evolves.

Going forward, alongside working on my music, personal voice and building my portfolio, I’m focused on building strong relationships with directors, composers and others in the film and music industries. I’ve collaborated with several directors in Boston on indie short films and recently worked in Los Angeles as a scoring intern for Bear McCreary’s scoring company, Sparks & Shadows — known for Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Foundation, God of War Ragnarök: Valhalla (video game), and Halo (TV series). After graduating from Berklee in December, I plan to continue working as a lead composer on short film projects and collaborating with more directors, hopefully eventually scoring a feature film. I’m also eager to assist an established screen composer to deepen my experience. While composing for visual media is my primary focus, I’ll always keep writing concert and jazz music. I also plan on gigging as a jazz pianist, playing and recording free improvisations and continue to grow my social media presence on TikTok and YouTube, in which I create harmony, piano exercise and jazz content.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

I never take for granted how lucky I am to pursue music as a career. It has been there for me my entire life, has never left my side and has always been my creative outlet. Whenever I need to step away from the world for a moment or process my emotions, I turn to the piano. Music has a unique power to connect people across cultures and backgrounds. It’s a universal language that can unite listeners regardless of what they’ve experienced. In visual media, music has the extraordinary ability to shape a story — changing how audiences feel, adding depth to characters and enhancing the emotional arc. The story must always come first and the composer’s role is to understand the director’s vision and translate it into sound in a way that feels authentic and effective. One of the most beautiful aspects of being a creative is that the journey never ends. There is always more to absorb from composers from the past, music of today from cultures all over the world or the innovations of tomorrow as technology and musical language evolve. That endless exploration is what keeps me inspired and drives me to keep creating art.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.antonmanuel.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/antonmanuelll/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/antonmanuelmusic
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/antonmanuel/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@antonmanuel2791
• Other: Reel Crafter: https://play.reelcrafter.com/nSJ0FrjvQTeC2E_swQpuJg

Image Credits

Ken Yin (2nd photo)