We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Samantha Van der Sluis a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Samantha, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today What were some of the most unexpected problems you’ve faced in your career and how did you resolve those issues?

In 2021, when the pandemic was still quite new, I decided to take a risk on myself. The previous five years before 2021 I was at a low point in my life and constantly questioning my worth, my value, my craft, and myself. Actually, I’m quite a positive, optimistic person yet these thoughts couldn’t stop circulating around my head. I didn’t anticipate these feelings as I entered the industry. I was aspiring to be a media composer and had focused a lot of that attention within film and linear media. I was feeling the toxic effects of a competitive industry and feeling down that there was a lack of kindness and recognition towards people working in audio. These feelings manifested and eventually I reached a point where writing music was an activity I avoided. In 2021 I heard the quote, “give yourself a fighting chance”. And something in me clicked – whether or not I achieved my goals wasn’t the point. The point was trying my best and if I failed at that, I would still come out of it happy. Something else clicked and I still kick myself that I didn’t realise it earlier. I’ve always had a love for gaming so… why didn’t I focus my attention to working within the game industry as a composer? It seemed like everything made sense and fell into place. I actively worked towards understanding music design and systems in games, writing for non-linear media, learning the software that comes with the role such as audio middleware and game engines, as well as connecting with game developers and finding work. I was suddenly in a much happier place, actively working towards something I love. I am excited to write music again, and happily turn on my computer to learn new skills within my craft, keep up to date on the industry, and to work on projects. The happiness spilled into other areas of my life and career too, I had a much better mindset approaching different types of work and situations. Now I’ve still got a long way to go, but I’m beyond happy I took a risk on myself and overcame the war in my mind.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Hi there! My name is Samantha van der Sluis and I’m a media composer primarily working in the video game industry. I actually pivoted into the role I am now, previously being interested in pursing linear forms of music such as film and television. But the nerd and techie in me prevailed, and I realised my heart belongs in video game music and all the troubleshooting that comes with it! I am super passionate about creating music for games and implementing them into audio middleware such as Wwise and FMOD. The creative process of writing music for games can be a complicated, well thought-out process that usually is quite the underrated hero. I am currently scoring games including Love Ghostie, Cloudscape, Petit Island, Islands & Trains, Meow Meow Wizard Arena, and Project Zi. A lot of the game titles I’m working on are set to release in 2024 so please keep a look out for them! They will be available on Steam as well as some platforms including the Nintendo Switch, iOS/Android, PlayStation, and Xbox.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

I couldn’t imagine my life without creating and creativity in it. It’s what drives me and makes my work and life feel worthwhile and fulfilling. It’s incredibly rewarding when I receive recognition of my work where someone may message me out of the blue saying they enjoyed the music on a particular project I worked on! It’s actually quite amazing how little recognition game composers receive. Even in large award settings, the award for music usually is just the game title without the composer name. It’s time to change that as music is an essential part of a game’s development. So when someone goes out of their way to send a nice message like that, it makes it all worth it.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

I have my personal goals, yes, but I also wish to improve the recognition game composers receive, as well as recognize female game composers who have been overlooked for years! Some of the biggest games have been led by a female audio lead and composer, even from the beginning of video games. The industry still is predominantly male-oriented, yet women/trans/non-binary people are just as capable as anyone else. I also don’t ever want to belittle anyone, and I want to point out how lovely my male colleagues are – in talent and respect. Spread that kindness around and it will create an environment where everyone thrives and feels accepted.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.samanthavandersluis.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sam.vandersluis/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/samantha-van-der-sluis/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/sam_vandersluis