Fernando Velázquez

Fernando Velázquez is a Spanish composer best known for his orchestral film and television scores, especially his collaborations with director Juan Antonio Bayona. Born in Getxo, Spain, Velázquez played the cello as his main instrument, attending conservatories in Bilbao and Vitoria before studying composition in Paris and Madrid. He first worked with filmmaker Bayona early in both of their careers, on the 2002 short film El Hombre Esponja. They would reunite several more times, including for 2007′s The Orphanage and 2012′s The Impossible. Velázquez also found work on Spanish television series such as the 2007′s Gominolas and 2013′s Cuéntame un Cuento, while projects with other film directors included 2006′s The Backwoods, the 2007 Julianne Moore vehicle Savage Grace, 2010′s Devil, and Brett Ratnor’s Hercules from 2014. Finding a niche in the supernatural, Velázquez next composed the score for the 2015 fantasy-horror film Crimson Peak, directed by Guillermo del Toro. Highlights to follow included 2016′s Pride & Prejudice & Zombies and the dark fantasy A Monster Calls, which was directed by Bayona and released in Spain in late 2016 (2017 in the U.S.). ~ Marcy Donelson