John Powell catapulted into the realm of A-list composers by displaying an entirely original voice with his often referenced scores to the Matt Damon Bourne trilogy. His infectious score for DreamWorks’ How to Train Your Dragon earned him his first Academy Award nomination, and he returned for the critically acclaimed How To Train Your Dragon 2. He’s become the go-to writer for family animated films, scoring hits such as Shrek, Chicken Run, Ice Age (2, 3, & 4), Bolt, Rio (1 & 2), Happy Feet (1 & 2), Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax, Kung Fu Panda (1 & 2), and Fox’s Oscar-nominated animated feature Ferdinand. His pulsating action scores fueled Hancock, Green Zone, Stop Loss, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, and The Italian Job; and he sweetened the romance of Two Weeks Notice and P.S. I Love You. His music empowered X-Men: The Last Stand, lent tenderness to I Am Sam, and provided gripping drama to United 93. In 2018, Powell joined the Star Wars canon with Disney’s highly anticipated Solo: A Star Wars Story (dir. Ron Howard).

Powell’s recent work includes DreamWorks Animation’s How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World directed by Dean DeBlois, 20th Century Studios’ The Call of the Wild starring Harrison Ford, Doug Liman’s heist feature Locked Down, the SCL nominated film for Outstanding Original Score Don’t Worry Darling, and Davis Guggenheim’s documentary feature Still: A Michael J Fox Movie. Upcoming in December 2023 is the animated Migration for Illumination and Universal Pictures.

SCL Screening + Q&A: MIGRATION