Oscar-Winning Composer Hildur Guðnadóttir to Receive Career Achievement Award at Zurich Film Festival 2025
The Zurich Film Festival is set to honor one of the most influential and groundbreaking composers of our time. Hildur Guðnadóttir, the Icelandic musician whose emotionally rich and hauntingly immersive scores have captivated audiences worldwide, will receive the Career Achievement Award at the 21st edition of the festival this October.
Best known for her Academy Award-winning score for Joker (2019), Guðnadóttir has redefined what it means to be a film composer in the modern era. As the first solo female artist to win an Oscar for Best Original Score, her contribution to the music and film world goes far beyond a single award — she is a symbol of innovation, emotion, and depth in an industry traditionally dominated by men.
🎶 Cinema Meets Innovation: Guðnadóttir’s Unmistakable Sound
Festival director Christian Jungen praised Guðnadóttir’s unique approach to composition, saying:
“She knows how to use experimental sounds to shape mainstream pop culture and lend it atmospheric depth.”
And he’s right. Guðnadóttir doesn’t just create melodies — she constructs soundscapes that live inside the films she scores. Her music lingers beneath the surface, elevating the emotional tone of every scene while often remaining almost invisible in its integration. It’s this seamless connection between music and story that has made her one of the most sought-after composers in Hollywood and beyond.
🏆 A Trailblazer in Film Music
Guðnadóttir’s career is filled with landmark achievements:
- Oscar and BAFTA winner for Joker (2019)
- Emmy and Grammy winner for her chilling score for HBO’s Chernobyl (2019)
- Composer for TÁR (2022), starring Cate Blanchett — another critically acclaimed film with an emotionally intense, minimalist score
- Composer for Kenneth Branagh’s A Haunting in Venice (2023)
Her ability to blend classical orchestration with experimental textures has set a new standard for film music. With each project, Guðnadóttir pushes the boundaries of sound and emotion, challenging both the audience and the conventions of her craft.
🎻 Honoring Her Career at Zurich Film Festival
Guðnadóttir will receive her Career Achievement Award during the “Cinema in Concert” gala event on October 2, a highlight of the Zurich Film Festival’s 2025 program.
As part of the celebration, she’ll also:
- Lead a masterclass for aspiring composers, offering a rare behind-the-scenes look into her creative process.
- Serve as Jury President for the festival’s 13th International Film Music Competition, where young talents from around the world compete by scoring an animated short titled Wild Love.
The three finalists’ compositions will be performed by the Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich, conducted by Frank Strobel, a frequent champion of live film music performance. Strobel will join Guðnadóttir and fellow juror, Swiss composer Balz Bachmann, to choose the winner of the Golden Eye Award, which comes with a prize of CHF 10,000 ($12,700 USD).
🎬 A Composer in Dialogue with Story
Guðnadóttir has always emphasized the importance of storytelling in her music. Rather than approaching a score as a standalone piece, she works in deep collaboration with directors, often composing in tandem with the film’s development. This approach results in music that isn’t just an accompaniment but a vital part of the emotional narrative.
As Jungen explained:
“She develops her scores in dialogue with the filmmakers and their sequences, creating melodies that you might not hum on the way home, but which resonate deep within us.”
Indeed, her music may not always be catchy in the traditional sense — but it stays with you. It seeps into the mood of the film, and into the viewer’s subconscious. Few composers working today can match that level of emotional resonance.
🔮 What’s Next for Hildur Guðnadóttir?
Even as she receives recognition for her incredible body of work, Guðnadóttir is far from slowing down. Her upcoming projects include:
- Hedda, a reimagining of Henrik Ibsen’s Hedda Gabler, directed by Nia DaCosta and starring Tessa Thompson and Nina Hoss
- The highly anticipated zombie sequels 28 Years Later and 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, directed by Danny Boyle and DaCosta, respectively
Both projects are expected to be cinematic events, and with Guðnadóttir composing the scores, the emotional depth of each film is all but guaranteed.
🎼 Beyond the Screen: Theater, Dance, and Solo Work
While many know her for her film and television scores, Guðnadóttir is also a prolific composer for theater and dance, as well as a solo recording artist. She has released four solo albums, each showcasing her avant-garde sensibilities and talent for crafting atmospheric, ambient compositions that are as meditative as they are emotionally powerful.
Her ability to move fluidly between genres — from experimental electronics to orchestral symphonies — reflects her roots in both traditional and experimental music scenes. She began her musical education at just three years old in her hometown of Reykjavík, Iceland, and later studied at the Berlin University of the Arts. Today, she continues to live and create in Berlin, a city known for its vibrant and boundary-pushing music community.
👩🎤 A Role Model for a New Generation
Hildur Guðnadóttir is more than an award-winning composer — she’s a trailblazer. In an industry where female composers have often been overlooked, she has carved out a space that is entirely her own, and in doing so, opened doors for others to follow.
Young composers — especially women — see in her a figure who has not only broken barriers but reshaped expectations. Her work proves that emotion, experimentation, and elegance can coexist in a film score, and that music doesn’t have to shout to leave a lasting impact.
🎥 Final Notes
As the Zurich Film Festival 2025 celebrates Guðnadóttir’s achievements, it also acknowledges the power of music to shape stories, elevate cinema, and inspire change. Hildur’s legacy is still being written, but one thing is certain: her sound will echo for generations.
For fans of film music, the “Cinema in Concert” gala on October 2 is not to be missed. And for those who’ve yet to discover her work — start with Joker, Chernobyl, or TÁR, and prepare to be moved in ways you never expected.