Bokshu Finds its Roar in Composer Todd Hayen

Indian film director Shyama-prasad has tapped award-winning composer Todd Hayen to score the new global action-adventure picture Bokshu, The Myth.

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Bokshu Finds its Roar in Composer Todd Hayen

HOLLYWOOD, CA, May 6, 2002: Composer Todd Hayen has recently been pegged to complete the post-team for the Bollywood meets Hollywood film Bokshu, The Myth, currently wrapping in India. Award-winning director Shyama-prasad, at the leading edge of a burgeoning movement of Indian filmmakers who are gearing their works toward Western audiences, singled out Hayen as composer for this global action pic because of his innovative approach to discovering each film's unique musical voice. For Bokshu, based on an Indian myth that parallels werewolf lore, but with a malevolent tiger as the transformed creature, Hayen will draw from the rich, mysterious percussive and vocal Indian tradition, blending in cutting-edge electronics and the sweeping beauty of a full symphony orchestra to deliver a score of groundbreaking scope and electricity. Hayen comments: "Bokshu is dealing with two distinct cultural mindsets, and the music will aim to embrace both perspectives. Shyama and I are in agreement that the score should incorporate elements from the ethnic indigenous music of India without too much concern for its literal meaning, e.g. vocalizations without reference to Hindu text and implication. The orchestra will be used to tie all of the elements into a coherent dramatic underscore capable of supporting and expressing the most subtle of emotions and the most intense dramatic action."

Director Shyama-prasad gained international recognition with his award-winning 1999 blockbuster Agnisakshi, the story of one woman's journey to discover tranquility. His telefilms based on Indian literature as well as works of European writers such as Chekhov and Camus have also received world-wide critical acclaim. With Bokshu, Shyama-prasad joins the ranks of such filmmakers as producer Roland Joffe (City of Joy, The Mission) who are bringing stories of Indian culture to Western shores.

Set in the scenic snow-capped Himalayas, Bokshu not only weaves the action-adventure sensibility of Hollywood with Indian mysticism and mythology, it also boasts an international cast and production team. Actors Steven Berkoff (Atilla, Beverly Hills Cop), David Millbern (Gods and Monsters, Texas Rangers) and Heather Prete (The Pretender) join top Indian stars to tell the engaging story of an American professor's daughter and her boyfriend who journey to India in search of the girl's missing father and ultimately find themselves confronting a mythical creature that preys on humans and can shift form instantly from human to tiger. "This is a mutimillion-dollar project," says producer M.P.S Prasad. "My aim is to have top Hollywood distributors release the film in 2,000 theaters globally." Rounding out the production team are Eric Mahady--former special effects man for Disney, writer Richard Stanley, and Danish cinematographer Torben Forsberg.

Todd Hayen's score will be a crucial element in seamlessly joining the cross-cultural elements of Bokshu. His scores have intensified the dramatic feature films One Last Flight, Shadow Men, The Invader, and the captivating IMAX film Pittsburgh's Big Picture, while his additional music has complemented scores for works such as Andrew Davis' Under Seige, John Frankenheimer's Andersonville, and Anjelica Huston's Bastard Out of Carolina. Tapped to score the anticipated documentary Our Nation's History in the White House (recording with the Marine Band), Hayen has contributed his talents and depth of experience to such projects as the upcoming HBO biopic Path to War, Rose Red, Storm of the Century, The Island of Doctor Moreau and John Debney's acclaimed Lights of Liberty. In the world of television, Hayen's writing has graced such shows as Sisters, Charles in Charge, Harry and the Hendersons, Lassie, and Batman.

For additional information: contact Scott McRae, 818-563-3790, pr@nelidova.com.
Todd Hayen's representation: Jeff Kaufman, 818-506-6013, jhk@pacbell.net.
Hayen Music website: http://www.hayenmusic.com

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