Composer Henry Jackman ships In PMCs for work on the 'Captain Phillips' film score

PMC supplied a pair of AML2 nearfield monitors to British film score composer Henry Jackman during the composition of the soundtrack to the recently released Tom Hanks film, Captain Phillips. Jackman, who lives and works in LA, collaborated closely on the music with director Paul Greengrass (The Bourne Supremacy, United 93) — and he felt he couldn’t really get things done without the AML2s, which are the nearfield workhorses in his composition studio alongside a pair of three-way PMC IB2s.

Jackman auditioned many speakers when fitting out his own studio before settling on PMCs, and has stuck with the choice for several years now, finding them the perfect reference for mixing. "They're not the most generous and flattering speakers," he explains with characteristic honesty, "but that's exactly why they're good. They make you really work at a mix. When I've used different speakers at other studios, I've found that they often make me feel comfortable about a mix quite quickly — but as soon as you take it somewhere else to listen to it, you realise what the flaws are. The PMCs just reproduce what you put in, and if there's a problem, you soon know about it.

"It's like lighting a room with candlelight — that can be very flattering to how people look, but in better lighting, they often look very different. With the PMCs, it's like blowing out the candles and turning on the overhead arc lights. When you need to get forensic on your mixes, they're what you need."

"Working with Paul was a brilliant experience," he concludes. "People know him for these Hollywood blockbusters like the Bourne movies, but he's so much more than a creator of entertainment. He's got a documentary and journalistic background, and I think he's one of the really interesting film-makers around today."

Together with his PMC IB2s and AML2s, Jackman is currently working on the score for the next Captain America film, set for release in mid-2014.