Royalty Free tells the story of the internet legend whose music has become the soundtrack of the digital world. Composer Kevin MacLeod released thousands of his songs for free and unwittingly became one of the most heard composers in the world, with his work ending up in millions of videos, thousands of films, and more than a few odd places – such as theme parks and rocket launches. By releasing his music royalty free, anyone can use his music in their productions, from Martin Scorsese’s Hugo to cat videos on YouTube.
The film also delves into the digital audio revolution, where one person with a synthesizer can become an entire orchestra. This democratization of music has enabled great creativity, but has also threatened the livelihood of analog musicians, from recording artists to orchestras and Broadway musicians.
Ultimately, Royalty Free is about the value we as a society place on creative work, and how the evolving technological landscape influences our consumption, production, and distribution of the work itself.
"Conveys the scale of its subject’s achievement while offering an unnerving portrait of the man himself."- The New York Times
"Ryan Camarda's fascinating documentary highlights a little-known composer with a big musical footprint." - Thelma Adams, Rotten Tomatoes Top Critic
"A subject which is unusual and deceptively meaningful."- Film Threat
"Compelling...a thought-provoking journey into the music industry’s evolving online landscape." - 500 Days Of Film
- Director Commentary
- Animation Walkthrough
- Festival Q&A
- Production Stills
- Optional English & Spanish subtitles
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