Scoring the Dream: Joy Ngiaw on Music, Representation, and Coming Full Circle

Raised on Disney soundtracks and Chinese ballads like Fish Leong, Malaysian-composer and BAFTA-honoured Joy Ngiaw never imagined her music would one day play across the world. Now, she’s living the dream—and championing space for others to do the same.

“Now, using the human voice has become part of my musical signature. It adds something raw and emotional, because the voice is an instrument too. That project made me realise how sound can tell a story in unexpected ways. Since then, I’ve started experimenting more—thinking about how to make each score unique. Maybe it’s recording chopsticks on a guitar, capturing ocean sounds, or tapping and scraping different objects. I think that kind of creativity adds a unique, human layer to film scoring.”

Full interview: Augustman