BIO

Saul James is a London based, classically trained composer, screenwriter, film composer and creator of The Breathe Key.

He studied composition at The Royal College of Music Conservatoire having been awarded a Scholarship. He was taught under David McBride, Joseph Horowitz and the late Professor Philip Cannon and won the Joan Weller Memorial Composition Competition prize. He was just 17 years old when his first orchestral work for full orchestra and solo soprano was completed and later performed. The following year he won a commission to write a piece for The London Ballet School, which was performed at the Cochrane Theatre, London. Shortly after this came a larger commission of a one hour, full-scale oratorio for orchestra, chorus and 4 soloists, for which he also conducted the premiere performance.

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Over the years Saul has worked on numerous projects including musicals, film and pop music, TV and the classical concert hall. Through his work, he has become experienced in writing across genres and is exceptionally apt at reflecting different styles to perfectly suit his commission. He has worked with film directors & producers from around the world and has written scores for award-winning independent feature films.

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Saul started his screen career by writing the music to six promotional films for The Colour of Magic feature film, by the late Terry Pratchett. These were produced by Sky and starred Sean Astin, Christopher Lee, Jeremy Irons & David Jason. He has gone on to score and produce music for more than eighty short films and documentaries as well as five feature films, working in many genres including horror/slasher, romantic comedies, martial arts, drama, fantasy and war. Saul's music has reached many territories around the world through companies such as Swiss Films, Amazon, Sky (Sky Sports, Sky One, Sky Movies, Sky Arts, Sky Atlantic), Netflix, Channel 4, TV Monde5, Seven Network (Australia) and through on-demand portals including Apple Music, Spotify, Google, Youtube, Amazon Music and SoundCloud.

As a classical composer, Saul has had UK performances of many pieces including his full orchestral works, string arrangements for solo artist albums and many smaller chamber pieces.

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As a screenwriter, Saul wrote The North Wing, an independent feature film, hoping to go into pre-production in 2020/21. He has written a 6-part drama series looking at the life of someone battling with ME/CFS, a new feature film exploring the reality of living with post-natal depression, both on spec. 

Planned projects for 2020/21 include a new classical work for orchestra and solo soprano, a new feature film soundtrack, his first venture in playwriting and a couple of new short film scripts.

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Saul is also the creator of The Breathe Key, a web space built to support people through mindful breathing, mindfulness and meditation, with a particular lean towards supporting those with mental health conditions.

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A keen swimmer, you'll often find Saul in the pool doing laps, raising money to support the work of cancer research charities.