MOVIE music is still in its infancy in China, the process is rush rush rush, music like movies is merchandise, composers' pay is low, so is creativity, and there are issues of intellectual property.

That's the view of noted composers, including visiting Chinese American Nathan Wang and professor An Dong from the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, who composed the music for the opening ceremony of the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

But there are many young composers who are passionate and interested in film music ? they need experience and a chance.

The film industry is maturing, and good directors are bound to realize that a good film needs a good score, and a memorable theme. And a great film needs a great theme.

So maybe there will be a Chinese John Williams, the American composer of iconic scores for "Star Wars," "Indiana Jones," "Superman" and "Jaws."
"It just takes one movie, one director who is really passionate about music and is willing to spend as much money and efforts to put into the music," said Wang who was in Shanghai this month to conclude recording his soundtrack for the upcoming film "My Lucky Star" directed by Zhang Ziyi.

"You need a John Williams," said Wang. "I think when somebody is able to do that, then all of a sudden it kind of unlocks the heavens and people will definitely notice music a lot more.'

An was less upbeat.

"Sound track composing is going the same way as the films, most films are merchandise that is not high in artistic value. In this case, the director doesn't have high requirements and it's more like a routine ... I think in reality the Chinese film music is going toward a more functional and utilitarian path."

Wang, who is in his 50s, has long list of credits including "Sophie's Revenge" (2009), a romantic comedy. "My Lucky Star" is a sequel that he describes as "sort of cat and mouse."

In a studio at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, Wang and conductor Qian Yu led the RJ Big Band, a local jazz ensemble, to conclude the soundtrack. The producer had wanted something very much like "Ocean's Eleven," with a big-band sound, he said.

Wang has also composed for string orchestra and recorded with the Beijing Philharmonic earlier.

His projects in film, television and documentary include "Charlie's War," the latest Jackie Chan movie "Chinese Zodiac," Disney's "The Game Plan," the documentary "The Lost Children of Berlin," and the animation "Tom and Jerry: The Fast and the Furry."

"Writing music for any genre is always exciting, the music is about story-telling and being able to support the kind of story the producer and director want to tell," he says.

Many composers and their teams can complete three or four full-length feature films a year and fast production definitely can impact creativity, Wang says. "It's the nature of the business."

"But the more time you have to think about the project and to be brought on board in an early stage, the better," he says. "That gives you more connection to the people involved in the movie."

A typical production can take nine months to a year, and producer and director often meet with composers at the very end. Wang says he often has four to six weeks to compose.

"But I always value and welcome the idea of getting in earlier, going to set and seeing what's going on. It gets into my thoughts and helps me think of what kind of melody I should give to the characters."

An is a renowned soundtrack composer who has composed for many Chinese films, TV shows and commercials.

In 2000 An wrote the score for a German film, "Return of the Black Buddha," and he started thinking and working as soon as he got the script.

"Usually in China, composers are invited at the very end," An says. "For the German film, I was asked to go to the set and the whole process took a year."

Typically he has three months for a project, from the moment he is told to the moment the score is composed. He had only two months to write "Wind Blast" (2010) directed by Gao Qunshu.

TV series make more demands on composers than films.

Wang says the business model of fast production takes a toll in creativity.

"I have worked on movies when they give 99 percent of the time and money to the film and 1 percent to the music, and then they say they want it tomorrow. You don't have a choice, you have no time," he says.

A critical problem in the Chinese film music industry is copyright. Composers' works are not well protected from copyright infringement and some composers just "borrow" from other compositions.

"I think it's unfortunate, but I don't think it's hopeless. Things will change here in China," Wang says.

An says that when composing is more profitable, more people will do it and be passionate about it, but to date, music hasn't been the focus of productions.

"You have to have original soundtrack in order to be recognized, and many in China are pirated and nobody buys, so it's still a question of music intellectual property value," An says.

In Western countries, composers are not only paid for their work, but also receive copyright royalties from distribution.

In China, most Chinese composers are simply paid a flat fee for the composition and receive little or no royalties. After he finished "Return of the Black Buddha," An was paid for the composition and he also received royalties. After paying taxes and agency fees on the royalties, he still received much more than his fee.

According to Wang, the film soundtrack industry in China today is similar to the situation in the United States a few decades ago. Most people don't pay much attention to the score and there are few elite composers.

"When John Williams started, you think about ?Star Wars.' All of a sudden it made music very prominent in the field of movies," Wang said. "Before, it was always there, you had wonderful composers like Alfred Newman and Alex North, but nobody really took notice of them until a John Williams came."

Immediately there was a big difference and people paid attention to the soundtracks. "You need a John Williams," says Wang.