https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8c68g-wAvoDNrsjLsoeBv-6Et1kHMJs5
One of the things to be aware of is that some of the scenes you come across may or may not have sound effects. Often while working on a real project you won’t have polished SFX in your rough cut, so you have to be conscientious about the role they may end up playing. At the same time, if you are scoring for practice, the scenes may feel ‘empty’ or ‘incomplete’ without those sounds.
It’s not right or wrong to practice one way or the other, just something to be aware of! There are stem separation tools that do a reasonable job of splitting voice from the SFX and music of a clip, so if you don’t mind working without SFX you can basically use any scene!
Playlist of various videos. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8c68g-wAvoDNrsjLsoeBv-6Et1kHMJs5
Games without Music Youtube Channel. Many games give you the option of adjusting the mix while playing, so this person plays through a bunch of games with the music track muted. Here you would be looking for cutscenes from games, which are linear/dramatic scenes that take place during a game.
https://www.youtube.com/@GamesWithoutMusic
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8YXTIFHe0VFxu8wNGdXSJmD0fco6h7tE
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1LSLQ8ef5LDkNeaWC6qhbqNKRzxp4FIAX
- This link has been going around for a while, though it skews towards action:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1LSLQ8ef5LDkNeaWC6qhbqNKRzxp4FIAX?usp=sharing
- **2) thecuetube.com – They have a number of nice short films to work on. I personally think these would be more fulfilling to work on then a short scene spliced out of a Hollywood movie because you get to create a complete experience.
- A lot of these will probably overlap, but there are a few additional scenes at the link here:https://www.dropbox.com/sh/anczlomhse4l8qe/AAC5FPAdc5UVqq4rI2G0wNLga?dl=0
In particular, I would check out Danny and the Wild Bunch, Polar Express, and Sol Levante to see if those spark your interest.
Keep on the lookout for various film scoring competitions. They often give you access to decent material to work with.
Score student films.
Ideas to get started with different moods/styles/genres:
Wonder/awe
Mystery/intrigue
Horror
Bittersweet
Drama
Grief
Joy
1) Getting Started, Overviews:
This video is a great summary of what it means to score:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FiVv6ekhQ8c
This video runs through someone scoring a short scene and exposes a lot of the technological concepts that you may encounter:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1XkBHT_6Nk
This gets much deeper into the weeds (much of it would not be relevant if working on independent projects) but is a really good overview of the professional process from start to finish:
https://www.spitfireaudio.com/editorial/features/scoring-a-film/part1/
2) Practice:
This website offers movie clips that you can download that don’t have music, but do have SFX and dialogue. These can be a lot of fun to work on and are a great way to get some practice and experience.
3) Courses:
If you want to dig in more, there are a number of online courses out there. Thinkspace has a robust set of offerings, and there is Berklee Online for more traditional college courses. Then there are independent offerings such as fortecomposeracademy.com and, of course, youtube.