Royalty Free: The Music of Kevin MacLeod

Streaming video - 2021

One composer, thousands of songs, millions of videos, and billions of views: Kevin MacLeod is the world’s most-heard living composer...who nobody’s heard of. His music reaches more people on a daily basis (measured by unique internet views) than every cable, broadcast, and network in western media combined. "ROYALTY FREE: THE MUSIC OF KEVIN MACLEOD" is a documentary about this remarkable musician, who has released thousands of his songs for free and unwittingly became one of the most-heard composers in the world. The film reveals MacLeod’s practice of releasing his music "royalty free," which allows anyone to use his music for no charge, from the biggest Hollywood studios down to grandmas making cat videos. It also... delves into the digital audio revolution – the digital transformation of sound that allows one person with a synthesizer to become an entire orchestra. This 'democratization of music' has uplifted millions and enabled great creativity, but it has also threatened the livelihood of analog musicians – from recording artists to orchestra members and Broadway musicians. Ultimately, the film is about the value we place on creative work in our society, and how the evolving landscape of technology influences our consumption, production, and distribution of the work itself. more