Scoring Rosa’s Dilemma was an absolute delight. My first collaboration with director Maya Simone (though our paths briefly crossed on Mouseshrooms), her film provided me with the perfect chance to score a traditional romantic comedy that paid tribute to the staples of the genre. From my very first conversations with Maya, it was clear that this film needed a musical voice that felt both playfully nostalgic and sincerely romantic, or as she put it, "lively energy that feels nostalgic yet fresh." The goal was to craft a score that evoked the whimsical optimism of films like Clueless and Bridget Jones's Diary, while still capturing the film's emotional core—Rosa’s journey to discovering love where she least expects it.

The music had to dance between tones—cheeky and upbeat for Rosa’s day-to-day misadventures, dreamlike and delusional when her crush Josh enters the frame, tenderly intimate as her friendship with Parker slowly blossoms into something more, and even some diegetic pop music for the film's party sequences. Achieving this balance was an iterative process. Early drafts of my score played the emotions up a little too much, but by brainstorming with the director we refined each cue to match the needs of Rosa’s Dilemma. Even simple notes from her—‘too high energy,’ ‘less joyful,’ or ‘too serious’—went a long way in communicating the film’s musical needs.

Ultimately, this score is a love letter to romcoms past, while celebrating the vibrant individuality at the heart of Rosa’s story. I am deeply grateful to Maya for her vision and trust, and for allowing me to help bring Rosa’s world to life through music.