By the time Hope Thal stepped into the booth for her first recording session as a student in UCLA Extension's film scoring program in 2015, she'd already earned a degree in music, sung Opera for theaters full of people, and taught students of her own in the art of piano and vocal performance. Still, putting her work in front of musicians who in their day jobs recorded scores for Indie classics and Hollywood blockbusters was a new – and in some ways daunting – experience.

"In some cases you compose a piece of music and have it recorded within a couple weeks, and this is in Los Angeles with the best players in the world," Thal said. "It's definitely sink or swim, but there's a real sense of empowerment in that."

Now entering its 20th year, UCLA Extension's Film Scoring Certificate program is geared toward giving students the tools they need to build careers in the epicenter of global filmmaking. For program director Erin Kaufman Gabrieloff, it is UCLA Extension's slate of instructors – and connections with expert sound engineers, professional studios and union musicians – that enables it to support aspiring composers from all different musical backgrounds.

"We have an incredible resource just by virtue of being based in Los Angeles, where we can connect students directly to the real world of film scoring," Gabrieloff said. "Some of our students are classically trained, some are already working musicians, others are just getting started. But they all get to learn from working and accomplished composers who can guide them in both the practical and theoretical sides of the craft." 

Normally completed in one or two years, the certificate program covers everything from the art of counterpoint to composing on a budget. Students choose from electives in subjects like animation or commercial composition, and take courses that offer studio time with working musicians. With pen and paper increasingly replaced by software and digital composition tools, the program also includes extensive instruction in the latest technologies used for film scoring.

Outside the classroom, the program works hard to connect students with a broader community of musicians and composers working in Hollywood, said Damon Tedesco, a sound engineer who has both taught in the program and run recording sessions since 2010. Students are given the opportunity to experience the ins and outs of the film scoring business via internships, seminars and other networking opportunities.

"It's very communal," said Tedesco. " You might have a group of 10 or 12 people who become great peers and great supporters for many, many years to come."

Thal's experience is a case in point. After earning her certificate in 2017, she began working as an assistant and later orchestrator for award-winning film and TV composers around the city. Soon, she was writing her own scores and working independently in a variety of film and TV genres. Throughout, she kept in touch with many of her instructors and classmates at UCLA Extension, and in 2022 signed on as an instructor herself with an eye toward giving back to the program that helped her get her start.

"Being able to help those students and sort of hold their hands through the process, especially because I've been in their shoes," Thal said. "It's a really rewarding experience for me."

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Learn more on the UCLA Extension Film Scoring certificate program website.