Biography

Owen Wang is a Taiwanese composer best known for his musical and film scores. Born in 1982, Wang is regarded as one of the most promising composers among his generation, greatly influenced by the Western culture but also inheriting the Asian tradition. The young talent received master of music in film scoring from New York University under the mentoring of Dr. Joseph Church and Ira Newborn. During his studies at NYU, he started to write for local independent films and original musical theater production in Taiwan. His composition style is a hybrid of rock, jazz, blues and orchestral tradition. His works have been played in varying fields in Taiwan, China, Australia, and New York, including musical theatre, theatrical drama, feature film, short film, documentary, dance, and commercials.

Owen's musical Mulan was presented in its entirety, accompanied by a 24-piece orchestra, to sold-out audiences in June 2009, and again in January 2011 with new cast and revised music & book at the National Theatre in Taiwan. The show received wide and positive reviews in the National Press as one of the most successful Chinese-language musicals

• "Within the Broadway-friendly melodies exists certain ethnic touch,

diverse but yet accessible, humorous but yet provocative," as the China Times put it. In Fall 2009, Mulan's excerpts has been translated into English for a Taiwanese showcase event in New York City. The entire show has been licensed to reproduce in Melbourne, Australia in October 2011, which received great reviews from local media as the first non-English language musical presented in Australia with great story and songs. Other musical/theatre credits include Formosa Carnival (2011), I Hate Hamlet (2011), Last of the Red Hot Lovers (2011), Q & A (2010), Beauty and the Beast (2009), K24 (2009), and etc.

As a film composer, Owen wrote for many short films, documentaries, and feature films. His scores are highly acclaimed for their variant styles and profound connection to the pictures. With his experiences in musical theatre, he's also skilled in creating musical scenes in films. His original score and songs for Soul of Bread (2012) is regarded as "the spirit of the film" - as described by the Taiwanese film critique Wu Pai-Tzu . His score for Jump Ashin! (2011) was nominated by Golden Horse Awards (the Academy Award in Greater China) for best original score. His score for short film My Grandma (2009) received Golden Bell Awards (the Taiwanese Emmy Award). Other film scoring credits include Esha (2010), Daughters (2010), Saeng-il (2010), The Wind-up Life (2010), Banana on the Road (2008), and etc.

In January 2010, Owen started his own theatre company "Studio M" with the ambition to produce original Chinese-language musical and to promote musical theatre education in Taiwan. Now he lives and works in Taipei, frequently collaborating with filmmakers, theatre directors, singers, and musicians in Greater China.
- IMDb mini biography by: Owen Wang