Anatomy of a Chimera

Anatomy of a Chimera is a surreal and poignant short film by director and writer Shahinda Elsayed. I scored this piece and I wrote a violin concerto that was played by the principal actress during filming.

A Short film by Shahinda Elsayed

At the beginning of the film, Lena makes a terrible discovery— her skin is slowly, painfully turning into glass. As she hunts for a cure, she is forced to revisit her past dreams for her life: an astronomer, a soccer player, and a musician. Only by integrating these lost fragments of her identity can she transform her brittle, delicate condition into a strength.

The concept for the score was very orchestral, with flavors of mysticism and some nods to the horror of the jagged, bloody glass protruding from her skin. Lena is a violin player, and so the primary instrument for the film was violin, representing her inner life that she’s lost or buried. The first piece I wrote for Anatomy of a Chimera was the final third of the “Past Dreams” sequence (shown above), where Lena plays in an empty auditorium. The actor is a great musician and her performance became the centerpiece for the rest of the cue. I worked backwards from this moment, arranging the chord progressions to create a launchpad for her solo.