Winning an Oscar is a career highlight that you never forget, and for Anne Dudley, being handed the trophy by Jennifer Lopez as Robin Williams looked on was a fairytale.
The acclaimed composer won for 1997’s The Full Monty, with the Los Angeles awards show a far cry from her upbringing in Kent.
‘We felt like the sort of Cinderella at the party,’ she told Metro humbly. ‘The other big winner of the night was Titanic, and our film had about a 100th of the budget.’
Anne, 69, appeared somewhat bemused by her success as she spoke to us, having just also earned the esteemed title of Ivor Academy Fellow at the Ivors Classical Awards.
Previous famous fellows include Sir Paul McCartney, Sir Elton John, Annie Lennox, and Kate Bush.
She continued: ‘We genuinely didn’t expect a win [at the Oscars]. Honestly, it took me a long time to get out of my seat and get up on stage because I couldn’t process it.
‘I’ve seen the video and I look quite calm and collected, but honestly, I don’t know how I managed to make any sense at all.’
As Anne looked out into the front row, she saw icons like Geena Davis, Robin Williams, and Robert De Niro smiling back at her.
Accepting her award from JLo, the Grammy winner was just thankful she’d splashed out on having an ‘incredibly beautiful’ dress made by designer Anthony Price.
She shared: ‘It was like an actor says, once I’d got the dress on, it was like, “Oh, okay, I can do this role”. I stepped into the high heels, and I thought, “I could be the sort of person who wins an Oscar.”‘
The film beat the likes of animated classic Anastasia, My Best Friend’s Wedding, Men In Black, and As Good as It Gets, which was scored by Hans Zimmer.
At the time, dramatic films were split from comedies or musicals, meaning Titanic nabbed the win for a total of 11 awards, tying it with Ben-Hur and the final Lord of the Rings for most wins ever.
Anne noted this split didn’t last long, but allowed alternative projects to be nominated, as winners of the combined category tended to be music from the best film nominees.
She advocated for another category to be introduced for independent or alternative films, acknowledging the impact winning had on her career.
‘It opened a lot of doors,’ Anne said. ‘I was aware that if I wasn’t careful, I’d be typecast as somebody who did comedy.’
After the Oscar win, the composer ‘deliberately’ pivoted into a thriller and other projects, which eventually led her to Poldark.
‘I loved all of [the episodes], actually,’ she excitedly shared. ‘I thought they all had terrific stories and terrific characters. Certain themes just kept coming back: resilience, treachery, and all the things that happen in Poldark.’
For Anne, this is where she excels, creating music that paints a backdrop to the unfolding scenes — rather than standing out.
The Emmy-nominated composer confessed she ‘doesn’t hold with’ the music style in Bridgerton, which has become famous for classical versions of modern hits from Madonna to Pitbull.
‘Whilst I might admire the arrangements, I think it’s distracting, frankly,’ Anne said. ‘I find myself thinking, “that’s a Madonna track, isn’t it?” Not getting into the drama, I find it takes me out of it.’
Discussing what makes a film composition great, she said, first and foremost, the music must be ‘right’ and it has to ‘make the film better’.
‘When those two things work, when you have really great pictures with really great music, a third thing emerges, which is bigger than the sum of the two parts,’ Anne explained.
Not only is she known for TV and film, but Anne has also earned a Grammy for her session work, composing for the likes of Cher, George Michael, and more.
‘Sometimes, you might get asked to do a string arrangement for a group or a singer, and your interaction is with the producer, but the singer might be off doing something else,’ the musician shared.
‘People say to me, “What was it like working with the Spice Girls?” Well, I have no idea. I never met them. [But] I’m not holding it against the Spice Girls!’
Anne is reluctant to name-drop anyone, in keeping with her humble personality, but she does call Jeff Beck a ‘wonderful’ and ‘extraordinary’ musician.
‘I liked him very much, and I miss him a lot,’ Anne added. ‘And George Michael was also a really lovely musician, extremely talented. A very lovely, polite person. Really tragic that we’ve lost them.’
While her career has been hard won through perseverance and ‘taking every opportunity’, she admits that she was ‘tremendously lucky’ to work with Trevor Horn.
‘Without being arrogant’, Anne reveals she was a big part of ‘seminal’ album The Lexicon of Love, by ABC and produced by Trevor.
It became a calling card, allowing her work to reach the ears of people who may not have heard of her before.
‘Success is something that people like to see, and it’s very hard for somebody starting because it’s hard to get a track record,’ she said. ‘That’s why I always say take everything you’re offered.
‘You can’t wait for Steven Spielberg to call, because he’s really not going to call, not yet.’
Anne is still waiting on that call from the iconic director. However, with two Brit Awards, a Grammy, an Oscar, Emmy nominations, and now an Ivor Fellowship, we’re sure she won’t be waiting for much longer.
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