Workflows
Music industry workflows
How the industry actually works, step by step. The triage instincts of a music supervisor, the stem delivery checklist of a working composer, the cue sheet flow that decides who gets paid. Real procedure, real insider detail, no fluff.
8 workflows. 13,000+ words of original procedural content.
How music supervisors review pitches
Music supervisors review pitches in fast triage passes, listening to the first 15 to 30 seconds of each track to decide whether it survives, gets archived, or gets forwarded to the director. Most pitches die in the first pass.
Read the full workflow →How trailer houses receive music
Trailer houses receive music through a mix of in-house libraries, agency relationships, and curated submissions, then triage it against the cut they are working on under brutal deadlines. Speed and format flexibility win placements.
Read the full workflow →How sync agencies pitch music
Sync agencies represent rosters of composers and labels, sit in the brief flow with music supervisors, and pitch matched cues against active needs. The pitching workflow runs on relationships, fast turnarounds, and ruthless catalog organization.
Read the full workflow →How composers deliver stems
Composers deliver stems by exporting individual instrument groups from their DAW as separate WAV files at the same sample rate, length, and start point as the master, then bundling them with clear filenames and metadata. Done right, stems make a track endlessly usable. Done wrong, they are a tangled mess that no editor will touch.
Read the full workflow →How cue sheets get filed
Cue sheets get filed by the production company's music coordinator after the project airs, listing every cue with composer, publisher, duration, and usage code. The cue sheet is then submitted to the relevant performing rights organization (PRO), which uses it to calculate ongoing performance royalties. No cue sheet means no royalty.
Read the full workflow →How ALT mixes get organized
ALT mixes get organized by grouping every alternate version under its parent track with consistent naming, metadata, and a clear hierarchy: master, instrumentals, TV mixes, cutdowns, stings, and stems. Done well, the supervisor never has to ask for a version. Done poorly, every placement involves email back-and-forth.
Read the full workflow →How watermarked shares protect unreleased music
Watermarked shares protect unreleased music by embedding a unique audible or inaudible identifier into each shared copy, so if the file leaks, the leak can be traced back to the specific recipient. Combined with expirable links, password protection, and download controls, this is how labels and managers send pre-release material without nuking their release plan.
Read the full workflow →How supervisor feedback rounds actually work
Supervisor feedback rounds happen when a track is shortlisted but not yet locked: the supervisor sends notes to the composer (often timestamped, sometimes vague), the composer revises, and the cycle repeats one to four times before the cue is either approved or replaced. Most placements that fall apart, fall apart here.
Read the full workflow →