Composers

NEAL ACREE

PETER HABIB

Executive Producer

SAM RIEGEL

MODERATED BY BYRON BURTON (Awards Focus)

Screening Link available upon Registration

YouTube Live Stream Q&A 

Wednesday, June 8, 1:00PM (PT)

Based on the beloved characters and adventures of Critical Role’s first live-streamed tabletop role-playing game (RPG) campaign, The Legend of Vox Machina is an animated fantasy-adventure series for adults that follows Vox Machina, a band of misfits with a fondness for boozing and brawling. In a desperate attempt to pay off their mounting bar tab, these unlikely heroes end up on a quest to save the realm of Exandria from dark magical forces. From a sinister necromancer to a powerful curse, the group confronts a variety of obstacles that not only test their skills but also the strength of their bond. TV-MA | 30mins

Neal Acree is a BAFTA-nominated composer whose music can be heard in the fan-favorite shows The Legend of Vox Machina, Stargate SG-1, and Stargate Atlantis, massively popular video game franchises Overwatch, World of Warcraft, Diablo, StarCraft, and Honor of Kings, and over 30 feature films. In addition to being a versatile and prolific composer with roots in classical, rock, and electronic music Neal has conducted his music in concerts around the globe. Neal has earned praise from fans and critics alike on scores like the Chinese fantasy game Revelation and the International Film Music Critics’ Association Award-winning score to the Norse mythology game Rend. In 2018 Neal scored the wildly imaginative film Animal World  (Li Yifeng, Michael Douglas) with co-composer Michael Tuller which debuted at #1 at the Chinese box office. Neal’s film work also includes the Jean-Claude Van Damme films Assassination Games and Six Bullets as well as additional music for the Jason Statham blockbuster The Mechanic. In May of 2020, Neal’s music took a personal turn when he released his debut solo album The Velvet Machine. 14 years in the making, The Velvet Machine was the realization of a long but not quite lost dream of becoming a recording artist.

In addition to winning an International Film Music Critics Award, three Hollywood Music In Media Awards, three Golden Reel Awards, seven Game Audio Network Guild Awards, and five Global Music Awards, Neal was also nominated for a BAFTA, four Academy Of Interactive Arts, and Sciences Awards, three ASCAP Composer’s Choice Awards as well as numerous critic awards. In 2016 Neal was named the BSOSpirit Jerry Goldsmith “Composer of the Year” at a ceremony in Malaga, Spain. 

Peter Habib is an accomplished Los Angeles-based songwriter, record producer, and composer, whose strong melodic and harmonic sensibilities permeate through all of his detailed productions. Peter started singing and playing piano at an early age. As soon as he learned how to operate the family record player, he spent hours listening to Michael Jackson, Rogers & Hammerstein, and Kenny Rogers while Egyptian icon Umm Kulthum played on his father’s tape deck in the next room. This eclectic mix fostered a unique sense of melody and rhythm found in Peter’s K-Pop hits and other compositions. His fascination with the voice led him to start a doo-wop group at his high school and later at the University of Virginia where he sang and arranged for the award-winning a cappella group The Academical Village People. After a brief stint on the business side of the music industry in booking and A&R, he returned to his creative roots and founded Mr. Fantastic, a music production powerhouse, with fellow UVA alumnus Adam Nierow.

For well over a decade, Peter has been cultivating a deep understanding of the modern musical landscape, composing works for iconic brands such as Pepsi, Volkswagen, Disney, and Maybelline. He’s worked with legendary producer David Foster on multiple projects and is known for his special brand of vocal production and arrangement. Peter also has found success in Asia where he writes and produces hit songs for some of the biggest Chinese and Korean pop artists including TFBOYS, Jason Zhang, Jike Junyi, Wu Mochou, SHINee, and TVXQ. His song for the 2013 Pepsi Live For Now campaign in China broke records at the time with over 300,000,000 views. He has worked on scores to multiple films and live shows in China including Himalaya: Ladder to Paradise and Common Destiny. Peter’s music has reached billions by being featured on TV shows such as Keeping Up With The Kardashians and America’s Next Top Model. It can also be heard in genre-defining video games like League Of Legends. Peter’s latest work on the hit Amazon Prime Video show The Legend Of Vox Machina has been particularly rewarding as he gets to use his pop songwriting and production skills across many a genre.

Sam Riegel is a Los Angeles-based voice actor and Emmy Award-winning voice director, known for his roles in animation and video games, as well as for co-founding the massively popular hit show and media brand, Critical Role, and executive producer of The Legend Of Vox Machina. Critical Role has become one of the most popular storytelling and world-building independent media companies in the world, and Sam plays a pivotal role within the company as a co-founder, primary cast member for the flagship show, and executive producer of The Legend Of Vox Machina animated series. Over his decades-long career, Sam has voiced iconic animated characters such as Donatello in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Ketch on Bad Batch, Emperor Awesome on Wander Over Yonder, Shiro Emiya in Fate/Stay Night, Viral in Gurren Lagann, Mephisto in Blue Exorcist, and Metal Bat in One Punch Man. Notable video game characters include Peter Parker/Spiderman in The Amazing Spider-Man games, Starscream in Transformers Cybertron series, Teddie in the Persona series, Gramble Gigglefunny in Bugsnax, and Pheonix Wright in several Ace Attorney games. Sam has also served as voice director for Disney’s DuckTales, Moon Girl & Devil Dinosaur, Elena of Avalor, Sofia The First, as well as Archibald’s Next Big Thing for Dreamworks, DC Superhero Girls for Cartoon Network, and Kid Cosmic for Netflix, among others.

Sam earned an Outstanding Directing in an Animated Program Daytime Emmy for his work on Amazon’s Danger & Eggs, as well as two other Daytime Emmy nominations. He is the recipient of three BTVA People’s Choice Voice Acting Awards and a BTVA Video Game Voice Acting Award. He also won the Austin Film Festival for best Half-Hour Television Writing and he’ll continue to win the hearts of viewers every Thursday night on Critical Role, where he currently plays the lovable robot, Fresh Cut Grass.

*** IMPORTANT – PLEASE READ ***

FREE for current SCL members (click HERE to check membership status).

Attendees will be emailed a Screening Link upon Registration and a Q&A YouTube Live Stream link on Wednesday, June 8, 10 minutes before Q&A start.

Attendees can ask questions on YouTube chat, and the SCL Host will pass them on to the Moderator. The SCL Member Code of Conduct applies to online Q&As.

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