Hi im a video game composer and I charge ~1000$/min!
That number is not ✨wtf high✨it's an approx industry standard for someone who shipped + couple years of experience!
It's a number shared by a lotta vg composer who work ethically, i did not just make it up!
You might be pissed at Venba's length/price but can I remind you:
-We made this ethically. Contractor or employee were paid in full at industry rates
-Hired musicians from all around the world, Ukraine, India, Canada more.
-The feel you get from Venba lasts a lifetime.
VENBA LAUNCHED!!
When I started on this project, my goal was to make you feel as though you're entering a South Asian kitchen.
The silverware, stainless steel, the bangles, all of it. If you can't smell it, you will HEAR it!
Hope you enjoy our little game <3
Hello all, it's finally time!!
We're so happy to announce that Venba has officially launched!!!
It is now available on PC, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One & Series as well as the PS5!
Venba is a short game about love, loss, family and more. We hope you like it!
A starting rate for a newbie would be somewhere around ~300$/min.
Im always open to negotiate and have always found a middle ground! Rates change depending on genre,timeline, OST rights and even something as simple as "Wow this person seems kind and im in love with the project"
Hey hey
Did ya know that when u invest$ in your games audio, sound folks can do some pretty neat stuff?
Cool enough for marketing? Create a story in itself? Gives a game that "Je ne sais quoi"
Look, we ain't "visible" like art but I assure you y'all feel it
I have one motto when working on Venba ✨
"If they cant smell it, they will HEAR IT!"
My goal is to make ya'll audibly salivate🤤!! Listen to the sounds of my home and culture 🧡
and by 'working ethically' i mean:
-I ALWAYS pay my collaborators (if there are any). I dont care if you're a student and offering to just gain exp, i will pay you if you help me.
-I would never dream of being a "HZ" and so never use Ghost Writers. Id rather quit.
helloo!
I'm currently looking for a bit of contract work! Most recently I did the sound design on Venba and helped out on Eternights!
I also wrote the OST for Six Ages 2: Lights Going Out and worked on a few Playdate games
RTs appreciated, full portfolio down below!
I got to do a little interview!
I talk about my *cough* origin story and how I'm pissed at things so I share as much info as I can. But most importantly:
It's the people that shaped me,
The game audio community taught me to move forward with kindness, curiosity and respect
Stoked to announce that I'll be giving my first
@Official_GDC
talk!!
✨Get Your Monet! An Indie Dev's Guide to OST Profitability✨
💰Money!
🎵Music!
📈Marketing!
Helloo!
A ✨soft ✨call that I am currently looking for some contract work! I'm available for music,sound design,implementation, mixing and more!
Projects that I've recently worked on: Venba, Six Ages 2, Eternights, Lost Your Marbles.
Surprised this still needs to be said but:
Music, Sound Design and Implementation are their OWN respective fields. If someone is wearing multiple hats, pay and credit accordingly.
Similar to CMs, our roles become convoluted and skills get added. But plz, learn about the fields!
A tangent to that is I fear Im a diversity hire every single time I get a new gig, invited to speak, I get nom for an award, anything remotely nice.
Is my work going to be diminished to my identity, to a quota that needs to be filled? Can I truly accept external validation?
Guess it was about time I had my first major game cancellation. I always empathized but never felt it first hand. There was gonna be some beautiful music.
Hire the folks at Possibility Space, it was a talented team!!!
HEY IM WORKING ON VENBA!!
@venbaGame
Wow, did not know how to eloquently announce that but AHHHHHH! I can be a part of something this meaningful??!!😭
Never thought Id be working on a game where I see my folks. I cant wait to make y'all HEAR MY HOUSEHOLD (and so much more)
We're very, very excited and happy to announce that
@Nehapolitan
will be joining the Venba team as the Sound Designer!!
She's super talented and is going to make Venba sound and feel amazing!!
She also makes amazing music! Check out her work here:
I've seen beautiful heartfelt comments online about Venba. But I never experienced it in real life. Last week was eye opening. Even the little sfx but resonated with people.
Thank you for enjoying our little game, for being vulnerable and sharing your touching stories ❤️🙏🏾
Ok precisions:
-1k/min is for FINISHED music, ready to deliver
-This is north american standards
-Yes i know its hard to get clients, i was there for the last 4 years. Things are only stable now. And who knows till when?
-For that rate, i am retaining most of my OST rights
I started piano lessons thanks to video games.Begged my parents for piano lessons when I heard the FF7 OST
Video games lead me to music. I studied classical piano and am now a vg composer.
So thank you to my parents for giving me video games instead of guitars and drum machines
Last night, 39-year-old composer Ludwig Göransson won his second Academy Award for his score to ‘Oppenheimer’. In a heartfelt speech, he thanked his parents for giving him his foundation in music.
Beautiful music in games is such a game changer
Ya know whats an even bigger game changer? Paying your composer appropriately!
Leads be like 'our OST is amazing omgawwdd' then be paying the composer like 300$/min lol
(300$/min is terrible. Thats entry level,basic music rate)
My GDC talk this year is the best topic:
Venba: An Intimate Journey Through Sound
Bringing ya'll into my childhood home (sonically) wasnt easy. Theres so many cultural/historical references, sounds you only know if you grew up in the culture. It will be special ❤️
On a happier GDC note, I'm doing a talk on Venba's Sound Design.
Focusing on bringing out my culture and my home through sound effects!
Any burning questions?? Lemme know and I'll try to address them!
Hey new followers!
I did the sound design for Venba but did you know Im actually a composer at heart? I care a ton about sustainability, freelancing and making money with your game music.
So much so I even did a GDC talk about OST profitability!
It's
#screenshotsaturday
but this post is about our game's sound design.
@Nehapolitan
, our sound designer, went above and beyond to capture the sounds of our games and recreate it as authentically as possible.
Here's a video showing how she did it and how it's used in game!
VENBA HAS A RELEASE DATE!!
I can finally say it out loud, we're launching July 31st, on ALL the platforms!!
Show us some love by wishlisting us
Or else...well I dunno, feel guilty or something? And then wishilist us anyways???
Hello!! We're very very happy to announce that Venba is coming out on July 31st to all platforms!!
We've poured a lot of love and care into this game and we can't wait for you all to play it!
Why is a known scammer/abuser who withheld money from dozens of artists giving a talk at
@Official_GDC
on Game Audio Business?
Isn't there a minimal background check? The whole fiasco was so public, artists werent paid royalties for over 2 YEARS!
Heres a little✨ behind the scenes✨ bangle recordings I did for Venba!
@venbaGame
Im loving all the sfx comments that people are noticing! Bangles sounds were an obvious *must* and im SO happy it's resonating with people ♥️
...And on that note 😉, I'm giving a talk on Venba's sound design at GDC!
Attendance will require subjects to hear daunting words such as 'Culture', 'Authenticity', ''Diversity''👻
@LawrenceLiKaiSo
@DANNYonPC
Because some piece simply need to be heard in a speedier tempo for whatever purpose it's fulfilling.
My music serves the game, achieving a cohesive piece that fits whoever scene of the game is more important.
Nominated not for 1 but FOUR categories at the Game Developer Choice Awards!!
AND IN BEST AUDIO!?
We're up against BG3!! And all these huge AAA games! It's an indescribable feel to have the work of both myself and
@alpha_something
recognized like this. In shock 😭
Ok wow Venba is nominated in FOUR categories for the Game Developers Choice Awards!!! 🥳
Best Debut, Impact, Audio and Narrative!
So so stoked to be nominated alongside games like Tears of the kingdom, Baldur's Gate 3!
Congrats to
@Nehapolitan
and
@alpha_something
for Audio!!
Audio awards being part of the main show!
Unbiased declaration that audio brings way too much to a game for it to be awarded in the pre-show 😬
Also playing the music of actual games nominated!! Pushing it here but a girl can dream 🙃
What should we do at
@thegameawards
?
What do you want to see?
Such a special show is coming together, but what should I keep in mind as we build it these next 6 weeks?
Oh my god we got nominated in FOUR categories including Excellence in Audio!
I'm so glad folks resonated with
@alpha_something
music. It's just such good authentic music.
And the sound design just went along with the theme of authenticity. I'm so happy and proud of the team ❤️
😱😱OMG!
Venba has been nominated for FOUR IGF awards including the grand prize!!!
Venba is our first ever game and it's really surreal to see it be recognized like this!
Much congrats to
@Sam_Elkana
for Art,
@alpha_something
and
@Nehapolitan
for Audio!!
Sharing a small thread of resources about game audio pricing/freelancing/cost. Not comprehensive🧵
This is my biased view where collabs and long term relationships is my priority. Im genuinely curious about people and second, their games.
What a year 2023 was ✨🔥🙏🏾
Ending the year with my first ever audio nomination, alongside giants like Baldur's Gate and Zelda is NOT something I ever imagined.
Genuinely stoked for the upcoming year!! ❤️
Wrapping up the year and phew, what a ride❤️
✨Gave my first GDC talk
✨Adopted my cat Nala 🐱
✨Launched 3 games! Venba, Six Ages 2, Eternights
✨Games I worked on have been nominated a buncha times!
✨Venba sfx work talked about in major articles
✨NDAs signed for 2024👀
Talking about Venba's sound really makes me want to do a deep dive about the NON TECHNICAL aspects that made it possible to achieve what we did. This means:
-Care given, why/how
-$$$/Negotiations
-Ethical Practices IN SOUND that differentiates us from other studios
- More
I'm home! Exhausted from
#GDC23
but a few highlights
-Gave a solo talk about monetizing VG music, with an emphasis on studio/composer collaboration ❤️
-Cohosted Morning Game Audio Meet up! 🎵
-Went to my FIRST karaoke!🎤
-Stood my ground against a false narrative about me 😤
I'm happy to announce that I will be presenting: Venba: An Intimate Journey Through Sound
I'll be talking about the sound design, the techniques but more importantly: The historical and cultural importance that these sounds have. We're hitting home with this talk ❤️🔊
It's been a full week since Venba launched!
Still in awe of the heartwarming comments and families calling each other, playing the game together, cooking!!
VENBA LAUNCHED!!
When I started on this project, my goal was to make you feel as though you're entering a South Asian kitchen.
The silverware, stainless steel, the bangles, all of it. If you can't smell it, you will HEAR it!
Hope you enjoy our little game <3
hello influx of new people!
Im Neha, a composer/sound designer, former pianist but all that aside, there's an ongoing GENOCIDE happening RIGHT NOW!
Remember your history books and 'how did we let this happen'.
Well we did, and we're doing it again.
Im looking for some short term SFX/music work!!
SFX: Experience doing Action/Gore/Wacky and cooking stuff!! Worked on Eternights,Venba, Playdate and more!
Music: Folk Fusion, Synthy Lofi, Orchestral/FF style
Worked on: Six Ages 2, Spleen,Playdate and moore!
RTs appreciated!
As Venba is launching in less than 12h, I want to give a big shoutout to
@gooblegames
, our amazing producer
A week before launch and Im enjoying a vacay in Vancouver, simmering in nature walks and shoving my face with food. No last min work or stress, dont even have a laptop!!
hii new people!
Since we on the topic of indie game audio costs here's some links:
The Cost of Game Audio: For Freelancers AND Clients 💰
Higher Pricing and Why
📈
Cool various data
📊
hi
#PortfolioDay
!
Im Neha, a composer/sound designer working on:
Venba🥘
Six Ages 2: Lights Going Out🕯️
Eternights 🔪
...and a buncha NDAs!
I also spend lotta time talking about the financial realities of game audio, hell i even did a GDC talk about OST monetization 💰
Fellow composers: Do ya'll start researching and watching youtube vids on ''How to write ______ type of music'' right before a pitch?
Cuz I totally am, uh not. I professional. Totally 🙃
Hahaha
haha
ha
halp
🍗✨💦 MOIST CHICKEN 💦✨🍗
The star of this recording were the ooey gooey raw chicken marinated chicken legs 😋Yes we are recording REAL foods for this game!!
It was moist,wet yummy and everything in between! Venba deserves the *best*
@venbaGame
"Every state in India, I would say, has more diversity in its cuisine than a country in the European Union. People think all of India is one, but it's not. And if you travel, every 10 kilometers the cuisine changes in South India even"
My
@Official_GDC
talk about making Money via OST Sales is on the vault!
I poured my heart into this talk. At the basis of it, there needs to be a COLLABORATION between composers and studios. Without it, both parties are hurting
Did you play Venba on Steam?? If you enjoyed it, please leave us a little review!
We need 20 more to hit ''Overwhelmingly Positive'' and it would really help us!!
I can offer cat pictures in exchange!!
Reminder about our short game!
Pissed at Venba's length/price?
-We made this ethically. Contractor or employee were paid in full at industry rates
-Hired musicians from all around the world, Ukraine, India, Canada +
-The feel you get from Venba lasts a lifetime.
Venba packs more heart into its sharp storytelling with under two hours. It's more value than plenty of games I've played with much longer runtimes. I talked to
@venbaGame
developer Abhi about making a confidently short game:
IT'S US! The short little narrative cooking game up for TWO BAFTA awards!
After yesterday's shitshow, I'm learning to move on and believe that success like this doesn't come out of nothing
If you're scared of the "woke diversity" then too bad, We are staying and we are thrivin
Hello hi
I'd like to report that it is now Friday and I did in fact manage to work all week DESPITE the existence of Vampire Survivors and my acquiring of a Steamdeck
*Cue applauses*
The OST for Mini Maker is OUT!
@minimakergame
🎵
There's a little bit for everyone!
🎧Chill Lofi Synths🎧
🥳Festive Parade🥳
☕️Relaxing Coffee Shop☕️
👿Scary Boss Theme👿
...and more!🔥💦🥰⛱️🎵
Link Below👇🏾
Are folks interested on some stats📈 about indie game OST release, more precisely:
Spotify VS Bandcamp?
Would be transparent with payout, # of sales, marketing work etc..
Note: that this is (me) newbie indie composer, first release a week ago etc..
Thoughts?
so uh... I GOT A PÎANO!! An incredibly well kept Kawai from the 80s(!!), older than me!! Been searching for so long
As someone who practiced 3h a day religiously for years, then dropped to 0 instantly, i NEED this. Mentally and creatively, this is life changing 😭
Get Sebastian Wolff the hell away from game audio folks. Ive seen him trying to creep back into the scene lately and it's not right.
He's unprofessional,cruel, keeps money away from artists and just your typical VC d*ick head.
I aint for calling names but this man is dangerous
Behind the scenes sound design for
@venbaGame
Attempting to not burn down kitchen with mic shield while also trying to not burn my hands with steam and stove
Fun fact: the windshield (fluffy thing) did not survive. Do no put binders on stove, it's plastic and not cardboard!
Venba releases in exactly 24 hours!
We've worked hard to make something very personal and important to us and we can't wait to see what you all think of it!
Nice to see folks unsubscribe from Spotify premium + trying to find alternative streaming services
But to be salty: that's the bare minimum, buying music (often via Bandcamp) is the best way to financially compensate artists and no streaming service can ever come close to that
Seeing all these tweets of folks playing Venba with their PARENTS is making me FEEL things!! I NEVER expected that to happen!! 😭♥️🙏🏾
Look at out little indie game patching up some intergenerational trauma hehehe!!
✨Excited to share this post and to say that I'm writing the OST for Six Ages: Lights Going Out!
@SixAges
✨
I'm writing music again!! It's been so long. I love the style we're going for and altho theres still quite a bit of work left, I am STOKED! ☺️
This is a huge personal achievement year!!
Not one but TWO of the games I worked have been nominated in the same category: Best Independent Game!
Let's go Venba and Eternights!!!
"Fucking introspect your privilege" is the theme of my
#GDC23
Then again, I doubt me lamenting on twitter will ever reach the audience it intends but oh well. Sometimes even echo chambers are comforting.
#GDC23
Men be better challenge
Seriously is it so much to ask you to:
-not be a predator at professional events
-listen and not interrupt your gender marginalized peers when they talk
-fucking introspect on your privilege
-hold each other accountable and call out bad behavior
Hey this stuff gets me emotional
And its our game thats a part of this? A narrative cooking game bout indian cuisine and immigration. Theres SO many of us, since so long yet this is one of the firsts we're getting.
And im so thankful. Took a while but look at us♥️
Hiii!
#IamPOCinPlay
I'm Neha, an Indo-Canadian composer/sound designer/pianist. Currently working on Spleen with
@PamplemousseDev
and on MiniMaker with
@CasaRaraStudio
!
✨I play with squiggly waves so that they make you cry, giggle and everything in between✨
The two types of employers:
-HERE TAKE THIS MONEY!! WE WILL FIND A WAY TO PAY YOU! GOD DAMN IT SEND ME YOUR INVOICE
or
- ya srry can't do audio budget, mind adding in VO? Yea love&respect for my employees except u contractor now lemme go tweet about fair pay
When i keep saying the music in Venba is SO good i mean it beyond just musically. The authenticity, the meaning behind it, yes even the ethics!
This is the type of representation i crave for, and the work behind it is worth it. This OST is gonna knock yall over
Humbled, grateful, and ecstatic to announce that Thenisai Thendral Deva (
@ungaldevaoffl
) has sung a song for us in Venba!!! 🙌
Special thanks to
@alpha_something
who has written and composed this absolute banger!!
Can't believeeeee we got to do this!!! 🥹 🥹
Wrapping up the year and phew, what a ride❤️
✨Gave my first GDC talk
✨Adopted my cat Nala 🐱
✨Launched 3 games! Venba, Six Ages 2, Eternights
✨Games I worked on have been nominated a buncha times!
✨Venba sfx work talked about in major articles
✨NDAs signed for 2024👀
🚨 IMPORTANT: Fellow musicians, get your stuff the hell out of Soundrop ASAP🚨
and as Gord mentions, avoid CD baby, they are the ones who acquired Soundrop and look what happened.
This is so freaking unfortunate, had high hopes for
@soundrop
but no more.
Had to sic my lawyers on them after a week of crickets. Will post what we learn
Anyone with music on
@soundrop
: our work isn't safe there. Migrate your catalog's ASAP if you can. They're still paying (for now, & taking 15% 🙃) but the system is breaking & there's no one home.
It's been so hard to keep this under wraps but the day is finally here!!!
We're beyond excited to announce that Venba will be coming to the Nintendo Switch in Spring 2023!!!🥳🥳🥳
You know, it is very, VERY difficult working on a cooking game.
The mouthwatering videos you watch, the new foods you discover, the "Why am I hungry I just ate!?"
Anything for the player experience huh
Why...WHY
Go get your damn fabric and make the damn shirts, or whatever the hell this top is
How dare you do this to freaking vintage SILK SAREES. Oh my god just donate if you can't think of a better use.
I absolutely love seeing people's reactions to Venba, especially the ones about actual video footage of us cooking.
Heh, there's a lot more coming your way, get your bellies ready!
My homemade ghee, caramelized onions and mustard seeds are stepping up their game for y'all!
I am sooo excited to announce that I got to do music and sfx on this!! (Is this..my first NDA?? Is this what y'all go through URGH!!??)
I love this team!! <3
I was interviewed by IGN Italy for the sound work behind Venba and it's so beautifully written!! Thank you
@IGN_Syd
All I used was a laptop, Zoom H4N + headphones. That's it. The goal was ''Hear my childhood home', Nostalgia <3
hi! I've posted a lot recently about my sound design work on Venba and Eternights, but did ya'll know I was actually a composer who learnt sound design by game jamming?
So hey mebbe check out some of my music! Link below
Being a composer for indie games, we rely so much on visibility to survive
So a BIG thank you to folks that retweet and share our music ❤️🥲🙏🏾!! Esp when u have a bigger following, which is the case often with Leads, CMs, studio accounts etc..
Share your composers work!
#GDC2024
WOAH!
-Talked about Venba's SFX in a big room! Wish I had a pic
-[REDACTED]
- Talked to some of the most inspiring audio peeps that Ive looked up to for years!
-FINALLY met
@alpha_something
+
@nonagondice
IRL, they exist!
-So much love from people
Grateful and tired ❤️
Been hearing lotsa ''If i charged *that* much no one would hire/people ghosted:
-starting out in freelance game audio WILL NOT PAY YOUR BILLS
-Side jobs to supplement income
-Quality>quantity of clients will benefit you in the long term
-Manage your expectations