Episode Notes

This week, host Isaac Butler talks to composer Cristobal Tapia de Veer, who wrote the spooky, absolutely unmistakable score for the HBO series The White Lotus. In the interview, Cristobal discusses his career journey and explains why he switched from writing classical and pop music to scoring TV shows. Then he gets into the details of how he came up with the sound for The White Lotus and what it was like collaborating with writer/director Mike White.

After the interview, Isaac and co-host June Thomas talk about Cristobal’s seemingly joyful composition process. Then they answer a listener’s question about procrastination.

In the exclusive Slate Plus segment, Cristobal discusses the challenges of working on a long-term project and explains why he struggles to get past the research phase.

Send your questions about creativity and any other feedback to working@slate.com or give us a call at (304) 933-9675.

Podcast production by Cameron Drews.

Official Podcast Page

Host

Isaac Butler is the co-host of Slate’s Working podcast. He previously hosted Lend Me Your Ears, a podcast about Shakespeare and politics. He is the co-author, with Dan Kois, of The World Only Spins Forward: The Ascent of Angels in America and is currently working on The Method, a narrative history of method acting, for Bloomsbury.