EVALA › Guides › Film Scoring

Film Scoring · LOOK AGAIN.

Film Scoring Feedback Guide & Checklist

A structured way to listen to a score and say something useful about it. Ten concepts, each with a short checklist of what to listen for and a 1 to 5 rating scale, so “the music doesn’t work here” becomes a note the composer can act on.

10 concepts · PDF + online edition · €15€8.99 one-time · VAT calculated at checkout

The EVALA Film Scoring guide open on a laptop, showing the Story Fit concept page with its 1 to 5 rating scale.

Who it’s for

Built for anyone giving or getting notes on a score.

EVALA is a feedback framework for creative work.
This edition applies it to film scoring.

  • Composers reviewing their own cues

    Step back from a cue you have heard a hundred times and check it against ten specific questions.

  • Directors, editors and music supervisors giving notes

    Put a reaction into words the composer can work with: what you heard, which concept it belongs to, and how strong it is.

  • Students and teachers

    A shared vocabulary for critiquing a score in class, with a rating scale that makes the discussion concrete.

What it evaluates

Ten concepts, one for each choice in a score.

From whether the music fits the story to how it works with the dialogue.
Each concept has its own checklist and 1 to 5 rating scale.

  1. 01Story Fit free sample
  2. 02Character Themes free sample
  3. 03Cue Timing
  4. 04Chord Emotion
  5. 05Hidden Meaning
  6. 06Pacing & Tempo
  7. 07Instrument Choice
  8. 08Big vs. Small Moments
  9. 09Scene Transitions
  10. 10Voice Clarity

Free sample

The first two concepts, straight from the guide.

This is what every concept page looks like. Click a page to view it full size.

Page from the EVALA Film Scoring guide: concept 1, Story Fit. Story fit means the music matches what is happening in the scene, so each new theme, volume change, or mood shift supports the story instead of pulling attention away from it. Look for: Music starting right as a character's feelings change. The music's mood shifting as a character's goals change. Musical tension easing off naturally as a conflict resolves. Small musical touches that quietly echo the story's themes. Rated on a scale from 1 (limited) to 5 (exceptional).
Concept 1: Story Fit
Page from the EVALA Film Scoring guide: concept 2, Character Themes. Character themes are short, recurring musical ideas that represent a character, place, or concept. These melodies tie the film together and change gradually as the story develops. Look for: A clear melody that instantly tells you whose theme it is. The same theme played differently as a character grows. Small fragments of a theme hidden in the background music. Two characters' themes clashing during a big confrontation. Rated on a scale from 1 (limited) to 5 (exceptional).
Concept 2: Character Themes
Concepts 3 to 10 are in the full guide. Open the online preview

In practice

From vague reaction to useful note.

The guide gives you the words for what you noticed. Here is one note, before and after. It is an illustration, not a real client note.

The vague note

“The music doesn’t work here.”

With the guide

  1. Name the concept. This falls under Story Fit.
  2. Check the list. “Music starting right as a character’s feelings change.” The cue swells a full bar before she reacts.
  3. Rate it. 2 out of 5: the music comes in abruptly and distracts from the story.

The useful note

“The cue swells a bar before her reaction and tells us what to feel too early. Start it on her look, at the moment the feeling turns.”

Free and paid

Start free. Buy the full guide only if it helps.

Two ways to try it first, then the full guide.

Free

Fast Check

  • A one-page version of the framework
  • Sent to your email straight away
  • Fill it in on screen or print it
Get the Fast Check

Free

Online preview

  • The first two concepts, as on this page
  • Reads well on a phone or laptop
  • No sign-up needed
Open the preview

Formats and limits

What you get, and what it will not do.

The guide comes as a PDF and an online edition.

  • The PDF is fillable. Pick a rating on each concept and the score summary fills in.
  • Automatic scoring works in Adobe Acrobat and Acrobat Reader. Other viewers let you fill in the ratings but do not add them up.
  • The online edition reads well on a phone or a laptop.
  • Every page prints in color or black and white.
  • The score helps you compare drafts. It does not decide whether a score is good.
  • Expert quotes are paraphrased and credited “after” the author.

Questions

Before you buy.

Anything else, write to lookagain@evalafeedback.com.

What is the EVALA film scoring guide?

It is a feedback framework for film scoring, sold as a PDF with an online reading edition. It covers ten concepts. Each has an introduction, a checklist of things to look for, a short explanation of why it matters, a paraphrased expert view and a 1 to 5 rating scale.

Is anything free?

Yes. The Fast Check is a free one-page version, sent to your email. The first two concepts are also on this page in full, and the online preview lets you read them the way buyers do.

What do I get when I buy it?

All ten concepts as a fillable PDF with a score summary page, plus a link to the online edition that reads well on a phone or laptop. It is a one-time payment.

Does the score calculate automatically?

In Adobe Acrobat and Adobe Acrobat Reader (free), yes. Most browser and phone PDF viewers let you fill in the ratings but will not add them up, so you would total the ten ratings yourself on the Final Score page. The online edition and printing both work without Acrobat.

Are the expert quotes word for word?

No. They are paraphrased and credited as “after” the author, so you can trace the idea to its source without treating the wording as a direct quotation.

Does a high score mean the score is good?

No. The score is a way to organize your own judgment and compare drafts of the same score. It cannot replace taste, context or the director’s intent.

Who made this

EVALA is made by Stefan Pârlog, a film editor for twenty years. Feedback starts as a reaction, and every reaction carries our own taste, experience and bias. The guides are a way to look more carefully and turn that reaction into something you can explain.

Look again at your next score.

Read the free sample, then get the full guide
for €8.99 when you are ready.
VAT calculated at checkout

Fast Check · Free

Get the Video Editing Fast Check

The one-page version of the guide, sent straight to your inbox. Enter your email and it’s on its way.

Free. Unsubscribe any time. Privacy