Geektown Behind The Scenes 03: ‘New Amsterdam’ & 'Harley Quinn' Composer Jefferson Friedman Interview

In the latest edition of the Geektown Behind The Scenes podcast, I sat down to interview Jefferson Friedman, composer of the score for DC Universe's 'Harley Quinn' series, and co-composer on the brilliant medical drama ‘New Amsterdam’.

Jefferson is a multi-award winning composer, who has composed classical music which has been performed throughout the United States and abroad. Since 2014 he has been working in LA across film and tv providing scores for shows such as 'Powerless', 'Wet Hot American Summer', and his latest projects - 'Harley Quinn', and ‘New Amsterdam’ which he co-composes with his friend Craig Wedren.

The 'Harley Quinn' series, which has recently been picked up in the UK by E4, follows Harley’s adventures after she breaks up with the Joker and strikes out on her own in this new adult animated comedy. With the help of Poison Ivy and a ragtag crew of DC castoffs, Harley tries to earn a seat at the biggest table in villainy: the Legion of Doom. The cast is led by ‘Big Bang Theory’s Kaley Cuoco who voices Harley and is backed up by an impressive list of talent. Lake Bell (‘BoJack Horseman’, ‘Boston Legal’) provides the voice for Poison Ivy, with Diedrich Bader (‘Veep’, ‘BoJack Horseman’) voicing Batman, and Alan Tudyk (‘Rogue One’, ‘Firefly’), voicing both Joker and Basil Karlo, aka Clayface. Be warned, this is very much a "not safe for work or children" trailer below!

'New Amsterdam', which premieres on Amazon Prime in the UK, with further airings on More4, is a unique medical drama starring Ryan Eggold (‘The Blacklist’) as the brilliant and charming Dr. Max Goodwin, the institution’s newest medical director, who sets out to tear up the bureaucracy and provide exceptional care. How can he help? Well, the doctors and staff have heard this before. Not taking “no” for an answer, Dr. Goodwin must disrupt the status quo and prove he will stop at nothing to breathe new life into this understaffed, underfunded and underappreciated hospital – the only one in the world capable of treating Ebola patients, prisoners from Rikers and the president of the United States under one roof – and return it to the glory that put it on the map.

In the interview, Jefferson discusses writing a 'Harley Quinn' score which fits the manic nature of the character, along with finding themes appropriate for the supporting cast. This raises questions such as "what do plants sound like?" for Poison Ivy, or "how do you get an underwater sound?" for Aquaman. We also talk about working with scoring partner Craig Wedren on 'New Amsterdam', and creating a sound which is as unique and different for a medical drama as the show itself.

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