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INDIO, California – With a name like The Cinematic Orchestra, it comes as little surprise that the British jazz/electronic collective bides a lot of its time scoring tunes for film. About a decade ago, the band was courted to perform as part of a salute to late director Stanley Kubrick at the Director's Guild Awards, and shortly after that, was tapped to score a vintage silent film – and then play it in concert in conjunction with a screening of the movie.

Well, now The Cinematic Orchestra – who were formed by Jason Swinscoe in the '90s and are signed to reputed indie label Ninja Tune – have a new project up their sleeves, and it's a far cry from Kubrick: The band has been recruited to score the wildlife-friendly "The Crimson Wing," the first flick from Disney Nature, a new subdivision of the mega-company.

Swinscoe caught up with Buzznet at Coachella on Saturday to talk about making music for flamingos, shed some light on The Cinematic Orchestra's next album and get psyched before Prince's headlining set later in the day.


[Click on the image to watch the full video interview.]

Buzznet: Tell us about playing Coachella. Is it an exciting opportunity for you?

Jason Swinscoe: Yeah. A quick look at the main area ... it's not a polo club [referring to the venue's name, Empire Polo Field], [but] it's pretty well laid-out, well-organized, and it should be a lot of fun, yeah.

Buzznet: What reputation have you heard that Coachella has?

Swinscoe: I had some friends play here last year with Damon Albarn. I'm just here watching ... L.A. stars just hanging out, Sean Penn – I think he's doing something here. [Prior to My Morning Jacket's set on Sunday, the actor/director announced a new volunteer/biodiesel initiative. -Ed.] It seems very hip, [a] very cool festival.

Buzznet: Is the set you do at Coachella different than your usual one?

Swinscoe: Yeah, it'll be a lot shorter. We're doing just under an hour. We're just going to pull out some of the highlights. It'll be kinda, like, bang-bang-bang, festival-style. Half-vocal, half-instrumental, break it up a beat. Two vocalists, a female and a male.

Through the years, doing different festivals, depending on the kind of festival it is and depending on the time slot you get – day or evening ... it's a really short amount of time, you have to try to get your point across. If the audience is really up for it, [then try to] really share that moment. It can be a lot of fun and it can, at times, be very daunting, depending on the setting. It's fun.

Buzznet: What has the band been up to?

Swinscoe: Well, we're – actually, we're taking a break by doing these shows – we're in the middle of doing a soundtrack for a Disney film coming out at the end of this year or beginning of next year. We're pretty intensely working on that, and that's kind of taking [up] all of Cinematic's time.

Buzznet: What's the film?

Swinscoe: It's called "The Crimson Wing." It's going to be the first film on a new subdivision of Disney called Disney Nature. Kind of half-wildlife, half-fiction. There's a narrative, there's a story line, characters ... it's very interesting.

Buzznet: Is it your first time doing something like that?

It's the first time on such a theatrical scale. ... After Coachella, we've got a KCRW [Southern California NPR affiliate] show and then "Jimmy Kimmel," and then back to finish the film.

Buzznet: Are you watching scenes from the film and getting inspired by them?

Swinscoe: It all started end of last summer. I met the directors, [was] taken out to Tanzania, where it's being shot, I went to [the film shoot's] location, saw some of their rushes, and they were sending rushes back to New York. I was vibing off them in terms of if I had the right pieces ... it was all a very collaborative process very early on, and they're just locking in the picture in the next few weeks. It's been a long process, a lot of writing. Things have changed and redeveloped and have been thrown out and brought back in. It's not a very normal process for a film score. It's been interesting, finding different ways to approach that whole other world. It's tight.

Buzznet: And how does it compare to what we normally might expect from you guys?

Swinscoe: It's still very cinematic, but cinema has a much wider, broader emotions and tempos. Happy and sad to contemplative and everything in between, depending on the shape of the picture. And it'll be orchestrated as well – we're going to be working with a 50-piece orchestra, and just kind of widen our palettes. It's great for that – helping expand out the ideas of The Cinematic Orchestra.

Buzznet: Anything else coming down the pipeline?

Swinscoe: After the film it would be ... probably do some production work for a local guy in Brooklyn – he's playing with us tonight, he's the male vocalist – and probably the next Cinematic record. We're hoping for next year. Busy.

Buzznet: Is there anyone you're especially excited to see?

Swinscoe: Just the main stage, the last three slots. Should be awesome.

Buzznet: Are you a big Portishead fan?

Swinscoe: Portishead have been an awfully big inspiration since way back. I've yet to hear the new record ... I'm hoping for good things for them. ... They're one of the classic trip-hop bands. Really resonated. ... I've never seen Prince live, so it'll be amazing to see Prince.

–Adam Deroy