Tudum! - Netflix, Hans Zimmer, and Sonic Branding: Blockbuster Streaming and the Role of the Composer

In 2018, Netflix commissioned esteemed film music composer Hans Zimmer to rework their iconic sonic logo – ‘tudum’ – for the cinematic context. This video essay explores the compositional strategies and commercial contexts of this campaign whilst addressing issues on streaming, branding, and the role of the Composer in the contemporary film music industry.

In the immediate access culture of ‘click and play’, the iconic ‘tudum’ sound that plays before each Netflix Original film, or series episode, was designed to “instantly transport viewers from their living rooms to the cinema”, reflecting “the double helix of entertainment and technology coming together” through its unique sound design (Yellin, 2020). Yet, as the platform evolved towards feature films with cinematic releases, Netflix’s branding manager revealed the original ‘tudum’ was too short and underwhelming within a theatrical environment (Kumar, 2020).

Hans Zimmer, who has contributed to redefining the sound of cinema over his well-established career, was subsequently appointed to create an extended and more immersive version. This new cinematic ‘tudum’ reflects Zimmer’s perceived aesthetic of film scoring through rhythmic string ostinatos, widely voiced brass chords, and contemporary approaches to audio production and processing, whilst also acknowledging existing cinematic sonic logos such as 20th Century’s fanfare or the THX siren.

This evolution of Netflix’s sonic logo is emblematic of not only Netflix’s own evolution as a company – utilising music to acknowledge the legacy of Hollywood, whilst redefining and resituating themselves within it – but constitutes a material shift, more generally, in approaches to film music production and practice.