Theodore Michael Shapiro ( ; born September 29, 1971) is an American

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and def ...

best known for his

film score A film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film. The score comprises a number of orchestral, instrumental, or choral pieces called cues, which are timed to begin and end at specific points during the film in order to ...

s. He is a frequent collaborator of directors

Ben Stiller Benjamin Edward Meara Stiller (born November 30, 1965) is an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. Known for his blend of slapstick humor and sharp wit, Stiller rose to fame through comedies such as ''There's Something About Mary'' (1998), ' ...

Paul Feig Paul Feig (; born September 17, 1962) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter and actor. He is best known for directing films such as '' Bridesmaids'' (2011), '' The Heat'' (2013), '' Spy'' (2015), ''Ghostbusters'' (2016), '' A Si ...

Jay Roach Mathew Jay Roach (born June 14, 1957) is an American filmmaker. He is best known for directing the Austin Powers (film series), ''Austin Powers'' film series, ''Meet the Parents'', ''Dinner for Schmucks'', ''The Campaign (film), The Campaign'', ...

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, and

Rawson Marshall Thurber Rawson Marshall Thurber (born February 9, 1975) is an American filmmaker and actor. He is best known for writing and directing the 2004 comedy film ''Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story''. Early life Thurber was born in San Francisco, California ...

, and won the 2022 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Music Composition for a Series for his work on Stiller’s series '' Severance''.

Life and career

Shapiro was born in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, and is of Italian descent. He earned a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree in music from

Brown University Brown University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. It is the List of colonial colleges, seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the US, founded in 1764 as the ' ...

in 1993, followed by a

Master of Fine Arts A Master of Fine Arts (MFA or M.F.A.) is a terminal degree in fine arts, including visual arts, creative writing, graphic design, photography, filmmaking, dance, theatre, other performing arts and in some cases, theatre management or arts admi ...

music composition Musical composition can refer to an original piece or work of music, either vocal or instrumental, the structure of a musical piece or to the process of creating or writing a new piece of music. People who create new compositions are called ...

from the

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a Private university, private performing arts music school, conservatory in New York City. Founded by Frank Damrosch as the Institute of Musical Art in 1905, the school later added dance and drama programs and became ...

in 1995. He is best known for his

s, particularly for the comedies '' State and Main'', ''

13 Going on 30 ''13 Going on 30'' (released as ''Suddenly 30'' in some countries) is a 2004 American fantasy romantic comedy film written by Cathy Yuspa and Josh Goldsmith, directed by Gary Winick, starring Jennifer Garner and Mark Ruffalo, and produced by ...

'', ''

Along Came Polly ''Along Came Polly'' is a 2004 American romantic comedy film written and directed by John Hamburg and starring Ben Stiller and Jennifer Aniston, alongside Philip Seymour Hoffman, Debra Messing, Hank Azaria, Bryan Brown and Alec Baldwin. The sto ...

'', '' The Devil Wears Prada'', '' Fun with Dick and Jane'', ''

Idiocracy ''Idiocracy'' is a 2006 American science fiction comedy film co-produced and directed by Mike Judge from a screenplay written by Judge and Etan Cohen based on a story written by Judge. The plot follows United States Army librarian Joe Bauers ...

'', ''

You, Me and Dupree ''You, Me and Dupree'' is a 2006 romantic comedy film directed by Anthony Russo and Joe Russo and written by Mike LeSieur. It stars Owen Wilson, Kate Hudson, Matt Dillon, Seth Rogen, Amanda Detmer, Todd Stashwick, and Michael Douglas. ...

'', ''

Wet Hot American Summer ''Wet Hot American Summer'' is a 2001 American satirical comedy film directed by David Wain from a screenplay written by Wain and Michael Showalter. The film features an ensemble cast, with Janeane Garofalo and David Hyde Pierce starring alo ...

'', '' Marley & Me'', ''

Tropic Thunder ''Tropic Thunder'' is a 2008 Satire (film and television), satirical Action comedy, action comedy film directed by Ben Stiller, who wrote the screenplay with Justin Theroux and Etan Cohen. The film stars Stiller, Jack Black, Robert Downey Jr., ...

'', the

film ''

Dinner for Schmucks ''Dinner for Schmucks'' is a 2010 American comedy film directed by Jay Roach and based on Francis Veber's 1998 French film '' Le Dîner de Cons''. Starring Steve Carell and Paul Rudd, with Jemaine Clement, Jeff Dunham, Bruce Greenwood, and ...

'' and was one of the composers for ''

Diary of a Wimpy Kid ''Diary of a Wimpy Kid'' is an American illustrated children's novel series and media franchise created by American author and cartoonist Jeff Kinney. The series follows Greg Heffley, a middle-schooler who illustrates his daily life in a dia ...

''. In 2012, Shapiro composed for the animated film, '' The Pirates! Band of Misfits''.

Filmography

Films

TV series

References

External links

Official website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Shapiro, Theodore 1971 births American film score composers American male film score composers American television composers Animated film score composers DreamWorks Animation people Brown University alumni Juilliard School alumni Living people American male television composers Musicians from Washington, D.C. Varèse Sarabande Records artists American people of Italian descent Blue Sky Studios people Primetime Emmy Award winners