Hans Michael Anselmo Hess is an award-winning Brazilian-born British film composer based in Leeds-UK. Hans believes that great film music should create a meaningful and compelling rhetoric with film narratives. Further, film music should evoke the vision of the story so it creates an emotional bond with the audience.

Hans' signature style is predominantly melodic and orchestral, although he loves to experiment, whenever appropriate to a project, with the use of the classical guitar with other instruments. He has been an enthusiast of the 'hybridisation' of other musical genres and incorporates this into his musical language, in order to bring bold, different and innovative approaches for film scoring.

Hans has been commissioned to work as a film composer for feature films such as You Are My Sunshine, Sustain, Clownface, Carnival of Sorrows, Dilemma and Consequence. Hans is also a very prolific production music composer working with labels such as BMG Production Music, Dos Brains, Bleach Productions, Muchas Music, Gargantuan Music and others.

Hans' first instrument was the recorder, but the influence at home of his brothers listening to heavy metal (especially Iron Maiden) had a huge impact on him, which led Hans to learn the electric guitar. Later, he fell in love with the classical guitar (especially by the music of Leo Brouwer and Brazilian guitar music), and decided to pursue a BA in Music with emphasis in guitar performance at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul in Brazil.

In 2006, Hans moved to England to study his postgraduate degrees at the University of Bristol. There, he earned a master’s degree in composition of music for film and television, and in 2014 he completed his PhD in Film Musicology about the use of samba in Brazilian films.

Besides his busy activity in the industry, Hans also works as a senior lecturer in film music composition at Leeds Conservatoire.

Hans is represented by The Max Steiner Agency.