For years, Rudy Mancuso built his career through short-form online content, fusing music and comedy in a way that made him stand out. But when it came time to direct Música, his feature debut on Prime Video, he didn’t just want to make a movie—he wanted to create a cinematic symphony.
“It’s essentially a decade of my life boiled down to 90 minutes,” Mancuso says. The film, a semi-autobiographical take on growing up as a Brazilian-American with synesthesia, plays with sound and rhythm in a way few movies do. But getting it made? That took time. “We pitched it to Amazon five years ago,” he says. “I directed shorts, music videos, but this was always the dream.”
The film’s editing feels like a jazz improvisation, with dialogue syncing to everyday noises in a way that turns the world into an instrument. Writing it, however, wasn’t traditional. “In the script, instead of saying ‘Rudy hears a sound and looks off-camera,’ we’d literally write ‘Tick, thump, splash, boom,’” he says. “It wasn’t an easy read, but it painted the musical picture.”
Mancuso also composed the score, crafting a recurring melodic motif that morphs throughout the film. “That melody is in nearly every set piece,” he says. “Slowed down in romantic moments, sped up in rhythmic ones.” The approach to music was almost backwards—he wrote most of the compositions before the script was even finished. “I knew what I wanted the film to sound like before I knew how it would unfold.”
The film also plays with tone, moving between whimsical and personal. “I wanted to show what it’s like to see the world through sound,” he explains. “But at the core, it’s still about love, identity, and figuring out your place in the world.” He even cast his real-life mother to play his on-screen mom, ensuring the chemistry between them felt authentic. As for the more surreal elements? “No, I’ve never been slapped in the face with a fish,” he admits. “But it’s a metaphor for life constantly smacking Rudy around.”
Mancuso’s next project is already in development, and while he’s keeping details under wraps, he promises music will remain central. “I barely scratched the surface with Música,” he says. “Music isn’t just a soundtrack—it’s a character, a force, a language of its own. That’s what I want to keep exploring.”
Watch the interview above and then check out the trailer below.
