Rendra Zawawi
AUDIO STRATEGIST
Rendra Zawawi is an accomplished LA-based music composer, songwriter, producer, and musician known for his award-winning work featured internationally. Graduating Magna Cum Laude from Berklee College of Music, he holds a degree in Contemporary Writing and Production, with additional studies in songwriting and video game music.
As a composer, Rendra has made significant contributions to notable feature scores. His work includes the Oscar-entry feature documentary "M for Malaysia" by Project M, the epic fantasy "Temenggor," and the horror thriller "Suraya" by Feisk Productions. He has also provided original music for China's television series "Never Stand Still" directed by Keng Guan Chiu. Rendra's portfolio extends to Sahar Jahani's "Just One Night," Amy Harvey and Mashana Malova's "Antidote," Zac Chia's "Where Things May Grow" and "Saptapadi," and Roger Liew's web series "My Delivery Guy."
In addition, Rendra has contributed additional music for popular television shows such as FOX's "American Horror Story: Apocalypse," "American Horror Story: Cult," and FX's "American Crime Story: The Assassination of Gianni Versace" under the guidance of Emmy-winning lead composer Mac Quayle. His original compositions have also been featured in reality shows like NatGeo's "Life Below Zero," "Real Murder of OC," "Running Wild with Bear Grylls," and "1000lb Sisters."
Rendra's talent extends to writing and producing theme songs for Malaysian telemovies, including "Kalau Dah Perempuan," "Ana, Aku dan Aiman," "Pulang Sayang," and "Tarbiah Cinta," featuring Dina Nadzir, a runner-up of Malaysian Idol 2004.
His international work includes composing and songwriting for the song "We Are The Ones," performed by China's Sing! finalist Jeryl Lee. Produced in collaboration with Alvin Wee, the song served as the main theme for the ASEAN Cultural Week 2018 in Beijing. Rendra was also the lead composer for the song "Together We Rise," performed live by Jaclyn Victor and Vince Chong during the South East Asian Games 2017 closing ceremony. His arrangement of "Arena Cahaya" in collaboration with Zee Avi, a renowned singer-songwriter, became the theme song for the award-winning film "Ola Bola," directed by Chiu. The song has since been awarded Best Theme Song for the Golden Horse Film Festival 2016 and the Malaysian Film Festival 2016.
In 2019, Rendra wrote the theme song "Bermula Kita" for the feature documentary "M For Malaysia," which featured international superstar Yuna and was performed with the Malaysian Philharmonic Youth Orchestra. The song has since been nominated as 'Best Film Promo' in the Music And Sounds Awards 2020, alongside Rendra's second nomination for 'Best Film Trailer' for the documentary.
Aside from his personal projects, Rendra has worked as an assistant to Emmy-winning composer and Grammy-nominated musician Mac Quayle. He has contributed to various shows, including "Mr. Robot," "American Horror Story," "FEUD: Bette and Joan," "9-1-1," "American Crime Story," "P.O.S.E," "The Politician," "The Last of Us 2," and "Scream Queens."
Rendra's latest work can be seen through his music contribution as part of the composer's collective Bleeding Fingers, a custom scoring company under the helm of Hans Zimmer.