Hans Florian Zimmer (born September 12, 1957) is a German composer, best known for composing movie soundtracks. He is the head of DreamWorks' music department.
Born in Frankfurt, Zimmer began his musical career playing keyboards and synthesizers with, among others, the bands Ultravox and The Buggles ("Video Killed the Radio Star").
In the 1980s, he started composing and producing sound tracks for movies. His breakthrough came in 1988, with the theme for Rain Man, which was nominated for an Academy Award.
Since then, Zimmer has composed music for many major movies, such as The Rock, The Peacemaker, Gladiator, The Last Samurai, U-571, Thelma and Louise, Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron, Pearl Harbor, The Thin Red Line, Black Hawk Down, and Mission: Impossible II. In 1995, he received an Academy Award for Best Original Score for the animated movie The Lion King.
Stylistically, Zimmer uses heavy brass and percussion with prominent strings. Simplistic melodies, easily exemplified by the scores for Pearl Harbor and Gladiator, dominate each of his soundtracks.
He recently split with his long-time business partner Jay Rifkin , with whom he cofounded Media Ventures, over allegations that Rifkin skimmed profits from the company. A counter-suit alleges Zimmer sought to start a new company without Rifkin. The lawsuit is currently pending.
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