It’s been a little more challenging to be an unscripted filmmaker lately — and that’s saying something. Factual producers have long since become masters of stretching every dollar when it comes to realizing their visions. But, as the content landscape continues to shift, music is often one of the first budget line items to come under scrutiny.

Producers and filmmakers are storytellers. So, naturally, they look for the best tools available to manifest their visions. That often means unique, custom scores that will make projects pop. But budget constraints are making it more challenging to balance originality with economic feasibility. Luckily, there’s a solution.

Ah2 is a Los Angeles–based music production company founded in 2003 by composers Jeff Lippencott (pictured left) and Mark T. Williams (right). The team has taken home dozens of awards for their work on hit series as Shark Tank (ABC), MasterChef (FOX), American Idol (ABC), and many others. Ah2 is unique in the industry in that it’s a music entity that evolved to directly serve the needs of factual productions, built with feedback from unscripted producers and editors.

Ah2’s Filtered Music Catalog is the backbone of the offering — an expansive and constantly evolving catalog of original music. But it isn’t just about having a library of original music, it’s what that library lets Ah2 do for creators.

Enter Hybrid Scoring, an approach that gives Ah2 the ability to tailor a music package made up of a combination of custom and library music that can be adapted for any budget.

“There’s a focus on really doing things economically,” explains Williams of Ah2’s evolution. “Our goal is to bring support and be a collaborator.”

The Hybrid model is about targeting music dollars towards the places where they will have the most impact. Filmmakers often default to only thinking about a custom theme or custom score, but one of the critical challenges in production today is the shrinking main title sequence — which has, in many cases, condensed from a full-length opening to a few seconds of logo.

So, instead of dedicating all their resources to something that’s quickly come and gone, it often makes more sense for producers to target music towards pivotal points in the show — the cold opens, the super teases or the set pieces such as the elimination or deliberation rounds — creating an iconic mnemonic that makes the show memorable.

Taking the Hybrid approach, producers can use their budgets to target those with original music and then support with files from the library that have the same feel and emotion.

It’s an approach that resonates with Ah2’s production partners. “It’s not often a cue for television becomes iconic, and they did just that with the walk-in cue for Shark Tank,” says series EP Yun Linger. “They have been partners with us since the beginning and crafted the memorable sound of Shark Tank, which is so pivotal to the tone and ambience of the show.” Series EP Clay Newbill adds, “Shark Tank [music] enhances the negotiations between the contestants and a cast of six self-made million- and billionaires. All of that is presented in a tense, addictive package by those who craft Shark Tank into exceptional reality TV.”

Lippencott explains that Ah2 will curate a select playlist for filmmakers after the initial briefing that reflects the desired emotion and feel of the show — 10 or 15 tracks max. Producers can scan them and see what the like, and Ah2 will follow up with a selection based on that input. This iterative process allows Ah2 to fine-tune their offerings based on feedback, ultimately providing a tailored musical experience.

“We can access our catalog to support the things we write, almost like a music supervisor,” adds Lippencott. “We can provide playlists for the producers and editors, saving them time — because in some libraries they’re looking at thousands, hundreds of thousands of files. We target and specifically create music for unscripted television. It makes what we do very specialized.”

For many years, he explains, the standard practice involved loading entire music libraries into Avid Unity systems, which often led to frustration as editors sifted through mounds of content. Ah2 focuses on pre-loading just those files that match the creative vision.

“We curate bins for editors based on certain beats or moods for moments. When they click in the bin, it’s already pre-loaded with music that works,” he adds. This targeted approach significantly enhances efficiency and ensures the music aligns with the narrative — and it streamlines the selection process for producers, allowing them to focus on the broader creative aspects of their project.

The team says the end goal is really about creating an easy, risk-free offering for producers. “We can develop these playlists before we come to a deal on a custom project” Williams sums up. “Producers can explore options with us at no initial cost.”

In a production landscape in which securing commissioned music is increasingly difficult, Ah2 is offering a curated, bespoke alternative that aims to help filmmakers bring their stories to life — with as little drama as possible.