Nick Urata, BMI award winning composer and songwriter, is most notably known as the front man and founder of the internationally acclaimed band DeVotchKa – who earned a Grammy nomination for their soundtrack Little Miss Sunshine: the Sundance hit which garnered four Academy Award nominations.
Nick has written iconic main titles, catchy songs, and composed music for a handful of series. He collaborated with Neil Patrick Harris to write the unforgettable main title for Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events which won the HMMA award for Best Original Main Title Theme. In addition to his work on the quintessential main title, Urata also wrote several original songs performed by the cast of the acclaimed Netflix series. He also scored the Amazon TV series The Dangerous Book for Boys, the Peacock series Joe vs. Carole starring Kate McKinnon, and most recently, Fox’s Animal Control starring Joel McHale.
Over the course of his career, Nick has scored over 25 films spanning from comedic indies to engrossing dramas and compelling documentaries. His most notable comedies include the box office hit Love the Coopers starring John Goodman, Diane Keaton, and Ed Helms as well as Paul King’s adventure comedy Paddington. His ongoing collaboration with established filmmakers Glenn Ficarra and Josh Requa resulted in the creation of these comedic classics I Love You Philip Morris starring Jim Carey and Ewan McGregor, the Warner Bros. action comedy Focus starring Will Smith and Margot Robbie, Paramount Pictures’ comedic biopic Whiskey Tango Foxtrot starring Tina Fey, and Crazy, Stupid, Love for which he co-scored with Chris Beck. Due to the heightened success of Little Miss Sunshine, Urata collaborated again with Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris to score Searchlight Pictures’ Ruby Sparks written by Zoe Kazan. Most recently, Urata scored Jessica Yu’s 2023 comedic hit Quiz Lady starring Awkwafina and Sandra Oh which was Hulu’s most popular movie of the year.
Before Quiz Lady, Nick’s first collaboration with Jessica Yu was her documentary Misconception which not only premiered at Tribeca but it was also nominated for Best Documentary Feature. Urata’s musical versatility is also showcased in the award winning documentary 17 Blocks directed by Davy Rothbart and Alfred and Jakobine, the story of Alfred Hobbs who drives across America in an ancient London taxi to find the love his life.
Urata’s invigorating scores are also found in the following dramas: Dustin Lance Black’s directorial debut Virginia starring Jennifer Connelly and Ed Harris, What Maisie Knew starring Juliane Moore, True Adventures of Wolf Boy starring Chloe Sevigny and John Turtorro, and Luke Guilford’s National Anthem which made its debut at South By South West.