First steps
The Brief
When Juventus Football Club and Amazon Prime Video asked me to score the trailer for Federico Chiesa’s documentary “Back on Track,” the brief was deceptively simple: “Show the fight.”
I soon realized we weren’t talking about goals or victories.
The real story? A champion’s psychological battle after a career-threatening injury. The constant tension between the player who dominated Serie A and the man facing an uncertain future.
The musical challenge: 90 seconds of music that had to hold both triumph and doubt without resolving too early.
The Approach
Finding the emotional core
I spent hours with the director and the executive producer talking about the raw footage. Until this insight changed everything: Chiesa’s greatest pain wasn’t physical. It was identity.
“If I can’t play football, who am I?”
That question became the emotional anchor for the entire score.
“This isn’t a motivational sports film. It’s about a man who used to be a champion now facing the void.
Do not score the victory.”
The Executive Producer
Musical Architecture
The Opening: Dissonance and Uncertainty
(0:00-0:47)
I opened with unresolved dissonances that say “something’s wrong, something doesn’t fit”. Underneath, a deep pulse almost like a heartbeat. Federico is alive, but struggling and under pressure.
The Turning Point: Chiesa’s Theme Emerges (0:47)
The turning point comes at 0:47: Chiesa’s theme emerges for the first time. This became his musical identity throughout the entire film, shifted and reinterpreted depending on the narrative moment. Fragile here. Determined there. Triumphant later.
In the trailer, at 0:47, the theme isn’t triumphant yet. It’s just… clear. A decision. Not victory. Just the choice to fight.
The Climax
(0:47-1:47)
The climax is controlled because Chiesa’s comeback is hard-won, uncertain but real.
This project taught me that the best sports soundtracks aren’t always about sports.
They’re about human beings who use sports to define themselves and what happens
when that definition is stripped away.
Summing up
The Results
– 1st place on Amazon Prime most viewed sports documentaries Italy (Amazon Prime, 2023)
– Continued collaboration: Juventus commissioned additional projects