Royalty Free Battle Music For Your Film's Soundtrack

“Film is like a battleground.”

These are the words of the late American director and screenwriter Sam Fuller, who — as the story goes — would fire a 9-mm Luger into the air to signal “Action!” for his cast and crew. 

We could go on about his life, his impact on the industry, and his influence on filmmakers like Martin Scorsese and Quentin Tarantino. But let’s instead focus on this battleground analogy.  

Because a battleground, much like a film set, is where weeks of planning and strategizing come together in real-time. 

Behind every legendary battle scene in film, there is a team of writers, filmmakers, and crew members who spent long hours bringing the story from script to screen.  

A critical part of this process is scoring the on-screen action, which is why we’re sharing our top 10 recommendations for royalty free battle music in this post. 

But before we do, let’s discuss a few key things you should keep in mind when writing and then filming battle scenes. 

Building a Battle Scene: What To Keep in Mind in Pre-Production

At any given moment on a film set, multiple things are happening at once.  

Camera operators with their gimbals and dolly rigs maneuver around the actors while the director and stunt coordinator remain closeby — ready to redirect the actors’ movements. 

Then there are the makeup artists, the gaffer and lighting technicians, the boom operators, and the list goes on.

During production, all of these people function as a collective unit. A well-oiled machine, you could say. 

But this all starts in pre-production and, specifically, with the script. 

When you’re writing a battle scene — or any other action scene — you have to make the mental shift from writing dialogue to writing description. 

To do this, you have to know how to manage the script-to-screen time ratio, write effective action lines, and find the best music for the scene. 

1. Script-to-Screen Time Ratio & Action Lines

As a general rule, one page of a script typically translates to one minute of on-screen action. 

Battle scenes are fast-paced, high action, and high stakes by nature. As the screenwriter, your job is to condense all of this action into one or two pages effectively. 

Your script becomes the template for the shot list and shooting script (both of which will include more visual detail). But for now, identify the high points of the action and focus on setting the pace. 

Take a look at this screenplay sample made by StudioBinder:

The screenwriters are being very intentional about how the conflict is described. Notice the use of words like “shoots,” “yanks,” and “ejects.” 

Action lines like the ones in this example are most effective when they are minimal, concise, and jarring. When writing your battle scene, you might also use phrases like “BANG” and “CRACK” to signal a specific sound that will be audible during production. 

To break up the action and control the pace, you can also use ellipses in your script. 

2. Less Dialogue, More Music

Most of the time, good screenwriting is defined by good dialogue. But in the case of a battle scene, dialogue can disrupt the flow of the action and distract the viewers from what’s happening on-screen. 

When you’re writing the script, you might only give a passing thought to what music should be paired with the scene. 

Before you enter into production, however, it’s important to start searching for the right music for the scene.  

And that’s because in lieu of dialogue, the scene’s power comes from the action and the soundtrack.

The music you use should strengthen the emotional power of the scene — building or lessening suspense, emphasizing mood, etc. And, at all times, the movement of the music should mirror the physical movement in the scene.

In the next section, we’re going to break down how the filmmakers of “Avengers: Endgame” (2019) crafted one of the most famous and long-awaited battle scenes in modern film. 

Scoring a Battle Scene in Film 

“Avengers: Endgame” (2019)

Directed by Joe Russo and Anthony Russo, “Avengers: Endgame” currently follows James Cameron’s “Avatar” (2009) as the second highest grossing film worldwide. 

To put that into perspective, the film earned about $2.8 billion at the box office. 

Let’s discuss why the battle scene below is a skillfully-produced, crucial part of this film.

At the start of this scene, the filmmakers establish a clear power imbalance between the two opposing sides. 

We watch as one side of the opposition assembles in droves and charges toward the front lines. And as the camera pans to the other side of the battleground, we see the close-up of Captain America, wounded and alone. 

This power dynamic becomes even more apparent with the use of this extreme wide shot:

With minimal dialogue and effective scoring, the filmmakers gradually transform the mood of the scene from despairing to hopeful. 

By the time this clip ends, the underdogs that viewers are rooting for are able to successfully rival the opposition. 

Soundtrack-Worthy Royalty Free Battle Music: 10 Recommended Tracks

As you build the soundtrack for your own film projects, it’s not always feasible to hire a composer like Alan Silvestri or license dozens of copyrighted tracks in the traditional way.

Even if you can afford high dollar licensing fees and royalties, music licensing negotiations can take months to be finalized. And if all goes well, the licenses might not actually cover your use of the music perpetually. 

This is true whether you’re working on a small or large-scale production. 

If you’re looking for a cost-effective way to license music — and make sure these licenses last forever — it might be time to check out Soundstripe.  

To help kickstart your song search for battle music, here are our top 10 picks from Soundstripe’s music catalog:

1. Heroes by Craig Allen Fravel
2. Runner by Third Age
3. Now Or Never by Caleb Etheridge
4. Inner Fate by Cody Martin
5. Night Raid by Elision
6. Tracker by Wicked Cinema
7. Batman by Elision
8. Noire by Elision
9. In Pursuit by Craig Allen Fravel
10. Fire by SAMME

With one of our Music plans, you can license any song in our music library for any project, anytime. 

To peruse our catalog for more royalty free battle music, sign up for a free account today.