Biography
Rachel Portman is a British composer. She began composing at the age of 14 and read music at the University of Oxford, where she developed an interest in writing for student films and theatre. Her early professional work included scores for BBC and Channel 4 dramas such as Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit, Mike Leigh's Four Days in July and Jim Henson's Storyteller series.
Portman has composed scores for more than one hundred films, television productions and theatre works. Her film credits include Life Is Sweet (1991), Ratcatcher (1999), Emma (1996), The Cider House Rules (1999), Chocolat (2000), The Duchess (2008), One Day (2011) and Never Let Me Go (2010). She was the first female composer to win an Academy Award, for the score of Emma, and received further Academy Award nominations for The Cider House Rules and Chocolat. She was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 2010.
