I am an Emmy-winning composer, producer, and recording engineer with 35+ years of professional industry experience spanning television, film, advertising, and live performance recording. I’ve built a catalog of 1,000+ commissioned commercial-music works and have served as a recording and production leader across major-label projects, orchestral sessions, and network promos.\n\nCurrently I teach Entertainment Business at Volunteer State Community College and pursue applied research at the intersection of music production, AI, and creator rights. I’m passionate about mentoring the next generation of Nashville’s music professionals, advocating for human creativity, NIL royalties, and ethical AI practices in the music and entertainment industries.

Mark Haffner

I am an Emmy-winning composer, producer, and recording engineer with 35+ years of professional industry experience spanning television, film, advertising, and live performance recording. I’ve built a catalog of 1,000+ commissioned commercial-music works and have served as a recording and production leader across major-label projects, orchestral sessions, and network promos.\n\nCurrently I teach Entertainment Business at Volunteer State Community College and pursue applied research at the intersection of music production, AI, and creator rights. I’m passionate about mentoring the next generation of Nashville’s music professionals, advocating for human creativity, NIL royalties, and ethical AI practices in the music and entertainment industries.

Available to hire

I am an Emmy-winning composer, producer, and recording engineer with 35+ years of professional industry experience spanning television, film, advertising, and live performance recording. I’ve built a catalog of 1,000+ commissioned commercial-music works and have served as a recording and production leader across major-label projects, orchestral sessions, and network promos.\n\nCurrently I teach Entertainment Business at Volunteer State Community College and pursue applied research at the intersection of music production, AI, and creator rights. I’m passionate about mentoring the next generation of Nashville’s music professionals, advocating for human creativity, NIL royalties, and ethical AI practices in the music and entertainment industries.

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Work Experience

Adjunct Faculty, Entertainment Media Production at Volunteer State Community College
January 1, 2025 - Present
Teaching EMPR-1150 Introduction to Entertainment Business II and EMPR-2294P Video Practicum; curriculum design, lectures, asynchronous Brightspace/D2L content development, student assessment, and one-on-one mentorship. Integrating AI tools and ethics into entertainment-business curriculum as a forward-facing pedagogical priority.
Gold Remi Award — Feature Film Composer at Houston International Film Festival
January 1, 2001 - December 31, 2001
Gold Remi Award — Feature Film Composer (2001).
Emmy Award Recipient — Outstanding Original Composition at NATAS Northern California Regional
January 1, 1992 - December 31, 1993
Emmy Award for Outstanding Original Composition on a 60-second clay-animation promo (KXTV-10).
Theme Song Composer at Opryland USA
January 1, 1989 - December 31, 1990
Theme song composer (1989–1990).
Engineering & Production at Acorn Recording
January 1, 1988 - December 31, 1992
Engineering & production work; trained in session management and studio operations.
Engineering & Production at Chelsea Recording Studios
January 1, 1988 - December 31, 1992
Engineering & production work; trained in console operation, signal flow, microphone technique, session management, and studio maintenance.
Studio Manager & Engineer at The Castle Recording Studios
January 1, 1988 - December 31, 1992
Operated and maintained one of Nashville’s flagship residential studios; B-room manager and engineer, session workflow supervision.
On-Air Host & Producer at KNTU 88.1 FM
January 1, 1984 - December 31, 1985
Sunday morning avant-garde jazz programming on the university’s NPR-affiliate radio station.
Recording Studio Manager & Live Recording Engineer at North Texas State University
January 1, 1984 - December 31, 1985
Managed the university recording studio as a sophomore; supervised student engineers and session workflow. Engineered live audio and video recordings of concerts and recitals across five performance halls, including running audio and video tie-lines between venues and the central recording facility.

Education

Bachelor of Business Administration, Music Business at Belmont University, Mike Curb College of Entertainment & Music Business
January 1, 1985 - December 31, 1988
Coursework toward Jazz Studies; BCIS / Computer Science at North Texas State University (now University of North Texas)
January 1, 1983 - December 31, 1985

Qualifications

The Creative Shield
January 11, 2030 - June 27, 2026
Emmy Award — Outstanding Original Composition, NATAS Northern California Regional
January 1, 1992 - December 31, 1993
Gold Remi Award — The Houston International Film Festival — Feature Film Composer
January 1, 2001 - December 31, 2001

Industry Experience

Media & Entertainment, Education