Alexandra patsavas, Music supervisor

Chicago area native Alexandra Patsavas, 37, has the perfect job for an indie-rock lover. As music supervisor for the hit WB show "The OC," she helps choose the bands and music that have made the program a favorite among its youthful core audience. "Josh Schwartz always intended for music to be a character," she says of the show's creator. "And it's up to me to help him find the artists, both on camera and for source and theme music, to support the drama." Through the three-year run of the show, alternative faves like Death Cab for Cutie, The Killers and Modest Mouse have performed on the show, while superstars like U2 and the Beastie Boys premiered tracks. Last year, Beck introduced five new songs from his album "Guero" on an episode. The show has teamed with Warner Bros. Records to release a series of five "The OC Mix" soundtracks that have cumulatively sold more than 1 million copies worldwide, with a sixth on its way. "The OC" Web site lists the songs in each episode, linking to the individual bands' music, as well as its own iTunes space. "The audience discovers new artists on 'The OC,' " says Ms. Patsavas, who got her start booking bands at the University of Illinois, then moved to Hollywood, becoming a music supervisor for "King of the Indies" producer Roger Corman, where she worked on 50 movies over a three-year span with titles like "Bucket of Blood 2" and "Caged Heat 3000." Juggling so many projects taught her the efficiency that enabled her to supervise the music on TV series such as "Roswell," "Boston Public," "Carnivale," "Grey's Anatomy," "Rescue Me" and "Without a Trace" through her Chop Shop Music Supervision company. The "OC" Web site lists all the songs in each episode and provides links to the separate band sites, while iTunes features a section dedicated to the show where fans can buy the individual compilations or songs by the featured artists. In addition, there is an ad card at the close of every show available to the record label for purchase to promote the individual albums which include the songs featured in each episode. "Music brings something powerful to the visual medium, whether it's TV, movies, advertising or video games," she says. "It completes the picture, but it's all about supporting the producer's vision." Selected for: 'The OC' sound-tracks * Launching pad for sharp new acts, fresh material from established stars. * Link at the end of popular TV show episodes to help find the music.

Alexandra patsavas, Music supervisor

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