John Wilson (conductor) "West Side Story". He wrote and directed his own pantomime during this period and he also conducted for many local amateur dramatic societies. Later he attended the Royal College of Music, first as a percussionist, and later studying composition and conducting. During this time won the institution's Tagore Gold Medal for outstanding academic excellence. In 2004 Wilson was appointed the music director for the Hollywood feature film "Beyond the Sea", a biopic of the life of Bobby Darin starring Kevin Spacey. In 2007 he conducted the BBC Concert Orchestra in a BBC Proms concert of British film music, followed in
Beyond the Sea (film) 1986. Shortly afterwards, Spacey was in discussions with Dodd Darin to star in the lead role. Spacey was able to acquire the film rights from Warner Bros. in early 2000. With the help of Dodd Darin, the actor also received exclusive music rights for no charge. With his Academy Award-winning performance in "American Beauty" (1999), Paramount Pictures became interested in distributing/financing "Beyond the Sea". The deal fell apart when Paramount told Spacey was that he was too old for the role and instead wanted Leonardo DiCaprio. Beginning in October 2000, Spacey took vocal training lessons from Darin collaborator Roger Kellaway