Director Ralph Nelson hires a boyish Lalo Schifrin to compose and record the soundtrack for the moody black-and-white film, "Once a Thief." We see them discuss the film, then Schifrin gets to work. He tell the camera what he's aiming for, we see him composing at his piano then conducting an orchestra. At the end of the short film, we see a scene with Schifrin's music giving it emotional texture.
