Another current film composer who is one of the best is Zbignieuw Preisner. (I hope I got that first name right - whew!)
His scores use minimal, simple, repeated motifs and development but in an extremely "exposed" way so that the music participates very much as an element in the film's scene. Exemplified in "Blue" and "Double Life of Veronique" in both of which the music is a part of the story as well. Of coure he was lucky enough to have gotten jobs with Kieslowski, who was the greatest filmmaker of the last half of the twentieth century. That helps a bit with your film scoring. (Like Benny H. - his FIRST film job was "Citizen Kane." Rather nice to be offered a job on a little production like that, eh?)
BTW I wonder when Paul R will ever be permitted by his Superego to post here again? (Or perhaps it is his Id that is in charge? As Walter Pidgeon said, "Id, Id, Id!")