Reality Check: Hands-on Know-How for your Success

Breaking into the world of music for film, television, and video games can be tough, there’s a lot to navigate. That’s why SoundTrack_Cologne 22 offers a dedicated programme of hands-on workshops to help you face these challenges head-on.

The topics are as diverse as the job: Working with Agents, How Much Should I Take? Securing Contracts and Setting Fair Rates, PR Workshop: Building Your Brand as a Composer, Hiring and Being Hired: Collaborating with Other Composers, Transferring Music from MIDI to Orchestra, Film Music Sound Design, Productivity Hacks and Workflow Optimisation, Transitioning from College to the Real World, and Production Music.

Reality Check: The Business of Media Music

The Reality Check section is an essential part of SoundTrack_Cologne 22, designed to give you the tools, knowledge, and confidence to move your media music career forward.

Public Relations: Join Sarah Roche from the renowned LA-based agency White Bear - eg. responsible for Volker Bertelmann’s successful Oscar campaign - for a two-part hands-on workshop on Wednesday, July 10, and Thursday, July 11, to understand how to built your brand as a composer. With her expertise in PR and composer promotion, Sarah will guide participants through the essentials of personal branding: how to shape your communications, make the most of social media, and use your website to create lasting professional impression.

Working with Agents: Panel discussions with Hamish Duff (First Artist Management), Pierre Cattoni (Troisième Auteur), on working with agents and their role.

After Finishing University: Ana Krstajić who startet out as a mentee for the Alliance of Women Film Composers Mentorship class (Los Angeles) explains what it really takes to transition from studying composition to working in the field.

Collaborating in Teams: Hiring and being hired, with composer Mario Grigorov (Spides), covers structures, conditions and tools for working together with fellow composers.

From MIDI to Orchestra: Conductor Enrico Delamboye of WDR Funkhausorchester who eg. conducted the recordings of dozens of the WDR Filmmusic Award Winners speaks about transferring music from MIDI to orchestra.

Increase Productivity: A workshop on productivity hacks and workflow optimisation with composer Christoph Zirngibl (Where’s Wanda · The Hero of Centopia) and music supervisor Florian Sonnleitner.

How Much Should I Take: Stefan Döring explores with Anna Luca Mohrhenn (composer), Michael Klaukien (composer) how to secure contracts and fair fees. In cooperation with mediamusic.

Film Music Sound Design: Dominik Giesriegl, composer of Schule der magischen Tiere, last years most successfull German film at the box office, and composer Nik Reich (Savage) discuss strategies to make a difference for your score by creating your own unique sounds – and how to get them.

Production Music: Martin Häne, publisher of several music library labels including Nuvotone (distributed globally by Universal / UPPM), will dive into the mechanics and strategies of successful production music.

AI MusicCon at SoundTrack_Cologne 22 Music in the Age of AI · Thursday, July 10, 2025

Artificial Intelligence continues to fundamentally transform how music is created, performed, and experienced. This year, the conversation is being taken to a new level.

On July 10, 2025, SoundTrack_Cologne, in cooperation with the Landesmusikrat NRW, presents AI MusicCon 2025, a full day of keynotes, hands-on workshops, panel discussions, and talks dedicated entirely to the intersection of AI and music. The event invites all interested professionals to explore the challenges and opportunities that AI presents for music creators and the wider industry.

Featuring 16 events taking place at the COMEDIA Theater in Cologne, AI MusicCon explores the rapidly evolving intersection of music and artificial intelligence. The programme is designed to break down access barriers, introduce practical AI tools for composers, musicians, sound designers, music schools, and non-professional musicians, clarify legal frameworks, and explore what’s next in AI.

Key topics range from the implementation of EU AI legislation and unresolved copyright issues -addressed in part by North Rhine-Westphalia's legal policy initiative- to the wider European discourse on digital sovereignty and competitiveness in light of the deregulation tendencies under the Trump administration.

In an interview with GEMA CEO Dr. Tobias Holzmüller, the event will shed light on current policy and initiatives at GEMA. It will explore how different German political parties position themselves on AI regulation and reflect on the myths and narratives of this technology, linking them to deeper questions of creativity, cultural and ethical dimensions.

Participation in AI MusicCon is included with your SoundTrack_Cologne accreditation or available separately with a 19,00 EUR ticket.

Download the Programme here

Focus Sync + Production Music + Track Check

Track Check: Level Up Your Tracks with Experts!

How well does your music work for sync? What are music supervisors looking for? How do you build a demoreel that gets attention? At SoundTrack_Cologne 22, the TrackCheck format brings together experienced music supervisors, consultants, and publishers to share their insights and offer direct feedback to participants. They will evaluate demoreels and TV underscore tracks, and will share some ideas about what makes a track stand out for sync to film, TV, and advertising.

Submit your tracks before Tuesday, July 1, 2025 at 18:00 CEST!

If you want to participate in the Track Check, click the button below and fill out the form:

Matchmaking for Women

14:30-15:30 at COMEDIA Theater, Wagenhalle (restaurant)

This exclusive matchmaking session is dedicated to women and aims to connect female composers and sound designers with female directors, producers, music supervisors, editors, artists, and sync managers. Presented in cooperation with WIFT and AWFC.

To request meetings with these leading experts, please fill out the online form before 30^th June 14:00 pm CEST, by clicking the link below.

International Matchmaking for All

16:00-17:30 at COMEDIA Theater, Wagenhalle (restaurant)

At our International Matchmaking for all we bring together composers and sound designers with music supervisors, directors, producers, editors, artist managers, sync managers and A&R managers.

To request meetings with these leading experts, please fill out the online form before 30^th June 14:00 pm, by clicking the link below.

Five High Profile Film and TV Case Studies at STC22

SoundTrack_Cologne will feature five high-profile case studies with composers and creative teams behind acclaimed films and TV series, taking place on Wednesday, July 9th, and Friday, July 11th.

The programme opens with a deep dive into Amazon's world wide hit series MAXTON HALL, featuring composers Julian Erhardt and Victoria Hillestad, music supervisor Regina Reis, and Dennis Grimm, Senior Music Executive for Central Europe at Amazon MGM Studios.

In cooperation with HARPA Nordic Film Composers Award, STC22 will also present a case study with HARPA Award winner 2025 Kåre Vestrheim, who will talk about his work on the Norwegian drama series MAKTA.

The team behind REMBETIS - DIE GEISTERJÄGER will explore how they brought this series to life through music. The panel includes Jasin Challah (composer, showrunner, actor and director) and co-composers Claudio Pagonis and Reinhard Schaub.

A case study on the film KÖLN 75 will feature composers Stefan Rusconi and Hubert Walkowski, music supervisor Martin Hossbach, and producer Sol Bondy. 

The case study series continues on Friday, July 11th, with a session in cooperation with Filmtonfrauen, featuring composer Peter Albrecht, sound designer and engineer Rachel Oker, and sound mixer Marc Lehnert. They will discuss about the creative and technical challenges of working on the film VENA. Single tickets for the case study VENA are available here.

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Film and TV Case Studies
Wednesday 09. July 2025 · COMEDIA Theater, Die Eins

10.30 - 11.30
Julian Erhardt & Victoria Hillestad (composers), Regina Reis (music supervisor), Dennis Grimm (Senior Music Executive for Central Europe at Amazon MGM Studios)
Maxton Hall
Workshop · Discussion

12.00 - 13.00
Composer Kåre Vestrheim · HARPA Award Winner 2025
Makta
Workshop · Discussion
in cooperation with HARPA

14.30 - 15.30
Claudio Pagonis, Reinhard Schaub (composers) &  Jasin Challah (composer & showrunner)
Rembetis - Die Geisterjäger
Workshop · Discussion

16.00 - 17.30
Stefan Rusconi & Hubert Walkowski (composers), Martin Hossbach (music supervisor) & Sol Bondy (producer) 
Köln 75
Workshop · Discussion


Friday 11. July 2025 · COMEDIA Theater, Die Eins

10.30 - 11.30
Peter Albrecht (composer), Rachel Oker (sound designer and sound engineer) & Marc Lehnert (sound mixer)
Vena
Workshop · Discussion
in cooperation with Filmtonfrauen

Composing for Films at SoundTrack_Cologne 22

As part of the "Composing for Film - Day" at SoundTrack_Cologne 22, taking place on Thursday, July 10, our guest composers will reflect on the essential role that music plays in shaping a film’s emotional landscape, rhythm, and narrative depth. Scoring for film is more than composition, it is a craft that requires a deep understanding of storytelling, character, and cinematic language. Through examples and personal insights, our speakers will explore how they translate visual worlds into sound and how music becomes a powerful protagonist in the filmmaking process.

We are proud to welcome four exceptional composers whose recent work continues to push the boundaries of film music: Amine Bouhafa (The Man Who Sold His Skin · Hotel Destino), the 2025 German Film Award winner Dascha Dauenhauer (Kein Tier. So Wild · Islands), Jongnic Bontemps (Transformers: Rise of the Beasts · World’s Best), and our Career Achievement Award honouree, the multi-award-winning Michael Abels (Get Out · Us · Nope).

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Composing for Films
Thursday 10. July 2025 · COMEDIA Theater, Roter Saal

10:30 - 11:30
Amine Bouhafa
The Man Who Sold His Skin · Hotel Destino
Workshop · Discussion

12:00 - 13:00
Dascha Dauenhauer
No Beast. So Fierce (Kein Tier. So Wild) · Islands - winner of the German Film Prize 2025
Workshop · Discussion

14:30 - 15:30
Jongnic Bontemps
Transformers: Rise of the Beasts · World’s Best
Workshop · Discussion

16:00 - 17:30
Michael Abels
Nope · Us · Get Out
Conversation with the Career Achievement Award Winner

SoundTrack_Cologne 22 announces nominees for the EUROPEAN TALENT COMPETITION

Sixteen composers and sound designers from fourteen nominated entries are in the running for this year’s EUROPEAN TALENT AWARD. Some of them collaborated in teams, others worked individually on their submission. The winners will be announced at the festive awards ceremony on July 11th at the WDR Funkhaus.

The EUROPEAN TALENT COMPETITION provides a platform specifically for emerging talents in film music and sound design.

Participants had the choice to either compose the original score or to create the sound design for the short film "BLOOM" (directed by Michael Dämmig) - or to re-score the film in a collaborative team of composer and sound designer.

The nominees (in alphabetical order):

Jamie Alpherts (Score), Jakob Altmann (Score), Luis Cantú (Score), Melanie Gäb (Sound design), Michael Kaspar (Score), Stefan Kiechle (Score), Aaron Kolbl (Sound design), Benjamin Alan Kubaczek (Score and Sound design), Robert Landskron (Score), Felix Lopp (Score), Gabriel Massé (Sound design), Xiangming Niu (Score), Samuel Pfeil (Score), Vincent Roy (Sound design), Sam van Stempvoort (Sound design), and Lucia Vité (Score).

The competition screening will take place on Friday, July 11th at 10:30 at ODEON Cinema. To buy the tickets for the screening, click here.

The nominees and their new scores for “BLOOM” will be presented to audience and jury by Yati Durant.

The winner of the WDR FILMSCORE AWARD will have the opportunity to record an original composition of 7 – 9 minutes length with the WDR Funkhausorchester – for many young composers, this could be their first opportunity to record with a large orchestra and the beginning of filling out their film-scoring calling card.

The winner for the best SOUND DESIGN will receive a 5.1 cinematic mix down in the prestigious sound mixing studio TORUS POST.

Find out more information about our nominees and the jury members.

STC22-Stipendien für deutsche Flinta

Laut dem Europäischen Observatorium für das audiovisuelle Schaffen lag der Anteil von Frauen unter den aktiven Komponist*innen in audiovisuellen Fiction-Formaten und TV-Filmen in Europa zwischen 2019 und 2023 bei lediglich 10 %. Im selben Zeitraum machten Komponistinnen nur 12 % der Musikschaffenden in europäischen Kinofilmen aus. Auch wenn dies einen leichten Anstieg im Vergleich zu den Jahren 2015–2018 darstellt (6 % bzw. 8 %), spiegelt es nach wie vor eine deutliche Unterrepräsentation von Frauen in der audiovisuellen Musikbranche wider.

Um zu einer gerechteren Teilhabe von Flinta (Frauen, Lesben, intergeschlechtlichen, nicht-binären, trans und agender Personen) in der Film-, TV- und Videospielmusik beizutragen, vergibt SoundTrack_Cologne in Zusammenarbeit mit Initiative Musik drei Stipendien an Flinta*-Komponist*innen aus Deutschland.

„Der Einstieg in die Filmmusik ist für viele FLINTA-Komponist:innen nach wie vor mit unsichtbaren Hürden verbunden – es fehlt an offenen Ausschreibungen, tragfähigen Netzwerken und gezielter Förderung, etwa durch Mentoringprogramme oder Stipendien. Selbst wer sich erfolgreich etabliert, bleibt häufig strukturell benachteiligt. Mit den STC22-Stipendien will die Initiative Musik genau hier ansetzen: Chancen schaffen, Sichtbarkeit ermöglichen – und so mehr Geschlechtergerechtigkeit fördern." – Katja Lucker,  Geschäftsführerin Initiative Musik 

Das Stipendium umfasst die Akkreditierung zur Konferenz, die Übernahme der Reisekosten innerhalb Deutschlands sowie die Unterbringung in Köln für drei Tage.

Die Stipendien richten sich in erster Linie an Komponist*innen für Film, Fernsehen und Medien, sind aber auch offen für Musiker*innen, Tontechniker*innen, Sounddesigner*innen, Musikproduzent*innen und Music Supervisor*innen.

Idealerweise haben die Bewerber*innen bereits Musik für mindestens eine Film-, Fernseh-, Videospiel-, Radio- oder Theaterproduktion komponiert und entsprechende praktische Erfahrung gesammelt.

Bewerbungsschluss: 23. Juni 2025 - 10:00 Uhr MESZ

Um sich zu bewerben, füllen Sie bitte das Formular aus:

SoundTrack_Cologne 22 announces nominees for the PEER RABEN MUSIC AWARD

Nine composers are nominated for the PEER RABEN MUSIC AWARD. The winner will be announced at the festival awards ceremony on 11th July at the WDR Funkhaus.

The PEER RABEN MUSIC AWARD honors the Best Original Music in a Short Film. The winner receives a prize money of 1,500 euros. First presented in 2009, the award commemorates the great German film composer Peer Raben.

Nominated are eight film scores from award-winning festival highlights of the international short film scene with an innovative and dramaturgically coherent use of music and sound in relation to the narrative. This year's selection includes prestigious winners such as "Bunnyhood," which premiered at Cannes and won third prize in La Cinéf category, and "Ordinary Life” / “Futsu no seikatsu”, which won the Silver Bear Jury Prize for Short Films at the 2025 Berlinale.

The nominees:

• Victor Ardelean & Jiro Yoshioka ("Abyssness" directed by Jakob Arnu, Larissa Dold, Leonie Hecht, Moritz Hoffmann, Maximillian Otto, Theresa Rehe, Jonas Riedinger, Germany)
• Philip Domenico Calisto ("ALARBA" directed by Joshua Kantara, Germany)
• Marcus Sander ("As I Was a Tree" directed by Jalal Maghout, Germany/Syria)
• Marcin Mazurek ("Bunnyhood" directed by Mansi Maheshwari, United Kingdom)
• Clemens Gutjahr ("Detlev" directed by Ferdinand Ehrhardt, Germany)
• Louis Chenu ("INSTINCTS" directed by Lucie Cabon, France)
• Kengo Tokusashi ("ORDINARY LIFE" / “Futsu no seikatsu” directed by Mizushiri Yoriko, France/Japan)
• Lukas Stipar ("Woodland" directed by Vanessa Chu, Jim Obmann, Emil Pogolski, Germany)

The competition screening will take place on Wednesday, July 9th at 18:30 at Odeon cinema. To buy tickets for the screening, click here.

The surreal "Abyssness" tells the story of a farmer who discovers a black hole in his field and turns it into a profitable garbage disposal business. In the sacred jungles of Oussouye, "ALARBA" brings us into the sacred jungles of Oussouye for an intimate portrait of friendship and tradition. "As I Was a Tree" explores themes of identity and perception through a surreal odyssey of self-discovery. The Cannes-awarded "Bunnyhood" follows Bobby, whose innocent world is disrupted by an unexpected hospital trip that reveals her mother's deception. "Detlev" presents a darkly comedic character study of isolation and ritual. In the dystopian "INSTINCTS," Inès and Adrien become fugitives in a future where abortion is criminalized. The Berlinale Silver Bear winner ("ORDINARY LIFE" / “Futsu no seikatsu” contemplates how daily routines repeat yet never remain the same. "Woodland" follows a magical forest creature desperately trying to save its dying forest and nature through music with a fragile flower flute.

The nominees and their films will be presented to audience and jury under the moderation by André Feldhaus (composer).

Here you can find more information about our nominees and the jury members:

Composing for TV Series Day: At SoundTrack_Cologne 22

SoundTrack_Cologne is honored to announce the featured panelists for this year’s "Composing for TV Series" panels, taking place on Friday, July 11th, 2025.

Television series rely heavily on music to build atmosphere, shape emotional arcs, and bring stories to life. This year, four dedicated panels at the conference will explore how composers approach the unique challenges and creative possibilities of scoring for TV series, offering insights into their artistic processes and recent work.

The panels will feature in-depth discussions on scoring for some of the most exciting recent productions. Featured guests include Anthony D'Amario & Edouard Rigaudière, whose score for Log Out won Best Original Score at Séries Mania 2025; Jack Halama (Who Is Erin Carter? · Rivals); Drum & Lace (Red, White & Royal Blue ·  Dickinson); and Högni Egilsson (Katla · King and Conqueror).

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Friday 11. July 2025 · COMEDIA Theater, Probebühne

10:30 - 11:30
Anthony D'Amario and Édouard Rigaudière
Log Out - winner of the Best Original Score at Séries Mania 2025
Workshop · Discussion

12:00 - 13:00
Jack Halama
Who Is Erin Carter? · Rivals
Workshop · Discussion

14:30 - 15:30
Drum & Lace (Sofia degli Alessandri-Hultquist)
Red, White & Royal Blue · Dickinson
Workshop · Discussion

16:00 - 17:00
Högni Egilsson
Katla · King and Conqueror
Workshop · Discussion