Berlin International Screen Composers Leadership Summit, 2026 edition

PHOTO GALLERY BELOW

The second annual Berlin International Screen Composers Leadership Summit (ISCLS) gathered nearly 90 leaders from 16 countries across North America, Europe, and Australia , for two days of strategic dialogue and collaboration, on Feb. 12-13, 2026. Led by the Screen Composers Guild of Canada (SCGC) in partnership with German music rights organization GEMA, and hosted at the Embassy of Canada and at GEMA headquarters. A networking dinner hosted by SOCAN provided an additional opportunity for informal discussion and relationship-building among delegates

The invitation-only event gathered senior executives and board-level leaders from collective management organizations (CMOs), composer trade associations, and allied organizations. Attendees discussed of high-level policy matters impacting screen composers, including collective management, artificial intelligence, streaming economics, international advocacy. CMO sustainability, screen composer working conditions, and professional development trends. Among those attending for SOCAN were CEO Jennifer Brown, Chief Legal Officer Andrea Kokonis, Board Chair Marc Ouellette, and Director, Film and TV Music Mike Rocha. SOCAN Board Member Darren Fung chaired the event, with fellow Board Member Greg Johnston also in attendance.

Brown participated in the keynote discussion “The Future of Collective Management,” with counterparts from sister CMO’s, and with Ouellette moderating. Kokonis took part in two panels, “How Do Composers Talk About Being Composers?” and moderated another talk, “GEMA’s AI Litigation and Licensing Strategy,” with her GEMA counterpart, Dr. Kai Welp.

“I felt the genuine excitement, and I could feel that I was participating in something important,” said Rocha. “It’s remarkable that this is only the second year, because of the level of organization, insight, and discussion. In these times of such rapid change, gatherings like ISCLS are essential for strengthening our global community, and I’m truly grateful to the SCGC for leading it.”

GEMA Board Member and DEFKOM and Initiative Urheberrecht President Micki Meuser agreed. “The growth from last year confirms how important this Summit has become,” he said. “Creating a dedicated space for international screen composer leadership is unique in our field, and we were proud to help bring this global community together in Berlin.”

Said Tonya Dedrick, Executive Director of the SCGC, ““Having global composer leaders, CMO executives and their teams, and composer and copyright allies together in one room was both rare and meaningful. The openness, generosity, and spirit of collaboration and knowledge-sharing over these two days strengthened relationships that will help empower the screen composer community to navigate the many challenges of sustaining a career in screen music.”

“It’s more important than ever for us to work together to ensure that our creative contributions are respected, and that our rights in the valuable intellectual property we create are protected,” said John Rowley, President of the SCGC. I was especially pleased to see strong support from our CMOs at the summit… The SCGC is particularly grateful for SOCAN’s support of the summit. I’m very proud to see Canadian composers and SOCAN taking leadership roles in the race for global solutions as our sector rapidly evolves.”

“As a first-time attendee, I was impressed by the scale and ambition of the Summit,” said Amanda Brown, President of the Australian Guild of Screen Composers and Board Member of AMCOS. “Bringing together screen composer leaders from across the world for such high-level discussion shows how vital this growing international community has become. I have returned home inspired.”

“What makes this Summit unique is not only the presence of CMO leaders from KODA, SOCAN, ASCAP, GEMA, and SACEM, but their genuine appetite to learn from creators’ deep understanding of how the market really behaves,” said Pär Frid, Board Member of both SKAP and  STIM, and ECSA Delegate (FST). “The candour in the room turns big issues – buyouts, platform leverage, and generative AI – into implementable choices that strengthen transparency, attribution, and sustainable composer income. Rigorous, constructive, and genuinely welcoming.”

All photos below by Marie Staggat, unless otherwise noted.