Speakers

Balz Bachmann

Composer, Musician, Producer

Balz Bachmann is an award-winning composer, producer and musician with many years of experience and a wide-ranging, versatile artistic spectrum. His extensive work includes compositions for feature films and documentaries as well as for theater productions, interdisciplinary art projects and television productions.

Over the course of his career, Bachmann has worked with numerous renowned directors and artists, including Bosnian filmmaker Jasmila Žbanić, Dani Levy, Lisa Brühlmann, Andro Wekua, Ramon Zürcher, Sabine Gisiger and Oscar-winner Xavier Koller. His work has been awarded numerous prestigious prizes.
In addition to his work as a composer, Bachmann is also active as a music producer. He is also interested in promoting young talent, to whom he passes on his knowledge and practical experience as a guest lecturer at the Zurich University of the Arts.

As a versatile musician, he is active in various formations and has accompanied the singer Sophie Hunger, among others, on extensive tours through Europe.
Musically, Bachmann moves confidently between electro-acoustic sounds, orchestral arrangements and experimental compositions, which are always characterized by emotional depth and innovative sound ideas.

In 2024, Balz Bachmann was invited as a composer for the renowned “Spot the Composer” program at the Cannes Film Festival. He lives and works in Zurich and is a member of both the European and Swiss Film Academies.

Dr. Kerstin Bäcker

Attorney, Lecturer

Dr. Kerstin Bäcker has been an attorney at Lausen Rechtsanwälte since 2001 and, since 2004, has headed the Cologne office as a partner.

Emerging topics and innovative products are Dr. Bäcker’s field of work. For years, she has focused on adapting the copyright framework to new technological developments in the context of individual and collective licensing and the related business cases, ranging from platform and social media liability for user-generated content (YouTube, cyberlockers, etc.) to artificial intelligence, the metaverse, and NFTs.

Her clients also include traditional education companies, publishers, cultural institutions, and music, audio, and film production companies.

She gained international experience at international law firms in Paris, Cape Town, Melbourne, and Barcelona.

Dr. Bäcker studied at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität Munich and, as a participant in the integrated German-French degree program, at Université Panthéon-Assas (Paris II, France), focusing on European and international law, where she earned the Licence en Droit. She received her doctorate from Technische Universität Dresden with a dissertation on the position of holders of related (neighbouring) rights in the digital age, taking into account the legal situation in France, the United States, and the United Kingdom. Dr. Bäcker is a certified specialist lawyer (Fachanwältin) in copyright and media law.

In addition to her legal practice, Dr. Bäcker is a lecturer at the Akademie der Deutschen Medien and a guest lecturer at various institutions, including the Music Business Summer School and the Steinbeis Institute. She also serves as a moderator, for example for the initiative "Die Zukunft des Verlegens" ("The Future of Publishing"). Among other publications, she is a contributing author to the Handbuch für Musikwirtschaft and the Handbuch Kulturmanagement and publishes in national and international professional journals.

Yevgeni Birkhoff

Composer, Sound Designer

Yevgeni Birkhoff works as a composer, music producer, and sound designer. He creates music for media and international large scale event productions, composes and produces songs, and engages in the creation of acoustic sound art. Birkhoff's musical diversity is evident in his wide-ranging repertoire, from authentic EDM tracks and Musique Concrète soundscapes to orchestral scores. He has applied his talent and expertise to create tailored music and sound designs for renowned brands and clients such as Mercedes, Porsche, Electronic Arts, the Chinese Ministry of Tourism and Emaar Properties. His sound installations have been exhibited in prestigious institutions worldwide, including the German Rock and Pop Museum in Gronau, the Mann's Chinese Theater in Hollywood and the Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles.

In 2010, Birkhoff received the Peer Raben Award at "Soundtrack Cologne" for the best music in a short film. Additionally, many of the large-scale events underscored with his music have been recognized with international event industry awards, including the BrandEx Award in 2019, the German Design Award in 2016, and The Special Event 2015 Gala Award.

Recently, Yevgeni Birkhoff has been engaging with real-time media and Artificial Intelligence. He regularly holds lectures and workshops, sharing his expertise in these cutting-edge fields. In his teachings, he contributes his broad knowledge and innovative perspectives on how these technologies can be leveraged in music, audio post and event productions. His insights are highly valued in both academic institutions and industry forums.

Photo: Gian Paul Lozza

Cyril Boehler

Composer, Music producer

Cyril Boehler is a composer and music producer known for his distinctive soundtracks in film and visual media. His versatile approach and musical storytelling have brought depth and emotion to pioneering productions.

He has composed for numerous feature films, documentaries, and television including TATORT, WILDER, and the BAFTA-winning LATE SHIFT. His work extends to interactive media and online campaigns, with his KUNSTHAUS ZURICH composition receiving a Creativepool award.

Based in Zurich, Switzerland, Cyril also produces audio branding for popular television formats like SRF DOK and STERNSTUNDEN. As ZWICKER and under his own name, he combines electronic music and songwriting in a series of successful albums and tracks — some with enough streams to fill oceans.

Cyril earned a Film Scoring Diploma from Berklee College of Music and gained hands on experience in studios across Boston, where he lived for five years. Back in Europe, he was fortunate to receive invaluable mentorship from the legendary maestro Ennio Morricone.

Lucy Bright

Music Supervisor

Lucy Bright has music supervised some of the most critically-acclaimed British film and television of recent years: Lynne Ramsey’s "The Swimmer", John Maclean’s "Slow West", Sean Durkin’s "Southcliffe", "The Nest" and "The Iron Claw", Shane Meadows’s "This is England ’90", "The Virtues" and "The Gallows Pole", Charlotte Wells’s "Aftersun" and "Todd Field’s Tár".

Most recently she has music supervised "The History of Sound" starring Paul Mescal and Josh O’Connor and the Marianne Faithfull documentary "Broken English". Her music publishing company Bright Notion Music represents a stellar roster of composers including Hildur Guðnadóttir, Oliver Coates, Rob Simonsen, Anne Nikitin, Tamar-kali, Alex Heffes, Jed Kurzel, Alex Baranowski, Ré Olunuga and Herdís Stefánsdóttir.

Eleonora Danese

Music Supervisor, Songwriter

After almost seven years as a Graphic Designer and Art Director, and with almost fifteen years of professional experience in the music industry, Eleonora Danese has focused solely on music supervision for the past few years. 

She has worked with all the major streaming and TV platforms, including Netflix, Disney+, Prime Video, and Sky, as well as some of Italy’s most important movie production companies (like Groenlandia and Filmauro).

Her working experience led her to be interviewed by international entities like EMMA - European Music Managers Alliance, EMEE - European Music Exporters Exchange, Linecheck Festival, and Fabrique du Cinéma.

She also held lessons about Music Supervision in Italian universities like Università degli Studi di Roma Tre and Luiss Guido Carli. 

While working on her career, she also managed her project as a songwriter: her stage name is Kuni, and her debut EP was released in June 2023 via Factory Flaws. 

HEPPFOTOGRAFIE

Michael Egli

Member of the Executive Board and Head Legal of SWISSPERFORM

Michael Egli is specifically responsible for the development of the corporate strategy and for the entire planning process, in particular annual project planning, distribution planning, market development activities and budget.

He also negotiates the tariffs applicable for uses of copyrighted content. In addition, he advises musicians, actors and producers in copyright and neighboring right matters.

Before he joined SWISSPERFORM in 2011, he worked as a lawyer in the fields of copyright-, media- and entertainment law.

After graduating from high school and during his law studies, he worked for six years as a radio journalist for the public broadcaster SRG.

Martin Häne

Music Producer

Martin Häne is a publisher of currently 7 different music production labels for both major distributors as well as independents.

Before becoming a music publisher, Häne worked for 10+ years as composer for both production music as well as bespoke music.

His credits as a composer include "Fack ju Göhte 2", "Melrose Place", "Bring it on" (Universal), various Lion's Gate Films (Warrior, Frankenhood) as well as Commercials and TV Series on networks such as ABC, NBC, CW TV, among others.

As a Publisher, his mission is simple: To create Production Music with character, and helping media creators to tell their story.

You may find out more here: www.martytone.com

Antoine Le Guern

Composer’s Agent & Music Supervisor

With over 25 years of experience in the music industry, Antoine Le Guern has built a career at the crossroads of music supervision, artist management, and music production. His expertise spans the artistic, technical, and legal aspects of music for visual media, from original composition to executive music production and the licensing of existing tracks.

In 2013, Antoine founded Agence Gaspard, a music agency and publishing company representing ten talented composers. Through Agence Gaspard, he manages artist development, project scouting, contract negotiations, executive music production, and scoring for a wide range of projects. Among the composers he represents are Yannis Dumoutiers, well-known in France as the composer of the hit TV series HPI, as well as Clémence Ducreux, Eloi Ragot, or Antoine Duchêne.

Since 2021, Antoine has also been working as a Music Supervisor at THE, an award-winning sound production and music agency, where he has been developing THE SUPERVISION department. He has overseen music for major TV shows and films, including Nouvelle École (Netflix, seasons 2, 3 & 4), the Squeezie documentary (Amazon), Aspergirl (OCS, seasons 2 & 3), as well as Chez Momo, a feature film by director Mourad Winter produced by Iconoclast for Amazon.

Earlier in his career, Antoine was the founder, composer, and keyboardist of the band MANI, alongside singer Mani Hoffman, known for the international hit Starlight  withThe Supermen Lovers. Their single Bang Bang reached the top 10 in airplay across Europe.

With Raphael Fruchard, Antoine hosts the podcast Sync of You (since 2023), dedicated to exploring the world of music synchronization with leading industry figures.

Antoine combines a strong musical foundation with a deep understanding of the music business, making him a key player at the intersection of creativity and strategy.

Paulina Márquez

Music Supervisor

Music Supervisor with twenty years of experience within the film and music industries, she began her career as a producer at MCO Studios, a multidisciplinary music and audio design studio based in Mexico City.

Later and independently, she dedicated herself exclusively to the Music Supervision of film productions, until moving to London, to study a Master’s degree in Creative and Cultural Entrepreneurship, with a specialization in Music Management at Goldsmiths.

After her studies in London, she moved to Brussels where she co-founded "Schiev", a music festival dedicated to discovering, promoting and mobilizing the independent and experimental music scene in Europe. The festival was part of SHAPE (Sound Heterogeneous Music and Performance in Europe),
a European platform co-founded by Creative Europe.

She currently lives in Barcelona, where she continues her career working in Mexican, Spanish and British productions for platforms such as Netflix, Amazon and Apple. Among her work there are titles such as "Elite", "The burning body", "Hurricane Season", in addition to a long lasting collaboration with director Manolo Caro.

Member of the UK & European Guild of Music Supervisors and Advisor for the Asociación de Supervisión Musical de Habla Hispana; Paulina has also contributed with educational programs, collaborating in various international workshops and panels in forums such as Spot+, Primavera Pro,
BIME, Monkey Week, Future Music Forum, to name a few. She has also been a guest lecturer at Berklee College of Music, giving a a seminar/workshop on Music Supervision for two consecutive years.

Veronica L. Montaño

Veronica L. Montaño was born on 3 April 1990 in Nebikon. She is a founding member of Eisprung Animation Studio GmbH and has been working as an art director and director. She graduated in 2017 with a master's degree from Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts – Design & Art with the graduation films Ivan's Need and Eisnasen. 

In addition to Eisprung, Veronica is co-curator of Fantoche Industry Day and SAIA – Swiss Animation Industry Award.

©Olivier Jacquet

Jérôme Rebotier

Composer and Musician

Eclectic musician and multi-instrumentalist switching from classical music to more experimental writing and songwriting, Jérôme Rebotier is best known for his work in cinema and documentaries, having composed the scores for about 60 films for both cinema and television. Deeply attentive to the connection between music and images —believing that music truly makes sense when paired with visuals— he has always sought to engage in a variety of new collaborations.

After studying classical music as a child in Mulhouse, he learned a lot from major pop-rock artists like David Bowie and The Beatles, while simultaneously exploring more experimental artists such as Pierre Schaeffer.

For over 20 years, he has composed scores for many directors, including Matthieu Delaporte & Alexandre de la Patellière, Emmanuel Mouret, Tonie Marshall, Laurent Larivière, and Rafael Lewandowski. His varied approach to music has led him to work on classical compositions as well as pop music.

Jérôme Rebotier has also written numerous songs for artists such as Horace Andy (Massive Attack), Olivia Ruiz, and has collaborated with DJ Agoria, Hugh Coltman, Rover, and Nicolas Becker.

In 2020, he founded his own record label and publishing company, Robotic Productions, through which he produces independent artists such as Party Side B, Edgar Novak, and KNDNS.

Currently, he is working on several projects, including personal works like "Alma" (compositions inspired by J.S. Bach), "Vox Requiem" (for voices and orchestra), and "Apach" (a collective improvisation with friends Olivier Lasson & Valentin Portron).

Jérôme Rebotier is also a writer. His first novel, Dans la Cour, released in March 2023, tells the story of a teenager escaping a traumatic childhood through music and friendships and is based on his own experiences. His next book will explore the life of an amnesiac man living multiple, simultaneous lives.

Sandrine Rudaz

Composer

Sandrine Rudaz is a Swiss-French composer who’s known for her orchestral scores recorded with world-class musicians in prestigious venues, including the iconic Eastwood Scoring Stage at Warner Bros. She has been honored with two Hollywood Music in Media Awards and was nominated for a Jerry Goldsmith Award. Her music, distinguished by its lush orchestration and emotional depth, seamlessly blends her European classical piano heritage with the expansive influences of Hollywood, resulting in a sound both modern and timeless.

With over forty projects to her credit, Sandrine has scored for feature films, TV series such as On the High Seas (RTS/ARTE) and documentaries like PARADiCE (Canal 9), the latter earning her an additional Hollywood Music in Media Award nomination. She is currently composing the score for Yogis of Ukraine, a documentary directed by Bob Degus, producer of Austin Powers and the Oscar-nominated Pleasantville, for which she received a grant from New Music USA’s Reel Change Fund. Sandrine has contributed to major studio projects including the blockbuster video game Diablo IV (Blizzard), Clint Eastwood’s latest film Juror #2 (Warner Bros.), Disney’s Mickey and the Very Many Christmases, and TV shows such as FUBAR (Netflix) with Arnold Schwarzenegger, Reacher (Amazon), and Eva Longoria: Searching for Spain (CNN).

Sandrine's academic credentials include a Master of Music in Film Composition from the Pacific Northwest Film Scoring Program and a Bachelor of Arts in Music from the Conservatory of Lausanne, Switzerland. She furthered her studies in orchestration at Stanford University and was selected for the SESAC Workshop with renowned composer John Swihart (How I Met Your Mother). Additionally, she participated in the LA Film Conducting Intensive under the mentorship of orchestrators William Ross (Star Wars, Titanic) and Conrad Pope (The Hobbit, Jurassic Park).

Beyond her individual achievements, Sandrine is a dedicated ambassador for the Primetime Network, board member of the Alliance for Women Film Composers, and a member of the Society of Composers and Lyricists, and Women In Film. She is a voting member of the World Soundtrack Academy and of the Recording Academy.

Beda Senn

Music Consultant, Music Curator & Producer

Music consultant at Swiss Television from 2006 till 2025 and involved in over 600 documentary film projects.

Since 2018 conception & production for new library/production music under Tonangeber GmbH, he is expert in the implementation of new sounds for current and future topics:
What does today's modern urban environment sound like? (Sounds Of Urbanity). What does music have to sound regarding sustainability, the new food movements, healthy and sustainable nutrition and lifestyles? (Organic Food Sounds). How do you create a sound image that depicts the regions of the world in a new and timeless way? Without all the clichés and stereotypes, but with the by integrating the traditional sounds of the regions concerned. What are new alpine sounds? What is the new sound for stories in today's alpine region (including Southern Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Slovenia and the north of Italy and France). Creating sounds that make the colours ring. And much more.

Another important motto: Modern Modular Motif-based Production Music. The goal are minimal and modular structured mood tracks, which have unique and modern sounds as core element and thus on the one hand perfectly underscore fitting and not overloaded but on the other hand have strong motif expressiveness. For each track there are several variations, which may differ in instrumentation of the motif, tempo, time signature etc., but which play around the central element (the leitmotif) in some form. And all this under the aspect of making it as close, touching, high quality and timeless as possible for all kinds of audio-visual productions and suitable for stories in the here and now.

Although music is his life, he never learned to play an instrument well. He spent a few years as a drummer, but never really gained a foothold as a musician. Despite, or perhaps because of it, he has immersed himself (associatively), in what kind of images does music create, which images need which music. He finds the exploration of music exciting. And he has immersed himself in it.

He also sees himself as a diver for musical pearls in the playlists of Tonangeber. He curates and mixes them together.

Bruno Spoerri

Saxophonist, Composer

Bruno Spoerri (b. 1935 in Zürich) is a Swiss saxophonist, composer, and pioneer of electronic and computer music. A central figure in Swiss jazz for over 60 years, he began as an award-winning amateur saxophonist in groups like the Metronome Quintet and the Modern Jazz Group Freiburg, before becoming a professional composer in the 1960s.

Spoerri has written music for over 500 advertising films, feature films, documentaries, and radio plays, earning international recognition, including a Clio and a Cannes prize. His interest in electronic sound led him to become one of Europe’s earliest innovators in combining live jazz with analog synthesizers, electrified saxophones, and later interactive computer systems. His groundbreaking album Voice of Taurus (1978) is now considered a cult classic of electronic jazz.

He co-founded and directed the Swiss Center for Computer Music and has collaborated with leading jazz artists like Albert Mangelsdorff, Clark Terry, Lee Konitz, and George Gruntz. Spoerri also served as artistic director of the Zurich Jazz Festival in the 1970s.

As an author and historian, he edited two major reference works: Jazz in der Schweiz (2005) and Musik aus dem Nichts (2010), the latter documenting the history of electroacoustic music in Switzerland.

Spoerri has received numerous honors, including the Swiss Jazz Award (2017) and the Golden Medal of Honor of the Canton of Zurich. He continues to perform in jazz and electronic ensembles and remains a key figure in the international experimental music scene.

Martin Villiger

Composer, focused on film music

Martin Villiger has composed the music for over 130 films and series. That’s about 450 series episodes and counting.

“I love to bring different people and art forms together and to dare new things.“, Martin says. In addition to songs he writes and produces with pop greats, he has always tried new areas of music. He has, for example, composed the music for a circus show, for installations, numerous commercials and corporate sound for companies. Martin Villiger is also interested in 3D audio like Dolby Atmos, spatial audio for VR (virtual reality) and games. The new feature film “Early Birds” where he co-composed music with the main composer Adrian Frutiger is premiering at this years Zurich Film Festival.

Martin Villiger is helping companies use music to connect to their audience. With Music for their brand and special live Events.

Villiger was born in Glasgow and grew up in Jerusalem, among other places. He feels at home all over the world and speaks six languages. His new concert series “Culture Clash” fits in with this. He is married to Catherine, and together they have four children.