Cam Sugar Celebrated 65 Years of a Music Catalogue That's Scored Thousands of Films at Milan's SLAM Festival.
Italian composer Ennio Morricone's philosophy, "Music must be able to say what words can't," was a central theme at CAM Sugar's inaugural SLAM festival in Milan. The event, a collaboration between CAM Sugar and Triennale Milano, showcased the archive's vast collection of over 2,500 film scores from Italian and French cinema, including works by Morricone, Piero Piccioni, and François de Roubaix.
The festival featured more than 30 events, including screenings, talks, listening sessions, live performances, and DJ sets. The event drew around 100 artists and was a huge success, with organizers already committing to a second edition in 2026.
CAM Sugar's global archive and restoration lead, Andrea Fabrizi, curated several of the weekend's most popular listening sessions. He believes that his programming format, which includes a mix of listening sessions, DJ sets, and talks, allows audiences to "have a complete view on that specific historic moment through the music" while hearing how it still resonates in the present.
Fabrizi described CAM Sugar's archive as a "reading room before the room even exists," where certain cues are built to fire directly at the body. He emphasizes the importance of understanding the psychology behind music, designing pieces for different spaces and experiences.
The French side of the archive was highlighted by A&R and restoration lead Stéphane Lerouge, who spotlighted the diversity of CAM Sugar's holdings and resurrected the cult thriller score "La Scoumoune" by François de Roubaix. Lerouge stressed the universality of film music, recalling Morricone saying that "music language is universal."
The festival also featured talks with working supervisors and composers, including Mary Ramos, Quentin Tarantino's longtime music supervisor. Ramos shared her process of collaborating with directors to calibrate what a film should sound like and building soundtracks around specific themes.
Meanwhile, Nicolas Winding Refn argued for embracing technology while interrogating its economics. He sees AI as just another tool in the creative ecosystem, but also warned about the danger of inequality that follows when "technology diminishes human hands."
In summary, CAM Sugar's SLAM festival was a celebration of film music and the power of composers to create something new and original. The event highlighted the importance of understanding psychology behind music and embracing technology while supporting artists financially.
Italian composer Ennio Morricone's philosophy, "Music must be able to say what words can't," was a central theme at CAM Sugar's inaugural SLAM festival in Milan. The event, a collaboration between CAM Sugar and Triennale Milano, showcased the archive's vast collection of over 2,500 film scores from Italian and French cinema, including works by Morricone, Piero Piccioni, and François de Roubaix.
The festival featured more than 30 events, including screenings, talks, listening sessions, live performances, and DJ sets. The event drew around 100 artists and was a huge success, with organizers already committing to a second edition in 2026.
CAM Sugar's global archive and restoration lead, Andrea Fabrizi, curated several of the weekend's most popular listening sessions. He believes that his programming format, which includes a mix of listening sessions, DJ sets, and talks, allows audiences to "have a complete view on that specific historic moment through the music" while hearing how it still resonates in the present.
Fabrizi described CAM Sugar's archive as a "reading room before the room even exists," where certain cues are built to fire directly at the body. He emphasizes the importance of understanding the psychology behind music, designing pieces for different spaces and experiences.
The French side of the archive was highlighted by A&R and restoration lead Stéphane Lerouge, who spotlighted the diversity of CAM Sugar's holdings and resurrected the cult thriller score "La Scoumoune" by François de Roubaix. Lerouge stressed the universality of film music, recalling Morricone saying that "music language is universal."
The festival also featured talks with working supervisors and composers, including Mary Ramos, Quentin Tarantino's longtime music supervisor. Ramos shared her process of collaborating with directors to calibrate what a film should sound like and building soundtracks around specific themes.
Meanwhile, Nicolas Winding Refn argued for embracing technology while interrogating its economics. He sees AI as just another tool in the creative ecosystem, but also warned about the danger of inequality that follows when "technology diminishes human hands."
In summary, CAM Sugar's SLAM festival was a celebration of film music and the power of composers to create something new and original. The event highlighted the importance of understanding psychology behind music and embracing technology while supporting artists financially.
. i also loved how cam sugar highlighted the diversity of their archive. like, i had no idea there was so many cool scors from france 
. and quentin tarantino's comments on music supervision were totes relatable 
. but i'm still skeptical about this AI thingy... cant we just leave human hands 2 do the creative stuff? 
i'm low-key obsessed with ennio morricone's score for "once upon a time in the west" it's like, the perfect blend of spaghetti western vibes and cinematic magic 
anyway, cam sugar's slam festival was literally everything and more! 
i loved how they highlighted the universality of film music with stéphane lerouge talking about François de Roubaix's "la scoumoune" score - it's wild to think that a 70s french thriller can still get me hyped today 
and nicolas winding refn's thoughts on AI were so thought-provoking, like, isn't it cool how composers are always pushing the boundaries of what's possible with sound? 
This whole thing just feels like another example of how we're losing touch with what truly matters – art, music, and human connection 
. I mean, all this fuss about CAM Sugar's archive being a "reading room before the room even exists" is really just code for saying that our reliance on technology is going to replace the creative spark in people's lives 
. But hey, at least the festival drew 100 artists and was a huge success, right? That's just more proof that the system is working as intended: create an event, attract some talent, pat yourselves on the back 
. What we really need is a revolution in the way we think about art, not just another fancy festival 
.
they showcased so many iconic scores from italian & french cinema, including morricone's stuff 
and it was a huge hit with over 100 artists attending 
the curator Andrea Fabrizi has this awesome idea for programming that lets u hear how these classic scores still relate to today's music 
i think it's so cool that they're celebrating the psychology behind music & its impact on spaces & experiences 
and also highlighting the universality of film music, like morricone said - music is universal