Cam Be is an Emmy Award-winning filmmaker, photographer, musician, DJ, producer, and creative director based in Chicago. Working across film, music, photography, and public programming, his multidisciplinary practice explores Black identity, cultural memory, music history, and community storytelling.
Cam studied at the New York Film Academy and Columbia College Chicago and has spent nearly two decades documenting and collaborating with influential artists and cultural figures including Maya Angelou, Lauryn Hill, Common, Questlove, Theaster Gates, and Hebru Brantley. In 2012, he received an Emmy Award as a producer with NBC Chicago.
His film work includes his first feature documentary, The Exchange, and Where Flowers Bloom, which chronicled the making of Rapsody's Grammy-nominated album Laila's Wisdom and premiered on TIDAL in 2018. His short documentary A Film Called Black: King's Speech has screened at more than 50 film festivals and cultural institutions internationally, earning multiple festival awards. Cam's latest feature documentary, Joffrey Ballet: The Next Movement, produced by Kartemquin Films in partnership with the Joffrey Ballet, premieres on PBS on September 18, 2026.
Cam's creative practice also extends deeply into music. He has released the solo albums 7 Steps to 7 and Summer in September and, in 2025, released A Film Called Black with longtime collaborator Neak. The album is part of their larger multidisciplinary project of the same name, which explores the question, "What does it mean to be Black?" through film, music, exhibitions, performances, and community-centered cultural experiences.
In 2026, Cam and Neak completed an A Film Called Black residency at Hoste in Chicago's Pilsen neighborhood, presenting the Salutations residency and programs including Jazz + Gumbo and the Chicago Music Legacy Tour with Shermann "Dilla" Thomas and Chess Records. A Film Called Black was also selected for the 2026–2027 Bronzeville Trail Artist Initiative Residency, continuing the collective's work exploring Black cultural history, place, memory, and community.
Through Camovement and A Film Called Black, Cam continues to create work that connects film, music, history, and community through multidisciplinary storytelling.