Leni_Riefenstahl

Leni Riefenstahl: syllabus notes Historical context - Growth of German cinema in Weimar Germany - Rise of Hitler and the Nazi Party - The Berlin Olympics - Post-war de-Nazification Background - Family background and education - Early career as dancer and film actor Rise to prominence - Direction of The Blue Light 1932 - 1933 meeting with Hitler at Wilmershaven - Ban on Jews working in the film industry - Commission for Victory of Faith (Nazi Party rally 1933) Significance and evaluation - Relationship with Hitler - Triumph of the Will - Berlin Olympiad - International honours and criticism - Post-war arrest - 1960s Nuba photography - Controversies in later life - Evaluation: Nazi propagandist or feminist pioneer' Biography: summary Historical context -> Growth of German cinema in Weimar Germany: began in the period after World War I armistice. This growth of cinema saw the uprising of productions challenging to the traditional societal values. The Expressionist movement began with The Cabinet of Dr Caligari and ended with Metropolis, itself setting new standards in film. Expressionists aimed to revive the human spirit by encouraging people to rediscover their emotions. Through their art, Expressionists used distortion, bold colour, exaggeration and shadow to convey these emotions. It was thus in contrast to the traditional view that an artist should strive to reproduce the natural appearance of the object or person being depicted. Because of hyperinflation, an export boom in film was created in Germany, that is, until 1924 when the Dawes plan brought financial stabilization, and thus opened up the German market to competitive foreign imports. -> Rise of Hitler and the Nazi Party: during the Great Depression, the then Weimar Government was unsuccessful at upholding the growth period of 1924 to 1929. The electoral process was handicapped by the proportional representation of parliament. This meant that political parties incurring a small voting share were given a parliamentary seating allocation relative to the number of votes. Because no single party had an overwhelming majority, parliament comprised of multiple parties, often in coalition. For just about every decision, no unanimous agreement could be formed. The solution lied within Article 48 of the constitution: government by emergency decree. Hindenburg appointed various party leaders as chancellor. Each chancellor failed to push Germany out of depression, and Hindenburg was running out of leaders to appoint. During this time, Hitler, was fast becoming a popular candidate. A well-crafted propaganda campaign, coupled with Hitler’s “mesmerizing” stature and speeches ensured he was popular with the masses. This together with Hindenburg’s limited options meant that he had little choice but to appoint a Nazi-led government in 1933; this was despite his personal objection. -> The Berlin Olympics: when appointed to government in 1933, the Nazis inherited the 1931 IOC decision to honour Berlin host city for the 1936 Olympic Games. Nazi leadership initially rejected the IOC’s legacy. Such thinking was abandoned when the games’ rich propaganda potential was realised. Ideologically, the IOC was antithetic of Nazism, yet the sheer propagandist value of the games was sufficient to counteract this concern. The Olympics also highlighted one aspect fundamental to the Nazi doctrine—the cult of the body. While the Olympics were the perfect venue for a mass propaganda campaign, the Nazis spent considerable effort to facade their dictatorship and anti-Semitic values. Prior to the Summer Olympics, Germany had hosted the 1936 Winter Olympics. Accommodating to the IOC’s regulations, Hitler ordered the removal of discriminatory signage from public view. In the end, the winter games served as an important lesson: Western journalists observed and reported military exercises, and thus, the Nazi Government ensured the military’s presence would be minimized at the Summer Olympics. For this event in August 1936, swastikas festooned Berlin, but the Nazi’s racist and militaristic character was again largely camouflaged. Locally, Nazi leadership presented the Olympics as an opportunity to preserve the nation’s honour. This was achieved by mass mobilization of the entire nation to support the celebration of their country. As the post-Games reporting faded, Hitler resumed his plans for German expansion. Indoctrination efforts persisted well after the games with the international release of Olympia in 1938. With German—and more importantly international audiences almost unanimous in praise for the Nazi’s hosting efforts of the 1936 Berlin Olympics, and the subsequent release of Olympia, it can be safely determined that the Olympics were extremely successful as an appliance for propaganda. In effect, the games played a significant role in rejuvenating Germany’s reputation from its tarnished post-World War I state to the more favourable status attained by 1938. -> Post-war de-Nazification: was purposed to eradicate National Socialism from political, economic as well as intellectual and cultural life. As a first step, the NSDAP and its subdivisions were prohibited, Nazi laws were abolished and the external signs and symbols of National Socialism removed. The main focus of the program was the systematic screening of all former members of the NSDAP. Denazification directives identified specific people and groups, and outlined judicial procedures and guidelines for handling them. Background -> Family background and education: Leni Riefenstahl was born in Berlin on 22 August 1902. Her father, Alfred owned a successful heating and ventilation firm which provided enough capital for Leni to be sheltered from most of the hardships induced by World War I. At a young age Riefenstahl had a particular passion for dance. Attending theatre productions such as Snow White, fostered her love for ballet. As a child, Leni loved dancing and although her mother was supportive of her desires, her father dismissed her aspirations. However, by 1918 Leni had secretly enrolled herself at the Grimm-Reiter Dance School in Berlin. Her father discovered his daughter’s deceit and enrolled her in boarding school. When she returned, Riefenstahl worked for her father, and then was allowed to take dance lessons at the Jutta Klamt school where she learnt and excelled at expressionist dance. -> Early career as dancer and film actor: while attending Jutta Klamt dance school, Riefenstahl in 1923 gained the attention of Max Reinhardt. Under contract with Reinhardt, Leni toured Europe as a solo dancer, becoming popular because she challenged traditional dance and experimented with the “naturalism” style of dance. Riefenstahl was prone to injury as a dancer. After injuring her knee in 1924, the film The Mountain of Destiny and its mountaineering genre captivated Riefenstahl. It was not long before she met the director, Arnold Fanck. Impressed by her dancing, looks and personality, Fanck went to work on a new film dedicated to Leni named Holy Mountain. A series of dilemmas with the film caused the producers to threaten to cut funding. One such disaster surrounded Riefenstahl’s broken ankle, but this gave her time to study the art and technique behind the camera. While Fanck rushed to Berlin to save the production, Leni Riefenstahl assumed control as screen director. Using her characteristic confidence and artistic skill, Riefenstahl created new footage that restored confidence in the production. Her bold decisions resulted in a new career opportunity in directing. Starring in several more of Fanck’s films, Riefenstahl became very popular among Germans and highly regarded by film directors. She concluded her acting career in the 1933 film SOS Iceberg. Rise to prominence -> Direction of The Blue Light 1932: Leni’s limited, yet successful role in directing the Holy Mountain presented her the opportunity to direct The Blue Light in 1932. Moving away from Fanck’s realistic stories in fairytale maintain settings, Riefenstahl filmed The Blue Light as a romantic and mystical tale, which she regarded as more fitting to the terrain. The Blue Light was enthusiastically received in the United States, Britain and France, and won the silver medal at the following Venice Biennale Film Festival. -> 1933 meeting with Hitler at Wilmershaven: after the international showcasing of The Blue Light (1932), Riefenstahl was convinced to attend a Nazi party rally. Ignorant of politics, Leni stated she was “mesmerised” by Hitler and his charisma. Riefenstahl was intrigued enough to write a letter to the Nazi party requesting a meeting with Hitler before she left for a shooting in Greenland. Hitler returned an invitation to meet in Wilhelmshaven in 1933; she was well known to him through her dance and films and Hitler was convinced of the importance of film as a medium for mass propaganda. Riefenstahl’s relationship with the Nazi party started positively as she believed Hitler was polite and modest. -> Ban on Jews working in the film industry: the Nazi control on the film industry allowed them to further their goal to create the Volksgemeinschaft. This called for the exclusion of all “undesirable influences”—that is, non-Aryans and Nazi opponents. In 1934, Goebbels appointed a Reichsfilmdramaturg (Nazi film censor) to evaluate movie scripts and ban the films of those actors and directors who the Ministry of Propaganda considered “opposed” to the ideals of the people’s community. Images, characterisation, scripts and even music had to satisfy the Nazi’s new censorship laws. Much of this regulation aimed to remove Jewish influences from the film industry. The Nazi’s were convinced that Jews dominated the industry. -> Commission for Victory of Faith (Nazi Party rally 1933): Although Leni initially refused the offer to work for the Nazi party, the ties with Hitler had been established in Wilhelmshaven. Leni started work on a new film and was not present to witness the establishment of the Nazi regime. In late August of 1933 she faced perseverant advances by the head of the Ministry of Propaganda, Goebbels. Riefenstahl persistently denied these requests, and soon discovered that pre-production on her current filming had been cancelled by the ministry. Riefenstahl, frustrated at the Nazi party’s perseverance relented and started preparations for Victory of Faith. With inadequate time to prepare and no knowledge in producing documentaries, Riefenstahl believed the end result was a failure. Hitler however believed it to be a success and urged Riefenstahl to film the next Nuremburg rally. Despite Hitler’s commission, the Nazi’s in general did not want Riefenstahl to make the film. She filmed under difficult conditions because they weren’t being cooperative. Goebbels said “If you were a man I’d throw you downstairs. You’re a dangerous woman”. In future interviews Leni is reluctant to acknowledge this film because it doesn’t meet her standards. Significance and evaluation -> Relationship with Hitler: Leni first saw Hitler at a party rally in 1932. She was impressed by his charisma and the way he could hold the audience’s attention. “Hitler was a demonically captivating person, he had a hypnotic effect.” Leni asserts that her relationship with Hitler was platonic, despite his sexual advances. In her memoirs she states he was “different from all other people” although “as a man… he did not interest me at all”. Yet this conflicts with her repeated statements “I was charmed by Hitler… Hitler was demonically charismatic”. In 1938, on her promotional tour for Olympia in the United States she was asked, “Are you Hitler’s girlfriend'” and she replied, “No those are false rumours. I only made documentaries for him.” These contradicting statements suggest that Leni is ashamed of her involvement in Nazism. Hitler requested a meeting with Leni and told her “when we come to power, you must make films for me.” Leni claims in her memoirs she was opposed to the idea and told Hitler “no” because she disagreed with his anti-Semitic policies. This is inconsistent with Goebbels’ journal entry, which states, “I suggest she should make a Hitler film. She is over the moon about the idea”. -> Triumph of the Will: was the documentary account of the 1934 Nuremberg rally. Riefenstahl had a vast amount of resources at her disposal. Riefenstahl was aiming to create a documentary that was interesting and showed the prowess that Hitler desired. The film was extremely successful. Domestic and international audiences were left with a very favourable image of the Nazi’s and the political and social transformation they had incurred. European audiences are assured that the new and orderly Germany does not threaten peace, the army is content to march and play games rather than demonstrate military prowess. Later on in life, it would be the film that plagued her career and had accusations such as of her being a Nazi sympathizer aimed at her. The film received numerous awards such as the German Film Prize in 1935. Triumph of the Will helped Riefenstahl reach her well-deserved place as a prominent figure of the filmmaking industry due to its outstanding quality and influence. -> Berlin Olympiad: was one of Riefenstahl’s finest projects. During its filming she employed and invented a number of new technologies and filming techniques such as mounted cameras on towers and planes, camera pits for low-angle shots, catapult camera to catch moving action and underwater cameras to film the swimmers. The debut of the film was postponed due to Germany’s military actions in Austria. It was released on 20 April 1938 with much praise. The film was another triumph for Riefenstahl. It received many awards such as the Golden Lion award and the German Film prize as well as the Polar Prize of Sweden. Many critics stated it was the best sports film of all time. Olympia cemented Leni Riefenstahl’s rise to prominence. However, in contrast to Triumph of the Will, Olympia is not as political; the label of propaganda cannot be so easily attached to it. The presence of African-American Jesse Owens in Olympia suggests that Riefenstahl did not completely accede to the Aryan ideal and chose subjects to film regardless of the Nazi doctrine. However, the emphasis on athletes and the youth can be seen to reflect elements of Nazi ideology. These linked with shots of Nazi insignia, lingering shots of successes of German sportspeople may imply an ulterior intention. -> International honours and criticism: both Triumph of the Will and Olympia won honours within Germany as well as internationally. The films also collected major cinematic awards, but these are somewhat tainted by the governments which awarded them. Olympia was almost universally critically acclaimed, although, she would have to defend its merits against the cynicism of the U.S. critics and politicians who rejected her work as propaganda. With the outbreak of World War II, Triumph of the Will and Olympia were banned in the United States. Hollywood effectively blacklisted Riefenstahl, thereby curbing any future success internationally. While historians agree on the technical brilliance of Riefenstahl’s major works, they strongly disagree about her motivation in producing these films. The question remains: were these films intended purely as Nazi propaganda or were they works of art that were misused by the Nazi’s' -> Post-war arrest: Germany surrendered to the intrusion of Russian troops in Berlin in 1945, and the U.S. Army arrested Riefenstahl. She escaped several times and managed to reach her family, but the reunion was short lived as she was quickly re-arrested and interrogated on her knowledge of the final solution, association with Hitler and her films. Denazification was an initiative undertaken to rid Germany of the Nazi doctrine. Because of Riefenstahl’s involvement in Triumph of the Will, she was arrested to be denazified. During this period Riefenstahl was informed of the many atrocities of World War II including the conditions of the Jewish concentration camps. After being classified as denazified Riefenstahl continued work on Tiefland. This area where she was working in was later handed over to the French, and their army confiscated her work on Tiefland and held her under house arrest. Tensions between Riefenstahl and her husband resulted in a divorce in the same year. In 1949 a trial ruled in favour that Leni Riefenstahl did not have any associations with the Nazis. After this trial, Leni still remained an unpopular figure. Her friends had left her and she found that the majority of the film industry did not want to associate with her. She has never been able to shake the shadows of her past, she has been quoted as saying: “I’ve suffered for half a century. It is an incredible burden.” Tiefland was returned to Riefenstahl with one third of the negatives missing; and was subsequently released in 1954. Due to the relative success of Tiefland, Riefenstahl started work on a new film named The Red Devils. The film did not reach production as Leni Riefenstahl was ostracised by the media who claimed the government was funding the film. Although Leni disputed the claim, the political and public pressure caused Riefenstahl’s investors to bail out. This trend of media intervention continued and made Riefenstahl’s professional career very difficult. -> 1960s Nuba photography: In the end, Leni found it too difficult to make films after the war, so she took up an interest in still photography. In October of 1962 Riefenstahl visited Africa to film and study the Nuba tribe after being inspired by a photograph of two native wrestlers. Leni made many trips to the isolated Nuba tribes and documented many of their customs and festivals. Public opinion against Riefenstahl began to change by 1972 with the success of her book The Last of the Nuba. In 1974 Riefenstahl developed a passion for diving and travelled to Kau. Although controversy was raised in whether Riefenstahl’s work with the Nuba people was a continuation of the Nazi ideology in physical perfection, her photography in Kau was met with worldwide acclaim. -> Controversies in later life: Riefenstahl’s last controversial act occurred in 2002 when advocates for the gypsy extras on Tiefland sued her after Riefenstahl denied any harm befalling them. The case was dismissed by the courts, but showed Riefenstahl’s ability at causing controversy up to her death on 8 September 2003. -> Evaluation: Nazi propagandist or feminist pioneer' Leni Riefenstahl was an extremely talented artist. Her obsession with her work and her privileged life have led many to believe that she was a Nazi sympathiser, and supported the regime. It is important to note that she did not ever join the party and that she never actually committed any offence, aside from supporting Hitler, and is that really an offence' Many hundreds of thousands of people across Germany and indeed across the world saw Hitler as the saviour for Germany, the messianic leader who would restore Germany to its former glory. Leni was simply making the best decision with the information she had, along with the rest of Germany, she was not to know what Hitler’s plans were and as far as she could tell he was doing everything in the interests of Germany. It is in fact too much to ask of Leni to say that she should have been more aware of the events that were going to take place and that she should have considered her impact politically. No doubt she did in fact consider her impact and did the best job she could to make Hitler and his party look as best they could, after all the majority of Germany loved Hitler and she admitted herself that she was in awe of his charisma. In her later life Leni makes mixed regards towards her career concerning Hitler and Triumph of the Will, at alternate times she says she wished she never made the film and regrets it deeply, yet on another occasion she said she has never done anything she wasn’t proud of or regretted. Leni simply made out to make a brilliant film, which it is, about Adolf Hitler and his Nazi party, the saviours of Germany. In looking at Olympia it is clear that Leni held the same views as the Nazi’s, as many Germans did, of the cult of the body and volksgemeinschaft etc. yet she was definitely not trying to represent Nazi ideals or make a propaganda film out of it. - Leni Riefenstahl’s role as a feminist pioneer must also be considered. Riefenstahl defied mountain climbing as an area traditionally reserved for men, going on to become the only woman apparent in the promotion of National Socialism. Albert Speer writes, “The Nazis were traditionally anti-feminist” and “she knew how to bend this man’s world to her purposes.” Riefenstahl’s “punishment” was due to many things, including that “…she was a woman” indicative of the hardships women had to experience to progress at that time. Whether or not Riefenstahl intended to glorify the Nazis, the entire Reich used her work for that purpose. Triumph of the Will and Olympia can be seen to symbolise the Nazi ethos of the time, which reflects the view that Riefenstahl was an artist whose personal preoccupations were primarily artistic and technical, not political, but that her films were used by Hitler and the Nazi Party for their own political gain. - Leni Riefenstahl’s significance as a historical figure can be further seen in the light of a powerful female pioneer. Riefenstahl crushed chauvinistic prejudices and excelled in a career dominated by men, which transcended Nazi Germany and impacted on an international level, questioning gender roles of the time. Feminist historians argue that she was able to obtain the admiration of Hitler, who viewed her as a great artistic talent, at a time when society confined women to strict roles (Kinder, Kirsch and Kutch). Many have labelled her one of the greatest female filmmakers of all time. The fact that she was the first woman to produce such a substantial body of work, further enhanced her ability to produce a significant historical impact. This can be seen in the fact that there were many men who were part of the Nazi regime who played a more active role than Riefenstahl who seemed to escape public persecution. Rainer Rother argues that “Riefenstahl’s case is different from others simply because she was a woman. The way sexist prejudices were mobilized against her in the post-war reaction underlines this point”. Leni Riefenstahl was able to significantly impact history through challenging gender roles by becoming a female pioneer not only in her field but also in society as a whole by becoming one of the most prominent figures in a male-dominated society. - Leni Riefenstahl had a significant and transcending impact on history and was inspired by her ideals rather than self-interest. She could be inspired by her ideals, which included Nazism and “cult of the body” and visualise them to present them in a form that could influence and move not only a nation but also the entire world. The impact that she left on history transcends the cinema screen and resonates through society and culture. The impact she had on the German public in her pro-Nazi films is felt through the ages due to what they aided and what they encouraged; the Nazi total seize of power and in her rise to a position of the single most prominent women in Nazi Germany and her questioning of gender roles through her spectacular performance in a male dominated profession. Biography: summary Leni Riefenstahl (22 August 1902–8 September 2003) was film producer known for her aesthetics born in 1902, Berlin Germany. - Her career began as a dancer → injured her knee → then attended a viewing of mountaineering nature film and became fascinated with the film medium. - She later approached director Arnold Fanck, requesting to star in his next project → starred in several Fanck films, where Riefenstahl was presented as athletic. - Her roles in later films include Das Blaue Licht (1932) and SOS Eisberg (1933), her final role as an actor. - In 1932, Riefenstahl attended a Nazi Congress rally where she was “mesmerized” by Hitler → then requested to meet with Hitler, who asked him to make films for him when in power. - Her first Nazi film, Victory of Faith (1933), a documentary account of the first congress rally undertaken when in power. The film was well received, and she was asked to film the 1993 rally, which Leni declined. - Instead, Riefenstahl commence the production of Tiefland, but after falling ill and reviewing the initial footage, she thought of the footage to be of poor quality and cancelled the programme. As a result, Leni agreed to make Triumph of the Will, a documentary propaganda film glorify the 1934 Nazi Congress rally. - In 1936, Riefenstahl qualified as an Olympic skier, but decided to film the event instead → Olympia. The film was noted for its technical and aesthetic achievements—she pioneered the use of camera tracking in film, and this technique fast became a universally used practice is sports filming. - In the outbreak of WWII (1939), a photograph of Leni wearing an SS uniform and pistol surfaced. On the day, Leni had witnessed the execution of 28 prisoners, although she claimed to have attempted to retaliate, but was threatened at gunpoint by a Nazi soldier. Shocked over the event, Riefenstahl met with Hitler and ended her career as a Nazi filmmaker. - After WWII, Leni spent four years in French detention over her war crimes, but insufficient evidence led to her tried for the lowest of Nazi offenses; a Nazi sympathiser. - After WWII, Leni attempted to make more films, but was met with resistance and protest and could not secure the required funding. - In 1944, Riefenstahl married Peter Jacob, who she divorced in the 1960s, marrying Horst Kethher—a man 40 years her junior. - From here, she became a professional still image photographer, and photographed the wedding of Rolling Stones rock star Mick Jagger. - She subsequently became interested in the Sudanese Nuba tribe, publishing two visual books, in 1974 and 1976. - When she was in her late 70s, Leni lied about her age to obtain a scuba diving certificate, beginner her new-found career as an underwater photographer. - At the age of 100, she released a documentary film about oceans, and died on 8 September the following year in her sleep. Riefenstahl