Günther Rittau (born 7 August 1893 in Königshütte (

Silesia Silesia (, also , ) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at around 8,000,000. Silesia is split ...

); died 6 August 1971 in

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

) was a German

cinematographer The cinematographer or director of photography (sometimes shortened to DP or DOP) is the person responsible for the photographing or recording of a film, television production, music video or other live action piece. The cinematographer is the ch ...

and film director. After study of science in Berlin, Rittau started his career in 1919 at the documentary-film department of Decla, later at

Universum Film AG UFA GmbH, shortened to UFA (), is a film and television production company that unites all production activities of the media conglomerate Bertelsmann in Germany. Its name derives from Universum-Film Aktiengesellschaft (normally abbreviated as ...

. He learned the job of camera operator "on the side". From 1924, he was active as a feature cameraman. His experiences with the documentary film production and the production of trick photographs let to the development of his style. ''

Metropolis A metropolis () is a large city or conurbation which is a significant economic, political, and cultural center for a country or region, and an important hub for regional or international connections, commerce, and communications. A big c ...

'' (1927) and a propaganda movie ''U-Boote westwärts!'' (en:''U-boats westwards!'') (1941, as director) are considered to be among his best artistic achievements. His film ''

The Eternal Tone ''The Eternal Tone'' (german: Der ewige Klang) is a 1943 German drama film directed by Günther Rittau and starring Elfriede Datzig, Rudolf Prack and Olga Tschechowa.Bock & Bergfelder p. 374 It was shot at the Babelsberg Studios, Babelsberg and T ...

'' (1943) about two brothers (a violinist and a violin maker) was considered "artistically valuable" by the

Reichsfilmkammer The Reichsfilmkammer (RFK; en, Reich Chamber of Film) was a statutory corporation controlled by the Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda that regulated the film industry in Nazi Germany between 1933 and 1945. Membership in the associa ...

. After World War II, he did not return to filmmaking until 1954. In 1967, he was awarded the

Filmband in Gold The German Film Award (), also known as Lola after its prize statuette, is the national film award of Germany. It is presented at an annual ceremony honouring cinematic achievements in the German film industry. Besides being the most important ...

. Günther Rittau is buried at the Waldfriedhof cemetery in Munich.

Filmography

Cinematographer

Director

* ' (1939) * '' U-Boote westwärts'' (1941) * ''Der Strom'' (1942) * ''

'' (also screenplay) (1943) *''Meine vier Jungens'' (1944) *''Der Scheiterhaufen'' (1945) * ''

The Years Pass ''The Years Pass'' (german: Die Jahre vergehen) is a 1945 German drama film directed by Günther Rittau and starring Heidemarie Hatheyer, Carl Kuhlmann and Werner Fuetterer.Bock & Bergfelder p. 33 It was shot at the Althoff Studios in Berlin an ...

'' (1945) * '' An Everyday Story'' (1948) * ''Vor uns liegt das Leben'' (also screenplay) (1948)

External links

*
Günther Rittau
at filmportal.de {{DEFAULTSORT:Rittau 1893 births 1971 deaths German film people People from Chorzów People from the Province of Silesia