![B-Friedrichsfelde Zentralfriedhof 03-2015 img33 Konrad Wolf](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/56/B-Friedrichsfelde_Zentralfriedhof_03-2015_img33_Konrad_Wolf.jpg)
Konrad Wolf (20 October 1925 – 7 March 1982) was an
East German
East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...
film director. He was the son of writer, doctor and diplomat
Friedrich Wolf Friedrich Wolf may refer to:
*Friedrich Wolf (writer) (1888–1953), German doctor and writer
*Friedrich August Wolf
Friedrich August Wolf (; 15 February 1759 – 8 August 1824) was a German classicist and is considered the founder of modern ...
, and the younger brother of
Stasi
The Ministry for State Security, commonly known as the (),An abbreviation of . was the Intelligence agency, state security service of the East Germany from 1950 to 1990.
The Stasi's function was similar to the KGB, serving as a means of maint ...
spymaster
Markus Wolf
Markus Johannes Wolf (19 January 1923 – 9 November 2006), also known as Mischa, was head of the Main Directorate for Reconnaissance (), the foreign intelligence division of East Germany's Ministry for State Security (, abbreviated MfS, commonl ...
. "Koni" was his nickname.
Biography
Because his father was Jewish and was an ardent and outspoken member of the
German Communist Party
The German Communist Party (german: Deutsche Kommunistische Partei, ) is a communist party in Germany. The DKP supports left positions and was an observer member of the European Left. At the end of February 2016 it left the European party.
His ...
(KPD) since 1928, he and his family left Germany via Austria, Switzerland, and France for
Moscow
Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...
when the
Nazis
Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Na ...
took power in March 1933, where, arriving in March 1934, Wolf came into intense contact with
Soviet
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
film.
["Solo Sunny"]
DEFA Film Library at the University of Massachusetts Amherst
The University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass Amherst, UMass) is a public research university in Amherst, Massachusetts and the sole public land-grant university in Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Founded in 1863 as an agricultural college, it ...
Amherst. Retrieved November 19, 2011
At age 10, he played a minor role in the film ''Kämpfer'', filmed among the German Communist emigrants in Moscow. In 1936, his family became Soviet citizens but then fell under suspicion leading to his father leaving for Spain in 1937 to serve as a doctor in the
International Brigades
The International Brigades ( es, Brigadas Internacionales) were military units set up by the Communist International to assist the Popular Front government of the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War. The organization existed f ...
during the
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...
.
[ He and his older brother attended the ]Karl Liebknecht School The Karl Liebknecht School (German: ''Karl-Liebknecht-Schule''), named after Karl Liebknecht, was a German-language elementary school in Moscow. It was established for the children of German refugees to the Soviet Union. It opened in 1924 and was c ...
in Moscow.[
He became friends with ]Louis Fischer
Louis Fischer (29 February 1896 – 15 January 1970) was an American journalist. Among his works were a contribution to the ex-communist treatise '' The God that Failed'' (1949), '' The Life of Mahatma Gandhi'' (1950), basis for the Academy A ...
's son Viktor Fischer and Wilhelm Wloch's son Lothar Wloch (1923–1976) who was later a German building contractor. In December 1942 at age 17, he volunteered into the Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...
, was sent to the front as an interpreter, served in the Caucasus campaigns, was present for the liberation of Warsaw
Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...
, and was among the first troops to reach Berlin
Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
in 1945.[ After the war, he was a cultural officer at Halle and Berlin and was a reporter for the '']Berliner Zeitung
The ''Berliner Zeitung'' (, ''Berlin Newspaper'') is a daily newspaper based in Berlin, Germany. Founded in East Germany in 1945, it is the only East German paper to achieve national prominence since reunification. It is published by Berliner ...
'' which began publishing again on 21 May 1945.[ He remained in the ]Soviet Army
uk, Радянська армія
, image = File:Communist star with golden border and red rims.svg
, alt =
, caption = Emblem of the Soviet Army
, start_date ...
until 1948. He later described these events in the 1968 film, '' Ich war neunzehn'' (''I Was Nineteen'').
Shortly after the war, Wolf returned to Moscow, where he studied at VGIK
The Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography (russian: Всероссийский государственный институт кинематографии имени С. А. Герасимова, meaning
''All-Russian State Institute of Cinemat ...
and was perplexed about whether he should be German or Russian and then live in Germany or the Soviet Union.[ His 1959 film ''Sterne'' (German: Stars) won the Special Jury Prize at the 1959 Cannes Film Festival.] In 1961, his film '' Professor Mamlock'' was entered into the 2nd Moscow International Film Festival
The 2nd Moscow International Film Festival was held from 9 to 23 July 1961. The Grand Prix was shared between the Japanese film ''The Naked Island'' directed by Kaneto Shindo and the Soviet film '' Clear Skies'' directed by Grigori Chukhrai.
Jur ...
where it won the Golden Prize.
His 1971 film, ''Goya or the Hard Way to Enlightenment
''Goya or the Hard Way to Enlightenment'' (german: Goya – oder der arge Weg der Erkenntnis) is a 1971 East German drama film directed by Konrad Wolf. It was entered into the 7th Moscow International Film Festival where it won a Special Prize. ...
'' was entered into the 7th Moscow International Film Festival
The 7th Moscow International Film Festival was held from 20 July to 3 August 1971. The Golden Prizes were awarded to the Italian film '' Confessions of a Police Captain'' directed by Damiano Damiani, the Japanese film ''Live Today, Die Tomorrow! ...
where it won a Special Prize.
He worked afterwards as a film director at DEFA
DEFA (''Deutsche Film-Aktiengesellschaft'') was the state-owned film studio of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) throughout the country's existence.
Since 2019, DEFA's film heritage has been made accessible and licensable on the PRO ...
. He was honorary president of the Union of Art from 1959 until 1966, and president of the DDR Academy of Arts, Berlin
The Academy of Arts (german: Akademie der Künste) is a state arts institution in Berlin, Germany. The task of the Academy is to promote art, as well as to advise and support the states of Germany.
The Academy's predecessor organization was fo ...
from 1965 until his death in 1982.
In 1978, he was a member of the jury at the 28th Berlin International Film Festival. In 1980, his film '' Solo Sunny'' was entered into the 30th Berlin International Film Festival.
He was married to the actress Christel Bodenstein
Christel Bodenstein (born 13 October 1938) is a German film and television actress. She appeared in many East German (GDR) productions and is best known outside Germany for her leading role as the young princess in '' The Singing Ringing Tree'' ...
from 1960 to 1978.
Films
*1955: '' Once Is Never''
*1956: '' Genesung''
*1957: '' Lissy''
*1958/1972: '' Sun Seekers''
*1959: ''Stars
A star is an astronomical object comprising a luminous spheroid of plasma held together by its gravity. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun. Many other stars are visible to the naked eye at night, but their immense distances from Earth ma ...
''
*1960: '
*1961: '' Professor Mamlock''
*1964: '' Divided Heaven''
*1966: ' (TV film)
*1968: ''I Was Nineteen
''I Was Nineteen'' (german: Ich war neunzehn) is a 1968 East German film produced by Konrad Wolf for the DEFA studio.
The film tells the story of a young German, Gregor Hecker (Jaecki Schwarz), who fled the Nazis with his parents to Moscow and ...
''
*1971: ''Goya or the Hard Way to Enlightenment
''Goya or the Hard Way to Enlightenment'' (german: Goya – oder der arge Weg der Erkenntnis) is a 1971 East German drama film directed by Konrad Wolf. It was entered into the 7th Moscow International Film Festival where it won a Special Prize. ...
''
*1974: '
*1976: ''Mama, I'm Alive
''Mama, I'm Alive'' () is a 1977 East German film directed by Konrad Wolf. It was chosen as East Germany's official submission to the 50th Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film, but did not manage to receive a nomination.Margaret Herrick ...
''
*1979: '' Solo Sunny'' (co-director: Wolfgang Kohlhaase
Wolfgang Kohlhaase (13 March 1931 – 5 October 2022) was a German screenwriter, film director, and writer. He was considered "one of the most important screenwriters in German film history", and was one of the GDR's most well-known and prolific ...
)
*1981/1982: ''Busch singt'' (6-part documentary about Ernst Busch, completed by others)
See also
* Konrad Wolf Prize
Notes
References
*
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wolf, Konrad
1925 births
1982 deaths
East German people
People from Hechingen
Film directors from Berlin
Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography alumni
People from the Province of Hohenzollern
German people of Jewish descent
Refugees from Nazi Germany in the Soviet Union
Soviet military personnel
Soviet military personnel of World War II
Recipients of the Art Prize of the German Democratic Republic