''Three Birch Trees on the Heath'' (German: ''Drei Birken auf der Heide'') is a 1956 West German

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

directed by

Ulrich Erfurth Ulrich Erfurth (1910–1986) was a German film director.Giesen p.201 Filmography Director * ' (1944/1950) * ''Finale'' (1948) * ''Not Afraid of Big Animals'' (1953) * ''Columbus Discovers Kraehwinkel'' (1954) * ''Captain Wronski'' (1954) * '' On ...

and starring Margit Saad,

Sonja Sutter Sonja Sutter (17 January 1931 – 1 June 2017) was a German film actress. She was one of the few actors that was allowed to appear in productions in both East and West Germany. She is remembered for her role as Fraulein Rottenmeier in the German ...

and

Helmuth Schneider Helmuth Schneider (18 December 1920 – 17 March 1972) was a German actor. Schneider portrayed the role of Uncle Dimitri in ''The White Horses''. He died in a traffic accident in Rio de Janeiro in 1972. Selected filmography *1944: '' Dr ...

. It was one of 54

heimatfilm ' (, German for "homeland-films"; German singular: ') were films of a genre popular in Germany, Switzerland, and Austria from the late 1940s to the early 1960s. ''Heimat'' can be translated as "home" (in the geographic sense), "hometown" or "homela ...

produced that year, as the genre's popularity reached its peak.Boa & Palfreyman p.214 The film's sets were designed by the

art director Art director is the title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, film industry, film and television, the Internet, and video games. It is the charge of a sole art director to supervise and ...

Dieter Bartels Dieter Bartels (28 March 1920 – 3 September 2010) was a German art director. He is sometimes credited as F. Dieter Bartels.Sweeney p.190 Selected filmography * '' Victoria and Her Hussar'' (1954) * '' Island of the Dead'' (1955) * '' Lost Chi ...

. The film was shot at the

Wandsbek Studios The Wandsbek Studios are film production and television studios located in Wandsbek, a district of the German city of Hamburg. The complex was established in 1948 when Real Film, set up the previous year, acquired a site in Wandsbek for constr ...

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

and on location around

Lüneburg Heath Lüneburg Heath (german: Lüneburger Heide) is a large area of heath, geest, and woodland in the northeastern part of the state of Lower Saxony in northern Germany. It forms part of the hinterland for the cities of Hamburg, Hanover and Bremen a ...

outside the city.

Plot

Cast

* Margit Saad as Susanna, Zigeunerin *

as Rose Heidkämper *

as Hans Freese, Revierförster *

Albert Matterstock Albert Matterstock (13 September 1911 – 29 June 1960) was a German film actor. He played the lead in the 1938 aviation film ''Target in the Clouds''.Paris p.93 Selected filmography * ''Land of Love'' (1937) * '' Serenade'' (1937) * '' Yvette'' ...

as Jan Wedekind, Verleger *

Rolf Wanka Rolf Wanka (14 February 1901 – 28 November 1982) was an Austrian actor. Biography He was of Czech, German and French origin. His father was Dr. Josef Wanka was head physician in Vienna. His mother was Emma Pippich. His family owned a mans ...

as Ernö, Zigeunerprimas *

Irene von Meyendorff Irene von Meyendorff (6 June 1916 – 28 September 2001) was a Russian-born German-British actress. Biography Irene von Meyendorff was of Baltic German origin, born in 1916 in Tallinn (then Reval, Russia), Estonia as the eldest child of a German ...

as Ada Wedekind *

Paul Henckels Paul Henckels (9 September 1885 – 27 May 1967) was a German film and stage actor. He appeared in more than 230 films between 1921 and 1965. Paul Henckels had started his acting career on the stage in the 1900s. He was well known for his e ...

as Vater Heidkämper, Imker *

Albert Florath Albert Peter Adam Florath (7 December 1888, Bielefeld – 11 March 1957, Gaildorf) was a German stage and film actor. Early life and education Born to Joseph Florath, a locksmith, and his wife Matilda, née Burkart, he attended school in Brak ...

as Pastor Mettelmann *

Carsta Löck Carsta Löck (28 December 1902 – 9 October 1993) was a German film actress. Selected filmography * ''Refugees'' (1933) * '' Ripening Youth'' (1933) * '' The Double Fiance'' (1934) * ''Trouble with Jolanthe'' (1934) * ''Police Report'' (1934) ...

as Meta, Haushälterin bei Wedekind *

Robert Meyn Robert Meyn (16 January 1896 – 2 March 1972) was a German stage, film and television actor.Fehrenbach p.103 Partial filmography * '' The Sinner'' (1951) - Von Hernsdorf - Marinas Stiefvater / Marina's Stepfather * ''Kommen Sie am Ersten'' (19 ...

as Rackebrand, Forstmeister *

Hubert Hilten Hubert is a Germanic masculine given name, from ''hug'' "mind" and ''beraht'' "bright". It also occurs as a surname. Saint Hubertus or Hubert (c. 656 – 30 May 727) is the patron saint of hunters, mathematicians, opticians, and metalworkers. ...

as Mirko, junger Zigeuner *

Bum Krüger Bum Krüger (born ''Willy Krüger''; 13 March 1906 - 15 March 1971) was a German actor. He appeared in more than one hundred films from 1948 to 1969. Filmography References External links * 1906 births 1971 deaths German male film ...

as Kriminalassistent Grimm *

Balduin Baas Balduin Baas (9 June 1922 – 22 May 2006) was a German actor. He appeared in more than 70 films and television shows between 1956 and 2002. Partial filmography * '' The Captain from Köpenick'' (1956) - Ostpreußischer Grenadier * ' (1956 ...

as Plaskude *

Jochen Meyn Jochen is a given name. Notable people with the name include: *Jochen Asche, East German luger, competed during the 1960s *Jochen Böhler (born 1969), German historian, specializing in the history of World War II *Jochen Babock (born 1953), East G ...

as Sterthus, Hilfsförster *

Hans Schwarz Jr. Hans may refer to: __NOTOC__ People * Hans (name), a masculine given name * Hans Raj Hans, Indian singer and politician ** Navraj Hans, Indian singer, actor, entrepreneur, cricket player and performer, son of Hans Raj Hans ** Yuvraj Hans, Punjabi ...

as Oldehoff, Torfbauer *

Lore Schulz Lore may refer to: * Folklore, acquired knowledge or traditional beliefs * Oral lore or oral tradition, orally conveyed cultural knowledge and traditions Places * Loré, former French commune * Loré (East Timor), a city and subdistrict in La ...

as Trina, Dorfmädchen *

Hans Fitze Hans may refer to: __NOTOC__ People * Hans (name), a masculine given name * Hans Raj Hans, Indian singer and politician ** Navraj Hans, Indian singer, actor, entrepreneur, cricket player and performer, son of Hans Raj Hans ** Yuvraj Hans, Punjabi ...

as Ahrens, Gemeindevorsteher *

Werner Schumacher Werner Schumacher (born 4 May 1921 in Berlin - died 18 April 2004 in Vienna) was a German actor. From 1971 until 1986 he starred in the Süddeutscher Rundfunk version of the popular television crime series ''Tatort''. Selected filmography * ''D ...

as Born, Wachtmeister *

Peter Ahrweiler Peter Ahrweiler () (6 January 1915 – 3 September 2004) was a German actor and theater director. Biography Early life Ahrweiler was born in Krefeld. Career Ahrweiler had always wanted to be a pilot. However, after World War II, he opted ...

as Ein Beamter * Kerstin De Ahna as Dörte, Dorfmädchen *

Maria Litto Maria Litto (1919–1996) was a German ballet dancer, choreographer and film actress. In 1970, she pioneered dance programming on German television. Early life Born in Ovenhausen, Höxter, on 9 September 1919, Litto attended the town's primary and ...

as Jolan, Zigeunerin * Alma Auler as Telefonistin * Ronni Fischer as Geza, ein junger Zigeuner *

Erica Schramm Erica or ERICA may refer to: * Erica (given name) * ''Erica'' (plant), a flowering plant genus * Erica (chatbot), a service of Bank of America * ''Erica'' (video game), a 2019 FMV video game * ''Erica'' (spider), a jumping spider genus * Eric ...

as Krankenschwester *

Mita von Ahlefeldt Mita or MITA can refer to: *Mita (name) *''Mit'a'' or ''mita'', a form of public service in the Inca Empire and later in the Viceroyalty of Peru *Mita, Meguro, Tokyo, a neighborhood in Tokyo, Japan *Mita, Minato, Tokyo, a neighborhood in Tokyo, Jap ...

as Frau Mettelmann * August Weiß as Istvan, Stammesältester der Zigeuner

References

Bibliography

* Elizabeth Boa & Rachel Palfreyman. ''Heimat - A German Dream: Regional Loyalties and National Identity in German Culture 1890-1990''. OUP Oxford, 21 Sep 2000.

External links

* 1956 films 1956 romantic drama films German romantic drama films West German films 1950s German-language films Films directed by Ulrich Erfurth Films about Romani people Films shot at Wandsbek Studios Real Film films 1950s German films {{1950s-Germany-film-stub