Volker Schlöndorff (; born 31 March 1939) is a German film director, screenwriter and producer who has worked in Germany, France and the United States. He was a prominent member of the

New German Cinema New German Cinema () is a period in Cinema of Germany, West German cinema which lasted from 1962 to 1982, in which a new generation of directors emerged who, working with low budgets, and influenced by the French New Wave and Italian Neorealism, ...

of the late 1960s and early 1970s. He has won an

Oscar Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to: People and fictional and mythical characters * Oscar (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters named Oscar, Óscar or Oskar * Oscar (footballer, born 1954), Brazilian footballer ...

as well as the

Palme d'Or The (; ) is the highest prize awarded to the director of the Best Feature Film of the Official Competition at the Cannes Film Festival. It was introduced in 1955 by the festival's organizing committee. Previously, from 1939 to 1954, the festiv ...

at the

1979 Cannes Film Festival The 32nd Cannes Film Festival took place from 10 to 24 May 1979. French writer Françoise Sagan served as jury president for the main competition. The ''Palme d'Or'', the festival's top prize, was jointly awarded to ''Apocalypse Now'' by Francis ...

for ''

The Tin Drum ''The Tin Drum'' (, ) is a 1959 novel by Günter Grass, the first book of his Danzig Trilogy. It was adapted into a 1979 film, which won both the 1979 Palme d'Or and the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1980. To "beat a ti ...

'' (1979), the film version of the novel by

Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; ; ) are awards administered by the Nobel Foundation and granted in accordance with the principle of "for the greatest benefit to humankind". The prizes were first awarded in 1901, marking the fifth anniversary of Alfred N ...

-winning author

Günter Grass Günter Wilhelm Grass (; 16 October 1927 – 13 April 2015) was a German novelist, poet, playwright, illustrator, graphic artist, sculptor, and recipient of the 1999 Nobel Prize in Literature. He was born in the Free City of Danzig (now Gda ...

Early life

Volker Schlöndorff was born in

Wiesbaden Wiesbaden (; ) is the capital of the German state of Hesse, and the second-largest Hessian city after Frankfurt am Main. With around 283,000 inhabitants, it is List of cities in Germany by population, Germany's 24th-largest city. Wiesbaden form ...

, then part of

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

, to the physician Georg Schlöndorff. His mother was killed in a kitchen fire in 1944. His family moved to Paris in 1956, where Schlöndorff won awards at school for his work in philosophy. He graduated in political science at the Sorbonne, while at the same time studying film at the Institut des hautes études cinématographiques, where he was friends with

Bertrand Tavernier Bertrand Tavernier (; 25 April 1941 – 25 March 2021) was a French film director, screenwriter, and producer. Life and career Tavernier was born in Lyon, France, the son of Geneviève (née Dumond) and René Tavernier, a publicist and writer, ...

and met

Louis Malle Louis Marie Malle (; 30 October 1932 – 23 November 1995) was a French film director, screenwriter, and producer who worked in both French cinema and Hollywood. Described as "eclectic" and "a filmmaker difficult to pin down", Malle made document ...

. Malle gave him his first job as his assistant director on '' Zazie in the Metro'' (1960), which continued with the films '' A Very Private Affair'' (1962), '' The Fire Within'' (1963), and '' Viva Maria!'' (1965). Schlöndorff also worked as assistant director on

Alain Resnais Alain Resnais (; 3 June 19221 March 2014) was a French film director and screenwriter whose career extended over more than six decades. After training as a film editor in the mid-1940s, he went on to direct short films including '' Night and Fog ...

's '' Last Year at Marienbad'' and

Jean-Pierre Melville Jean-Pierre Grumbach (20 October 1917 – 2 August 1973), known professionally as Jean-Pierre Melville (), was a French filmmaker. Considered a spiritual godfather of the French New Wave, he was one of the first fully-independent French filmmake ...

's '' Léon Morin, Priest'' (both 1961). During this time he also made his first short film, '' Who Cares?'', about French people living in Frankfurt in 1960. He collaborated with filmmaker Jean-Daniel Pollet on the 40-minute documentary '' Méditerranée'', released in 1963. The film is highly regarded, gaining praise from

Jean-Luc Godard Jean-Luc Godard ( , ; ; 3 December 193013 September 2022) was a French and Swiss film director, screenwriter, and film critic. He rose to prominence as a pioneer of the French New Wave film movement of the 1960s, alongside such filmmakers as ...

and consistently appearing in the popular book '' 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die''.

Early film career

Schlöndorff returned to Germany to make his feature film debut, '' Young Törless'' (''Der junge Törless'', 1966). Produced by Malle and based on

Robert Musil Robert Musil (; 6 November 1880 – 15 April 1942) was an Austrian philosophical writer. His unfinished novel, ''The Man Without Qualities'' (), is generally considered to be one of the most important and influential modernist novels. Family M ...

's novel '' The Confusions of Young Törless'', it debuted at the 1966 Cannes Film Festival. Taking place at a semi-military Austrian boarding school, Törless witnesses the bullying of a fellow student but does nothing to prevent it despite his superior and mature intellect. He gradually begins to accept his personal responsibility for the abuse through his inaction and runs away from the school. The analogy to prewar Germany is obvious and the film was highly praised upon release, winning the

FIPRESCI The International Federation of Film Critics (FIPRESCI, short for ''Fédération Internationale de la Presse Cinématographique'') is an association of national organizations of professional film critics and film journalists from around the wor ...

Prize at Cannes.Wakeman, John. World Film Directors, Volume 2. The H. W. Wilson Company. 1988. 983–987. The

movement unofficially began in 1962 with the

Oberhausen Manifesto The Oberhausen Manifesto was a declaration by a group of 26 young West German filmmakers at the International Short Film Festival Oberhausen, North Rhine-Westphalia on 28 February 1962. The manifesto was a call to arms to establish a "new estGerm ...

, calling new young German filmmakers to revitalize filmmaking in Germany, much like the

French New Wave The New Wave (, ), also called the French New Wave, is a French European art cinema, art film movement that emerged in the late 1950s. The movement was characterized by its rejection of traditional filmmaking conventions in favor of experimentat ...

of the previous few years. Although not among the initial group of filmmakers involved, Schlöndorff was quick to align himself with the group and ''Young Törless'' is considered one of its most important films. Schlöndorff's next film was '' Degree of Murder'' (1967), a counter-culture-saturated film with a musical score by

Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...

guitarist

Brian Jones Lewis Brian Hopkin Jones (28 February 1942 – 3 July 1969) was an English musician and founder of the Rolling Stones. Initially a slide guitarist, he went on to sing backing vocals and played a wide variety of instruments on Rolling Stones r ...

. The film stars Jones's then girlfriend Anita Pallenberg as a young waitress who accidentally kills her boyfriend and hides the body with the help of two male friends. The film was very popular upon release among "swinging sixties" youths. He then made another film that spoke to the counter-culture generation, '' Man on Horseback'' (''Michael Kohlhaas – Der Rebell'', 1969), set in medieval Germany. Michael Kohlhaas is a horse trader who has been cheated by a local nobleman and nearly starts a revolution to get revenge. The film starred David Warner,

Anna Karina Anna Karina (born Hanne Karin Blarke Bayer; 23 September 1940 – 14 December 2019)

and Anita Pallenberg, and was made in both German and English versions. Schlöndorff then worked on ''

Baal Baal (), or Baʻal, was a title and honorific meaning 'owner' or 'lord Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power (social and political), power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The ...

'' (1970), an adaptation for West German television of

Bertolt Brecht Eugen Berthold Friedrich Brecht (10 February 1898 – 14 August 1956), known as Bertolt Brecht and Bert Brecht, was a German theatre practitioner, playwright, and poet. Coming of age during the Weimar Republic, he had his first successes as a p ...

's first play, and cast

Rainer Werner Fassbinder Rainer Werner Fassbinder (; 31 May 1945 – 10 June 1982), sometimes credited as R. W. Fassbinder, was a German filmmaker, dramatist and actor. He is widely regarded as one of the major figures and catalysts of the New German Cinema moveme ...

in the lead role, along with

Margarethe von Trotta Margarethe von Trotta (; born 21 February 1942)Hans Helmut Prinzler, ''Chronik des deutschen Films, 1895–1994'' (Stuttgart and Weimar: Verlag J. B. Metzler, 1995), p. 149. is a German film director, screenwriter, and actress. She has been ref ...

, whom Schlöndorff married in 1971. Schlöndorff adapted the story of a self-destructive poet to modern-day Munich. He then made another TV movie, '' The Sudden Wealth of the Poor People of Kombach'' (1971), also starring Fassbinder. The film depicts seven peasants in 19th-century Germany who rob the local tax collection cart but are so conditioned by their poverty that they cannot handle their newfound wealth. ' (1972) examines a group of people who have lost their sense of morals and co-stars von Trotta. Von Trotta both starred in and co-wrote Schlöndorff's next film, ' (''Strohfeuer'', 1972). The film took a feminist look at the condition of modern women in Munich. Von Trotta plays Elizabeth Junker, a recently divorced woman who must struggle to live her life independently as her husband has everything come easily to him, including the villa and son they shared together as a married couple. The film is loosely based on von Trotta's experience of divorcing her first husband. Schlöndorff then completed the TV movie ' (''Übernachtung in Tirol'', 1974); directed his first opera in Frankfurt, a production of

Leoš Janáček Leoš Janáček (, 3 July 1854 – 12 August 1928) was a Czech composer, Music theory, music theorist, Folkloristics, folklorist, publicist, and teacher. He was inspired by Moravian folk music, Moravian and other Slavs, Slavic music, includin ...

's ''

Káťa Kabanová ''Káťa Kabanová'' (also known in various spellings including ''Katia'', ''Katja'', ''Katya'', and ''Kabanowa'') is an opera in three acts, with music by Leoš Janáček to a libretto by the composer based on ''The Storm (Ostrovsky), The Storm'' ...

'', in the same year; and adapted the

Henry James Henry James ( – ) was an American-British author. He is regarded as a key transitional figure between literary realism and literary modernism, and is considered by many to be among the greatest novelists in the English language. He was the ...

short story "Georgina's Reasons" as ''Les raisons de Georgina'' (1975) for French TV.

International success as a filmmaker

Schlöndorff (and the New German Cinema movement as a whole) had his first financial hit film with '' The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum'' (1975). Based on the

novel A novel is an extended work of narrative fiction usually written in prose and published as a book. The word derives from the for 'new', 'news', or 'short story (of something new)', itself from the , a singular noun use of the neuter plural of ...

by Heinrich Böll, Schlöndorff co-wrote and co-directed the film with von Trotta, in her directorial debut. The film stars Angela Winkler as Blum, who after falling in love and spending the night with a young army deserter becomes the victim of a corrupt police investigation and predatory tabloid newspaper, which cast her as both a terrorist and a prostitute. The newspaper is based upon the real right-wing German tabloid ''

Bild-Zeitung ''Bild'' (, ) or ''Bild-Zeitung'' (, ) is a German tabloid newspaper published by Axel Springer SE. The paper is published from Monday to Saturday; on Sundays, its sister paper '' Bild am Sonntag'' () is published instead, which has a differen ...

'', whose publisher

Axel Springer Axel Cäsar Springer (2 May 1912 – 22 September 1985) was a German publisher and founder of what is now Axel Springer SE, the largest media publishing firm in Europe. By the early 1960s his print titles dominated the West German daily press m ...

was the inspiration for the character Werner Tötges. In Schlöndorff's view, West Germany had fallen into political hysteria over the activities of a terrorist group, the

Red Army Faction The Red Army Faction (, ; RAF ),See the section "Name" also known as the Baader–Meinhof Group or Baader–Meinhof Gang ( ), was a West German far-left militant group founded in 1970 and active until 1998, considered a terrorist organisat ...

. The police and journalistic activities in both Böll's novel and Schlöndorff's film portray the Red Army Faction era as reminiscent of

McCarthyism McCarthyism is a political practice defined by the political repression and persecution of left-wing individuals and a Fear mongering, campaign spreading fear of communist and Soviet influence on American institutions and of Soviet espionage i ...

in the 1950s U.S., including illegal police raids, phone tapping and tabloid smears. Böll was heavily attacked after the publication of the novel, but both it and the film were hugely successful in West Germany. After directing his second opera, '' We Come to the River'', in 1976, Schlöndorff followed ''The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum'' with the equally political ''

Coup de Grâce A coup de grâce (; ) is an act of mercy killing in which a person or animal is struck with a melee weapon or shot with a projectile to end their suffering from mortal wounds with or without their consent. Its meaning has extended to refer to ...

'' (1976). Based on a novel by French author

Marguerite Yourcenar Marguerite Yourcenar (, ; ; born Marguerite Antoinette Jeanne Marie Ghislaine Cleenewerck de Crayencour; 8 June 190317 December 1987) was a Belgian-born French novelist and essayist who became a US citizen in 1947. Winner of the Prix Femina and ...

, the film stars von Trotta (who co-wrote the script) as Sophie von Reval, a young left-wing aristocrat who sides with the

Bolshevik Revolution The October Revolution, also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution (in Soviet historiography), October coup, Bolshevik coup, or Bolshevik revolution, was the second of two revolutions in Russia in 1917. It was led by Vladimir L ...

after being rejected by a young German soldier preparing to fight the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

in 1919. The film depicts the same time period and subject matter that von Trotta revisited in the film ''

Rosa Luxemburg Rosa Luxemburg ( ; ; ; born Rozalia Luksenburg; 5 March 1871 – 15 January 1919) was a Polish and naturalised-German revolutionary and Marxist theorist. She was a key figure of the socialist movements in Poland and Germany in the early 20t ...

'' (1986). A supporting actress in ''Coup de Grâce'' was

Valeska Gert Valeska Gert (11 January 1892 – c. 16 March 1978) was a German dancer, pantomime, cabaret artist, actress and pioneering performance artist. Early life and career Gert was born as Gertrud Valesca Samosch in Berlin to a Jewish family. She was the ...

, a former cabaret dancer, circus performer and silent film actress who had worked with

Greta Garbo Greta Garbo (born Greta Lovisa Gustafsson; 18 September 1905 – 15 April 1990) was a Swedish-American actress and a premier star during Hollywood's Silent film, silent and early Classical Hollywood cinema, golden eras. Regarded as one of the g ...

and G. W. Pabst. This led to the documentary about her life, '' Just for Fun, Just for Play'', in 1977. Schlöndorff then contributed to the anthology film '' Germany in Autumn'' (1978), in which nine German filmmakers (including Fassbinder,

Alexander Kluge Alexander Kluge (born 14 February 1932) is a German author, philosopher, academic and film director.(editor) Early life, education and early career Kluge was born in Halberstadt, Province of Saxony (now Saxony-Anhalt), Germany. After growing ...

Edgar Reitz Edgar Reitz (born 1 November 1932) is a German filmmaker and Professor of Film at the Staatliche Hochschule für Gestaltung (State University of Design) in Karlsruhe. He is best-known for his internationally acclaimed Heimat (film series), ''Hei ...

, and Böll) made short films about the hysteria and political chaos in West Germany during the German Autumn of 1977. Schlöndorff's next film was the most successful and ambitious of his career: ''

'', released in 1979. The film was based on the

, who for years had rejected proposed adaptations of his book until giving Schlöndorff his approval (and assistance) to make the film. ''The Tin Drum'' stars David Bennent as the protagonist Oscar Matzerath, who, after receiving a tin drum on his third birthday, makes the conscious choice to stop growing and remain a three-year-old for the rest of his life. He hurls himself down a flight of stairs so as to give the adults around him a rational explanation for his handicap, and later discovers that he has the ability to tactically shatter glass with the power of his high-pitched scream, which he produces whenever anyone attempts to take his tin drum away from him. The film co-stars Angela Winkler as Oscar's mother, and

Mario Adorf Mario Adorf (; born 8 September 1930) is a German actor, considered to be one of the great veteran character actors of European cinema. Since 1954, he has played both leading and supporting roles in over 200 film and television productions, am ...

and

Daniel Olbrychski Daniel Marcel Olbrychski (; born 27 February 1945) is a Polish people, Polish film actor, film and theatre actor who is widely considered one of the greatest Polish actors of his generation. He appeared in 180 films and TV productions and is bes ...

as the German and Kashubian (Pole) who may both be his biological fathers. It mostly takes place from the end of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

to the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

(when Oscar is 20) in the city of Danzig, a Free City under League of Nations protection. It was also the site of the first battle of the war, at the

Post Office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letter (message), letters and parcel (package), parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post o ...

, in which Oscar takes part. The film was widely hailed as a masterpiece and shared the

Palme d'or The (; ) is the highest prize awarded to the director of the Best Feature Film of the Official Competition at the Cannes Film Festival. It was introduced in 1955 by the festival's organizing committee. Previously, from 1939 to 1954, the festiv ...

at the

with ''

Apocalypse Now ''Apocalypse Now'' is a 1979 American psychological epic war film produced and directed by Francis Ford Coppola. The screenplay, co-written by Coppola, John Milius, and Michael Herr, is loosely inspired by the 1899 novella '' Heart of Darkn ...

'', as well as winning the 1979

for Best Foreign Language Film. Schlöndorff collaborated with

Stefan Aust Stefan Aust (; born 1 July 1946) is a German journalist. He was the editor-in-chief of the weekly news magazine from 1994 to February 2008 and has been the publisher of the conservative leading newspaper since 2014 and the paper's editor until ...

, Alexander Kluge and Alexander von Eschwege on the documentary '' The Candidate'' (1980), a film about the political campaign of the CDU/CSU candidate for chancellor Franz Josef Strauss. He next made '' The Circle of Deceit'' released in 1981. Based on the novel by Nicolas Born, the film concerns the politics and moral struggles of war photographers. The film stars

Bruno Ganz Bruno Ganz (; 22 March 1941 – 16 February 2019) was a Swiss actor whose career in German stage, television and film productions spanned nearly 60 years. He was known for his collaborations with the directors Werner Herzog, Éric Rohmer, Franc ...

and

Jerzy Skolimowski Jerzy Skolimowski (; born 5 May 1938) is a Polish film director, screenwriter, dramatist, actor and painter. Beginning as a screenwriter for Andrzej Wajda's ''Innocent Sorcerers'' (1960), Skolimowski has made more than twenty films since his dire ...

as photojournalists covering the Lebanon Civil War in Beirut in 1975.

Hollywood and later career

Schlöndorff's first English-language film was '' Swann in Love'' (1984), an adaptation of the first two volumes of

Marcel Proust Valentin Louis Georges Eugène Marcel Proust ( ; ; 10 July 1871 – 18 November 1922) was a French novelist, literary critic, and essayist who wrote the novel (in French – translated in English as ''Remembrance of Things Past'' and more r ...

's ''

In Search of Lost Time ''In Search of Lost Time'' (), first translated into English as ''Remembrance of Things Past'', and sometimes referred to in French as ''La Recherche'' (''The Search''), is a novel in seven volumes by French author Marcel Proust. This early twen ...

''. The film was shot in France and financed by Gaumont, and stars

Jeremy Irons Jeremy John Irons (; born 19 September 1948) is an English actor. Known for his roles on stage and screen, he has received numerous accolades including an Academy Award, a Tony Award, three Primetime Emmy Awards, and two Golden Globe Awards, ...

Ornella Muti Francesca Romana Rivelli (born 9 March 1955), professionally known as Ornella Muti, is an Italian actress. Among the best-known Italian actresses, in her career, she has worked across various genres, working alongside Italian directors such as ...

Alain Delon Alain Fabien Maurice Marcel Delon (; 8 November 1935 – 18 August 2024) was a French actor, film producer, screenwriter, singer, and businessman. Acknowledged as a cultural and cinematic leading man of the 20th century, Delon emerged as one of ...

and

Fanny Ardant Fanny Marguerite Judith Ardant (born 22 March 1949) is a French actress and film director. She is the recipient of numerous accolades, including two César Awards and a Lumière Award. Early life Ardant was born on 22 March 1949, in Saumur, ...

. Schlöndorff then went to the United States to make a TV adaptation of

Arthur Miller Arthur Asher Miller (October 17, 1915 – February 10, 2005) was an American playwright, essayist and screenwriter in the 20th-century American theater. Among his most popular plays are '' All My Sons'' (1947), '' Death of a Salesman'' (1 ...

's ''

Death of a Salesman ''Death of a Salesman'' is a 1949 stage play written by the American playwright Arthur Miller. The play premiered on Broadway in February 1949, running for 742 performances. It is a two-act tragedy set in late 1940s Brooklyn told through a ...

'', starring

Dustin Hoffman Dustin Lee Hoffman (born August 8, 1937) is an American actor. As one of the key actors in the formation of New Hollywood, Hoffman is known for Dustin Hoffman filmography, his versatile portrayals of antiheroes and emotionally vulnerable charac ...

as Willy Loman and

John Malkovich John Gavin Malkovich (born December 9, 1953) is an American actor. He is the recipient of several accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award, in addition to nominations for two Academy Awards, a BAFTA Award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, and ...

as Biff. Both actors won

Emmy The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award catego ...

s for their performances and Schlöndorff was nominated for an Emmy for his direction. The film premiered on television in 1985 and was released theatrically throughout Europe over the following years. Schlöndorff followed this with another TV movie in the US, ''

A Gathering of Old Men ''A Gathering of Old Men'' is a novel by Ernest J. Gaines published in 1983. Set on a 1970s Louisiana cane farm, the novel addresses racial discrimination in the post-civil rights era South. The novel's title characters each admit to the mu ...

'', based on the novel of the same name by Ernest J. Gaines. The film stars

Richard Widmark Richard Weedt Widmark (December 26, 1914March 24, 2008) was an American film, stage, and television actor and producer. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his role as the villainous Tommy Udo in his debut film, ''Kiss of Death (1947 film ...

, Holly Hunter and Lou Gossett Jr. and concerns racial discrimination in 1970s Louisiana. Schlöndorff returned to theatrical films with the Hollywood science fiction film ''

The Handmaid's Tale ''The Handmaid's Tale'' is a futuristic dystopian novel by Canadian author Margaret Atwood published in 1985. It is set in a near-future New England in a patriarchal, totalitarian theonomic state known as the Republic of Gilead, which has ...

'' (1990). The film's story takes place in a dystopian near future in which most women are sterile due to pollution. Kate ( Natasha Richardson) is arrested after attempting to flee to Canada and forced to become a "Handmaid". Handmaids are fertile women who are enslaved by the state and put in the households of wealthy men – who have "ceremonial" sex with them in the hope of conceiving a child. She becomes the Handmaid of the Commander (

Robert Duvall Robert Selden Duvall (; born January 5, 1931) is an American actor. With a career spanning seven decades, he is regarded as one of the greatest actors of all time. He has received an Academy Awards, Academy Award, a British Academy Film Awards ...

), Fred, who is married to Serena Joy (

Faye Dunaway Dorothy Faye Dunaway (born January 14, 1941) is an American actress. She is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Faye Dunaway, many accolades, including an Academy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, three Golden Globe Awards, ...

). To save herself from execution, Kate – renamed "Offred", since she now is attached to Fred's household – allows the Commander's driver (

Aidan Quinn Aidan Quinn (born March 8, 1959) is an Irish-American actor. He made his film debut in '' Reckless'' (1984), and has starred in over 80 feature films, including ''Desperately Seeking Susan'' (1985), '' The Mission'' (1986), '' Stakeout'' (1987) ...

) to impregnate her and falls in love with him. The film was in competition at the 40th Berlin International Film Festival. This was soon followed by '' Voyager'' (1991). The film stars

Sam Shepard Samuel Shepard Rogers III (November 5, 1943 – July 27, 2017) was an American playwright, actor, director, screenwriter, and author whose career spanned half a century. He wrote 58 plays as well as several books of short stories, essays, ...

as a man who survives a plane crash, then finds the love of his life ( Julie Delpy) on his next trip and begins to question the rationale of his good luck after having spent most of his life being cruel to others. The film was based on the novel ''

Homo Faber alludes to the idea that human beings are able to control their fate and their environment as a result of the use of tools. Original phrase In Latin literature, Appius Claudius Caecus uses this term in his ''Sententiæ'', referring to the ...

'' by

Max Frisch Max Rudolf Frisch (; 15 May 1911 – 4 April 1991) was a Swiss playwright and novelist. Frisch's works focused on problems of identity (social science), identity, individuality, Moral responsibility, responsibility, morality, and political commi ...

and was not a success at the box-office. He directed the concert film '' The Michael Nyman Songbook'' released in 1992. The first of Schlöndorff's two documentaries on Austrian-born director

Billy Wilder Billy Wilder (; ; born Samuel Wilder; June 22, 1906 – March 27, 2002) was an American filmmaker and screenwriter. His career in Hollywood (film industry), Hollywood spanned five decades, and he is regarded as one of the most brilliant and ver ...

was '' Billy Wilder, How Did You Do It?'', in which he and German critic

Hellmuth Karasek Hellmuth Karasek (4 January 1934 – 29 September 2015) was a German journalist, literary critic, novelist, and the author of many books on literature and film. He was one of Germany's best-known feuilletonists. Biography Karasek was born in ...

interviewed Wilder about his career over the course of two weeks in 1988. It was aired on German TV in 1992, and shown on TCM in the USA under the title ''Billy Wilder Speaks'' in 2006. Schlöndorff had been a great admirer of Wilder for many years and sought his advice during the making of ''The Tin Drum''. Appalled at plans to destroy the historic film studios Babelsberg, Schlöndorff mounted a one-man campaign to save them in the early 1990s.Mary Williams Walsh (22 September 1996)
The Savior of Babelsberg (Well, Almost)
''Los Angeles Times''. He served as the chief executive for the UFA studio in Babelsberg between 1992 and 1997. During that time, he helped Jiang Wen finish editing his film '' In the Heat of the Sun'' (1994) in Germany, with the studio's full financial support. He also helped to get the film selected for the 51st Venice International Film Festival. In 1996 he contributed to the French TV series '' Lumière sur un massacre'' with the episode "Le parfait soldat". Schlöndorff returned to Germany in to make '' The Ogre'' (1996), his most well-regarded feature film since ''The Tin Drum''. Based on a novel by

Michel Tournier Michel Tournier (; 19 December 1924 − 18 January 2016) was a French writer. He won awards such as the '' Grand Prix du roman de l'Académie française'' in 1967 for '' Friday, or, The Other Island'' and the Prix Goncourt for '' The Erl-King'' ...

and starring

as the titular Abel Tiffauges, the film revisited many of the themes and time period of ''The Tin Drum''. Tiffauges is a slow-witted French soldier who has been accused of child molestation. After being captured by the Nazis and put in an internment camp, he is made a servant at an elite German training camp and kidnaps local children, officially as a way to recruit them for the camp, but in his mind to protect them. The film was screened in competition at the 1996 Venice Film Festival and won the UNICEF award. The film was released in Germany in 1996 and gained positive reviews. On the audio commentary for ''The Tin Drum'', Schlöndorff said that he had wanted to film a sequel to ''The Tin Drum'', as the film was based only on the first two thirds of the novel. But because actor David Bennent was too old to reprise the role and he did not want to recast Oscar, he considers ''The Ogre'' to be an unofficial sequel to his masterpiece. Schlöndorff returned to Hollywood for '' Palmetto'' (1998). In a noir plot, the film stars

Woody Harrelson Woodrow Tracy Harrelson (born July 23, 1961) is an American actor. He first became known for his role as bartender Woody Boyd on the NBC sitcom ''Cheers'' (1985–1993), for which he won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in ...

as a falsely accused journalist who was sent to jail after uncovering corruption in the local government. After getting out of jail and unable to find work, he encounters Rhea Malroux (

Elisabeth Shue Elisabeth Shue (born October 6, 1963) is an American actress. She has starred in films such as '' The Karate Kid'' (1984), '' Adventures in Babysitting'' (1987), ''Cocktail'' (1988), ''Back to the Future Part II'' (1989), '' Back to the Future P ...

), a ''

femme fatale A ( , ; ), sometimes called a maneater, Mata Hari, or vamp, is a stock character of a mysterious, beautiful, and Seduction, seductive woman whose charms ensnare her lovers, often leading them into compromising, deadly traps. She is an archetype ...

'' who propositions him to help her extort money from her millionaire husband. The film was not a financial success and was Schlöndorff's last film in the US to date. Schlöndorff returned to Germany to make the film '' The Legend of Rita'' (2000). Loosely based upon the lives of members of the

who exiled to East Germany in the 1970s, the film centers around Rita, who most closely resembles real RAF member Inge Viett. Rita abandons the revolution and lives in East Germany under protection of the secret service, but after German reunification she faces the risk of discovery and consequences for her past crimes. After the documentary '' Ein Produzent hat Seele oder er hat keine'' and a contribution to the omnibus film '' Ten Minutes Older'' (both in 2002), Schlöndorff made '' The Ninth Day'' (2004). The film is Schlöndorff's third film to center around World War II and is based on the diary of Father Jean Bernard. Ulrich Matthes plays Father Henri Kremer, a Catholic priest who is interned at

Dachau concentration camp Dachau (, ; , ; ) was one of the first concentration camps built by Nazi Germany and the longest-running one, opening on 22 March 1933. The camp was initially intended to intern Hitler's political opponents, which consisted of communists, s ...

during the Second World War. He is inexplicably released for nine days and sent to Luxembourg. There he meets a young SS soldier who informs him that his mission there is to convince the local bishop to cooperate with the

Nazi Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party ( or NSDAP), was a far-right politics, far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported the ideology of Nazism. Its precursor ...

, in which case he will not be sent back to Dachau. He is thus faced with the moral dilemma of betraying his faith or returning to the concentration camp. Schlöndorff next completed the TV movie ' (2005). He returned to what was Danzig to film ''

Strike Strike may refer to: People *Strike (surname) * Hobart Huson, author of several drug related books Physical confrontation or removal *Strike (attack), attack with an inanimate object or a part of the human body intended to cause harm * Airstrike, ...

'' (2006), a docudrama about labor strikes at the

Gdańsk Shipyard The Gdańsk Shipyard (, formerly Lenin Shipyard) is a large Polish shipyard, located in the city of Gdańsk, northern Poland. The yard gained international fame when Polish trade union Solidarity () was founded there in September 1980. It is sit ...

during the Polish 1970 protests. The film is also a history of the Solidarity Movement in Poland leading up to the fall of Communism. Schlöndorff's '' Ulzhan'' (2007) stars Philippe Torreton as a treasure hunter on his way home who has lost his soul and Ayanat Ksenbai as Ulzhan, the woman who falls in love with him. David Bennent also co-starred. In the summer of 2012, he worked with Andrew Turner, who had formerly been a runway model for the late

Alexander McQueen Lee Alexander McQueen (17 March 1969 – 11 February 2010) was a British fashion designer and couturier. He founded his own Alexander McQueen (brand), Alexander McQueen label in 1992 and was chief designer at Givenchy from 1996 to 2001. His ac ...

. Schlöndorff's World War II-era film ''

Diplomacy Diplomacy is the communication by representatives of State (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, non-governmental institutions intended to influence events in the international syste ...

'', dedicated to his friend Richard C. Holbrooke, debuted at the

64th Berlin International Film Festival The 64th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from 6 to 16 February 2014. Wes Anderson's film ''The Grand Budapest Hotel'' opened the festival. British film director Ken Loach was presented with the Golden Bear#Golden Bear .E2.80. ...

. Set in 1944, it explores how the Swedish consul general in Paris, Raoul Nordling, helped persuade

Dietrich von Choltitz Dietrich Hugo Hermann von Choltitz (; 9 November 1894 – 5 November 1966) was a German general. Sometimes referred to as the Saviour of Paris, he served in the Wehrmacht (armed forces) of Nazi Germany during World War II, as well as serving i ...

, the German military governor of Paris, not to obey Hitler's orders to destroy the historic city should it fall into enemy hands.

Personal life

Schlöndorff was married to fellow film director

from 1971 to 1991 and helped raise her son from her first marriage. He is currently married to Angelika Schlöndorff, and the couple has one daughter. He founded the production company Bioskop, which produced both his own and von Trotta's films. In 1991, he was the Head of the Jury at the

41st Berlin International Film Festival The 41st annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from 15 to 26 February 1991. The festival opened with ''Uranus (film), Uranus'' by Claude Berri. The Golden Bear was awarded to Italian film ''The House of Smiles'' directed by Marco F ...

. Schlöndorff teaches film and literature at the European Graduate School in Saas-Fee, Switzerland, where he conducts an Intensive Summer Seminar.

Filmography

Features

* 1966: '' Young Törless'' * 1967: '' Degree of Murder'' * 1969: '' Man on Horseback'' * 1971: '' The Morals of Ruth Halbfass'' * 1972: ' * 1975: '' The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum'' * 1976: ''

'' * 1979: ''

'' * 1981: '' The Circle of Deceit'' * 1984: '' Swann in Love'' * 1990: ''

'' * 1991: '' Voyager'' * 1996: '' The Ogre'' * 1998: '' Palmetto'' * 2000: '' The Legend of Rita'' * 2004: '' The Ninth Day'' * 2006: ''

'' * 2007: '' Ulzhan'' * 2012: ''

Calm at Sea ''Calm at Sea'' () is a 2011 German / French drama film directed by Volker Schlöndorff. The film depicts the events leading to the 1941 execution of a group of French communists, including the 17-year-old Guy Môquet, as retaliation for the assa ...

'' * 2014: ''

'' * 2017: ''

Return to Montauk Return may refer to: In business, economics, and finance * Return on investment (ROI), the financial gain after an expense. * Rate of return, the financial term for the profit or loss derived from an investment * Tax return, a blank document or t ...

TV films

* 1970: ''

'' * 1971: '' The Sudden Wealth of the Poor People of Kombach'' * 1974: ' * 1985: ''

'' * 1987: ''

'' * 2005: '

Documentaries and shorts subjects

* 1960: '' Who cares?'' (short) * 1963: '' Méditerranée'' (documentary) * 1967: ' (segment "Ein unheimlicher Moment") * 1975: '' The Novels of Henry James'' (TV series, episode "Georgina's Reasons") * 1977: '' Just for Fun, Just for Play'' (documentary) * 1978: '' Germany in Autumn'' (segment "Die verschobene Antigone") * 1980: '' The Candidate'' (documentary) * 1983: ''

War and Peace ''War and Peace'' (; pre-reform Russian: ; ) is a literary work by the Russian author Leo Tolstoy. Set during the Napoleonic Wars, the work comprises both a fictional narrative and chapters in which Tolstoy discusses history and philosophy. An ...

'' (short) * 1992: '' Billy Wilder, How Did You Do It?'' (documentary, aka ''Billy Wilder Speaks'') * 1992: '' The Michael Nyman Songbook'' (documentary) * 1996: '' Lumière sur un massacre'' (TV series, episode "Le parfait soldat") * 2002: '' Ein Produzent hat Seele oder er hat keine'' * 2002: '' Ten Minutes Older: The Cello'' (segment "The Enlightenment")

Awards

* 1978 Special Recognition award (shared) at the 28th Berlin International Film Festival for '' Germany in Autumn'' * 1979

Cannes Film Festival ''The Tin Drum'' * 1980

Academy Awards The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence in ...

Best Foreign Language Film ''The Tin Drum'' * 2004 Bavarian Film Awards Honorary Award * 2009 Camerimage Lifetime Achievement Award * 2019 Commander's cross of the

Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (, or , BVO) is the highest state decoration, federal decoration of the Federal Republic of Germany. It may be awarded for any field of endeavor. It was created by the first List of president ...

Cultural references

* ''Good Bye Schlöndorff'', a performance by Lebanese artist and musician Waël Koudaih alias Rayess Bek based on extracts of ''Die Fälschung'' and audio tapes from the

Lebanese Civil War The Lebanese Civil War ( ) was a multifaceted armed conflict that took place from 1975 to 1990. It resulted in an estimated 150,000 fatalities and led to the exodus of almost one million people from Lebanon. The religious diversity of the ...

References

External links

Volker Schlöndorff
Faculty Website @ European Graduate School. Biography and bibliography. *
Volker Schlöndorff's Cinématon – A 4 minutes online portrait by Gérard Courant

Volker Schlöndorff Collection
at Deutsches Filminstitut, Frankfurt (German) {{DEFAULTSORT:Schlondorff, Volker 1939 births Living people People from Wiesbaden Mass media people from Hesse Academic staff of European Graduate School Best Director German Film Award winners Members of the Academy of Arts, Berlin Directors of Best Foreign Language Film Academy Award winners Directors of Palme d'Or winners Commanders Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Institut des hautes études cinématographiques alumni

Early life

Early film career

International success as a filmmaker

Hollywood and later career

Personal life

Filmography

Features

TV films

Documentaries and shorts subjects

Awards

Cultural references

See also

References

Further reading

External links