This 12-DVD set is designed to accompany the book East German Cinema – DEFA and Film History, by Sebastian Heiduschke (Oregon State University), published by Palgrave Macmillan in October 2013. It is a concise and clearly written introductory text that equips readers with the historical and cultural background to understand East German cinema, guiding them through productions from the founding of the state-run DEFA Feature Film Studio in 1946, until it was closed in 1992. Critical examinations of twelve films focus on what can be considered the core of an East German film canon.

This collection includes the following titles:

• The Murderers Are among Us (Staudte, 1946)
• The Story of Little Mook (Staudte, 1953)
• Berlin - Schönhauser Corner (Klein, 1957)
• The Silent Star (Maetzig, 1960)
• The Rabbit Is Me (Maetzig, 1965)
• Hot Summer (Hasler, 1968)
• The Legend of Paul and Paula (Carow, 1972)
• Apaches (Kolditz, 1973)
• Jacob the Liar (Beyer, 1974)
• Solo Sunny (Wolf, 1980)
• Latest from the Da-Da-R (Foth, 1990)
• The Architects (Kahane, 1990)