The history of the Leipzig Fair goes back to the Middle Ages, and the first post-war fair, also called the "Peace Fair," took place in 1946. The still Soviet-occupied zone tried to demonstrate the return of economic growth one year after the war.
Mother Wolffen, a washerwoman, is a woman of principle: A poor man must do what he must to get through life, only he mustn't get caught doing it. All sorts of crooked deals contribute to the improvement of the daily menu and the increase of household funds.
The story of Johann Friedrich Böttger, an apothecary’s apprentice and alchemist’s assistant. Fleeing from the Prussian King, he goes to Saxony, where King Frederick August the Strong takes him to a fortress and demands that he create gold.
Dr. Blum, a Jewish manufacturer, is falsely accused of a murder. Even when the real killer’s identity becomes evident, the state prosecutor refuses to accept Blum’s innocence.
This 13-DVD set is designed to accompany DEFA at the Crossroads of East German and International Film Culture (DeGruyter, 2014), edited by Marc Silberman (University of Wisconsin) and Henning Wrage (Gettysburg College).
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.
A group of ethnic German refugees from the former eastern territories encounters hostility from the villagers of the central German territories where they now reside. Michaelis speaks for the group, but his attempts to bridge the gap between the new and old residents of the village are opposed b
This DVD compilation chronicles the year 1948 through film.
A short documentary about the first two years of agrarian reform in the GDR. Noblemen's estates were converted into collectively owned farms or distributed as smaller plots among peasant farmers, laborers, and refugees.
This video series gives one insight into the daily events back then in the form of raw reportage of the weekly chronicles, showing (often in headlines) the momentous political and economic occurrences, athletic and youth competitions, arts and entertainment and diverting encounters with public of