Seemann, Horst
Biography:
Horst Seemann was born on April 11, 1937 in Pyhanken, Czechoslovakia (now Běhánky, Czech Republic). His family was relocated after WWII and settled in Thuringia. Seemann studied directing at the Academy for Film and Television in Potsdam-Babelsberg from 1958 to 1962. His thesis film was a short satirical piece for the Stacheltier film series, made at the East German DEFA Studio. After graduating, he continued directing films for this series.
Seemann’s first full-length feature film was the 1967 musical Hochzeitsnacht im Regen. His oeuvre—almost 20 films for cinema and television—includes historic films (Schüsse unterm Galgen), contemporary stories (Zeit zu leben, Reife Kirschen), and films based on literature (Levins Mühle). Beethoven – Tage aus einem Leben, the 1976 biographical film about the famous German composer, brought Seemann international recognition.
Seemann not only wrote most of his own scripts, he is also credited with the scores for some of his films, including Levins Mühle and the European co-production Ärztinnen, which was nominated for the 1984 Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival. During his career, he also worked on scripts for films on Heinrich von Kleist, Albert Einstein and the theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer, but these films were never produced. Horst Seemann died on January 6, 2000.
Festivals & Awards:
| 1985 | Best DEFA Feature Film of the Year 1984, Critics' Prize of the Association of GDR Film and Television Professionals, for Ärztinnen |
| 1982 | Special Prize for Engagement aginst Intolerance and Chauvinism, National Feature Film Festival, Karl-Marx-Stadt, for Levins Mühle |
Filmography:
| 1990 | Zwischen Pankow und Zehlendorf (Between Pankow and Zehlendorf) |
| 1989 | Vera – Der schwere Weg der Erkenntnis (Vera – The Hard Way to Enlightenment, TV) |
| 1985 | Besuch bei van Gogh (Visiting van Gogh) |
| 1982 | Hotel Polan und seine Gäste (Hotel Polan and its Guests) |
| 1983 | Ärztinnen (Women Doctors) |
| 1980 | Levins Mühle (Levin’s Mill) |
| 1978 | Fleur Lafontaine (TV) |
| 1976 | Beethoven – Tage aus einem Leben (Beethoven – Days in a Life) |
| 1972 | Reife Kirschen (Ripe Cherries) |
| 1971 | Liebeserklärung an G.T. (Declaration of Love to G.T.) |
| 1969 | Zeit zu leben (Time to Live) |
| 1968 | Schüsse unterm Galgen (Shots Under the Gallows) |
| 1967 | Hochzeitsnacht im Regen (Wedding Night in the Rain) |
| 1964 | Peterle und die Weihnachtsgans Auguste (Peterle and the Christmas Goose Auguste) |