Stairway to Light

This John Nesbitt's Passing Parade short tells the story of 18th Century French physician Dr. Philippe Pinel, who initiated enlightened, humane treatment of the mentally ill.

Docks of Hamburg

When Hamburg ship's mate Klaus Brandt catches a thief one night at the port, his downfall is pre-ordained. For the thief turns out to be a young, attractive woman and the otherwise upright sailor allows her to slip away. Jenny is the star of a local dive bar, with a side-line in smuggling.

Enemy of Women

Playwright Joseph Goebbels turns Nazi propagandist and loses his girlfriend to another man.

Raid in St. Pauli

Illustrates both the powerlessness of the ordinary worker as well as an intimate portrait of the joys and sorrows of a small group of people in the harbor section of Hamburg.

Bookkeeper Kremke

In this realistic, unsentimental portrait of Germany’s dire economic situation, a middle-aged payroll clerk loses his job due to technological advances and, unable to find another, descends into despair. The film’s director, Marie Harder, was one of only a few women directors of the time and was also the head of the German Social Democratic Film Office. She made only two known films before her accidental death in exile in Mexico in 1936.

Primanerliebe

An exploration of the misery of youth. A student, his friends, and the girl he loves all suffer due to the harsh and unforgiving nature of the adults in their lives.

Geschminkte Jugend

Based on the real life events of the 1927 Steglitzer Schülertragödie, in which several high school students planned murder-suicides.

Out of Darkness

This John Nesbitt's Passing Parade short tells of the Nazis' efforts to shut down an underground resistance newspaper in occupied Belgium.