The Architects

The architect Daniel Brenner is in his late thirties when he receives his first challenging and lucrative commission: to design a cultural center for a satellite town in East-Berlin. He accepts the offer under the condition that he gets to choose who he works with. This way, he reunites with former colleagues and friends - most of them architects or students of architecture who have since chosen a different profession due to personal restraint or economic confinement. Together, they develop a concept which they hope will be more appealing to...

Solo für Martina

Censored: Kuhle Wampe

A detailed reconstruction of the censorship case against the landmark Weimar-era communist film, Kuhle Wampe, or Who Owns the World? (1932). Directed by Slatan Dudow, the crew and cast included left-wing luminaries, such as playwright Bertolt Brecht, composer Hanns Eisler and balladeer Ernst Busch. The film was the subject of vehement disputes and was banned twice for revolutionary and communist tendencies that were perceived to threaten the state. About 230 meters of the original film fell victim to the censor’s shears. This historic censo...

The Song of the Trumpeter

Fritz Weineck, a worker′s son from Halle, loves music – and dreams to make a living out of it one day. When his friend Alfons, a World War I veteran, gives him a trumpet as a gift, Fritz seems to come closer to fulfil his dream. But then, Fritz realizes that after the end of the German empire workers still have to desperately fight for their rights, and decides to use his instrument for political means: At a meeting of militant workers, he uses his trumpet as a signal horn. But Fritz suffers a severe setback when a comrade dies in the fight ...

Red Ties

A group of children are trying to organize a pioneers detachment.

Frau Venus und ihr Teufel

Hans Müller finds himself on a trip in Thüringen, accompanied by his loving female friend, Moritz. Hans doesn't understand much about trust, which constantly leads to problems between the two of them. During one of their fights, Lady Venus intervenes and sends the young man back to the Middle Ages - so he can learn the true meaning of love. Disguised as Tannhäuser, he has to stand his ground against a horde of minstrels. At a singing competition, he blunders, without the support of Moritz, who had also been thrown back into the 13th century....

Lebende Ware

In 1944, SS-Obersturmbannführer Becher arrives in Budapest in order to obtain material for the Waffen-SS. At the same time, he starts to gather private property by offering an insidious choice to the corporation′s Jewish majority shareholder, Dr. Chorin: Either Chorin assigns the company to Becker "on his own free will" – thereby obtaining the permission to travel abroad - or he his family will end up in an extermination camp.

Dr. med. Sommer II

The story of a young, idealistic doctor and his on-the-job training as a rookie surgeon. Dr. Heiner Sommer moves to a small town in the GDR where he will complete his training under the senior physician, also named Dr. Sommer.

Heroin

This East German movie was co-produced with studios in Hungary and Yugoslavia, with many interesting location shots (border checkpoint to West Berlin, the Gellert bath in Budapest, and more). The plot is about French drug dealers, who obtain heroin somewhere in the Middle East, and smuggle it in several steps to East Berlin, and from there to France (or so it appears), killing when necessary. The hero is an officer of East German customs, who with detective work, some masquerade, and occasional violent action ultimately unravels the whole ne...

Max und siebeneinhalb Jungen

Max Stricker, an old anti-fascist, informs a class of eighth graders before their planned visit to the former concentration camp in Buchenwald. But the boys and girls are not very interested in Max′s lecture and instead stop his lecture with their constant interferences. On the trip to Buchenwald, the class roughnecks around wannabe hoodlum King also want to cause trouble. Thus, a small group of pupils secretly leaves the train before it arrives. Max notices the runaways, follows them, and offers them a bet: He challenges them to get to Weim...

Benno macht Geschichten

Benno (Torsten Rennert), a bright boy from Berlin, is not really a problem case, although his parents have enough trouble with him. But that's not just because of Benno, but because no one really has time for him. During a train ride, he meets a pensioner Oskar Schrader (Erwin Geschonneck), who likes to cook, collect watches, master magic tricks and who lives in the middle of nature. Between them they develop a real friendship. Benno is allowed to spend his school holidays with his friend. The grumpy Oskar lives alone in a garden colony - wi...

Abenteuer mit Blasius

Ten-year-old Frantisek is traveling to Leipzig to visit his German friend Egon. On the train, he shares the compartment with three men. One of them, the bearded, hefty Blasius is polite but at times acts very confused. At the end station the two boys meet, but they must first of all get rid of Blasius, who lifts them up together with their luggage and carries them away. Leipzig is packed with tourists who have gathered for the famous Fair. The eccentric bearded fellow deals effectively with the traffic jam in front of the station. Blasius's ...