Would you like to inspect the original subtitles? These are the user uploaded subtitles that are being translated:
2
00:02:19,092 --> 00:02:22,238
We are in the presence of
a legend with many faces
3
00:02:22,896 --> 00:02:26,124
loathed by many,
admired deeply by others.
4
00:02:26,398 --> 00:02:28,535
Her name is still taboo in Germany.
5
00:02:29,927 --> 00:02:34,508
Leni Riefenstahl, the most influential
filmmaker of the Third Reich,
6
00:02:35,321 --> 00:02:39,980
the last great surviving
image maker of the Nazis.
7
00:02:44,180 --> 00:02:47,351
A film about Leni Riefenstahl,
can content itself
8
00:02:47,351 --> 00:02:49,515
with updating the old prejudices.
9
00:02:50,119 --> 00:02:54,591
Or it can attempt to deconstruct
her myth, and to look at it afresh
10
00:02:55,184 --> 00:02:58,469
A feminist pioneer or a woman of evil.
11
00:02:59,462 --> 00:03:01,876
One thing is certain,
she is still
12
00:03:01,876 --> 00:03:05,651
the most famous female
film director in the world.
13
00:03:18,627 --> 00:03:22,338
This film will approach her
without preconceptions.
14
00:03:28,760 --> 00:03:32,342
What do you feel,
looking at those pictures?
15
00:03:36,177 --> 00:03:42,483
Well, really as if the person
in this picture is not me...
16
00:03:42,767 --> 00:03:44,319
...but just some actress
17
00:03:45,478 --> 00:03:47,701
This innocence, enthusiasm...
18
00:03:48,011 --> 00:03:52,247
...then the fall from fame,
the great disappointment...
19
00:03:52,535 --> 00:03:54,544
...how do you see all that today?
20
00:03:57,198 --> 00:04:02,072
It's all so long ago now,
I've long since got over it
21
00:04:02,342 --> 00:04:04,924
I don't think about it anymore
22
00:04:05,150 --> 00:04:08,745
At my age...
23
00:04:08,995 --> 00:04:14,575
...I'll be 90 this year...
24
00:04:14,881 --> 00:04:17,321
...many decades have now gone by.
25
00:04:17,512 --> 00:04:19,545
They were bad times
26
00:04:19,879 --> 00:04:26,005
It's like another world
but no longer live in that past
27
00:04:26,226 --> 00:04:30,346
Guest Dance Performance
28
00:04:35,706 --> 00:04:40,663
An Evening of Dance
29
00:04:43,061 --> 00:04:47,874
I really only wanted to go on stage
as an experiment
30
00:04:48,151 --> 00:04:52,660
To see whether I would make
a good dancer
31
00:04:52,888 --> 00:04:58,324
But I had such a huge success, I was
immediately engaged by Max Reinhardt
32
00:04:58,731 --> 00:05:03,360
Then Prague wanted me, and Zurich.
It was incredible, intoxicating
33
00:05:42,637 --> 00:05:45,995
It was incredible
34
00:05:46,151 --> 00:05:52,597
This station here at Nollendorfplatz
totally changed my life
35
00:05:52,833 --> 00:05:55,974
I was standing here
waiting for a train
36
00:05:56,375 --> 00:06:02,734
I had to go to the doctor. I had hurt
my knee badly and couldn't dance
37
00:06:03,383 --> 00:06:08,366
I was impatient because the train
was late
38
00:06:08,598 --> 00:06:14,249
But, as it drew in, I suddenly saw
a poster for a film...
39
00:06:14,531 --> 00:06:15,984
...'Mountain of Destiny'
40
00:06:16,313 --> 00:06:20,378
It showed a mountaineer
stepping across a chasm
41
00:06:20,576 --> 00:06:23,532
I was so fascinated I missed
the train
42
00:06:23,768 --> 00:06:26,212
I stood rooted to the spot
43
00:06:26,523 --> 00:06:32,670
I read: 'Mountain of Destiny'
Mozartsaal Cinema, Nollendorfplatz
44
00:06:32,825 --> 00:06:36,436
It was right here. I forgot
the doctor and everything else...
45
00:06:36,772 --> 00:06:39,655
...and went to the cinema
46
00:06:45,140 --> 00:06:48,158
'Mountain of Destiny'
directed by Arnold Fanck
47
00:06:48,423 --> 00:06:50,684
was the first feature film
in the history of cinema
48
00:06:50,972 --> 00:06:53,146
to set its drama high in the mountains.
49
00:06:53,635 --> 00:06:57,306
When she saw it, the film
was to change Riefenstahl's life.
50
00:07:18,485 --> 00:07:21,259
Frank had invented an
evocative new genre
51
00:07:21,415 --> 00:07:22,706
the mountain film.
52
00:07:30,596 --> 00:07:33,319
It was a totally new kind of film
53
00:07:33,453 --> 00:07:36,051
The first mountaineering film
54
00:07:36,363 --> 00:07:40,462
The first with sequences so filled
with movement
55
00:07:40,697 --> 00:07:44,577
The clouds were alive with movement.
We'd never seen that before
56
00:07:44,888 --> 00:07:47,923
Fanck was breaking new ground
57
00:07:48,314 --> 00:07:52,413
His use of slow motion, lighting,
the composition of his shots...
58
00:07:52,700 --> 00:07:57,683
It was all artistic
and way ahead of its time
59
00:07:58,180 --> 00:08:04,315
I didn't know much about film but
realised I was looking...
60
00:08:04,638 --> 00:08:10,003
...at a very special art-form
on the screen for the first time
61
00:08:14,109 --> 00:08:17,082
Riefenstahl immediately
set off in search of Fanck,
62
00:08:17,345 --> 00:08:19,814
and quite by chance
met his leading actor
63
00:08:19,928 --> 00:08:22,556
Luis Trenker in a hotel in the Dolomites
64
00:08:24,937 --> 00:08:30,236
She came up and said she wanted
to star opposite me in my next film
65
00:08:30,506 --> 00:08:35,547
She's crazy, I thought. Then she
gave me a lovely photo of herself
66
00:08:35,876 --> 00:08:38,637
I sent it to Fanck and wrote:
67
00:08:38,937 --> 00:08:42,750
Dear Fanck, this woman is beautiful
68
00:08:43,060 --> 00:08:49,205
She's determined to be in your
next film, starring opposite me
69
00:08:49,362 --> 00:08:52,656
It's all a fantasy...
70
00:08:52,959 --> 00:08:58,161
...but I enclose her photo.
Do what you like with it
71
00:08:59,212 --> 00:09:01,827
Fanck was smitten,
and was so fascinated by her
72
00:09:01,952 --> 00:09:05,003
that he asked her to play
the starring role in his next film
73
00:09:05,185 --> 00:09:09,512
I'd hurt my knee seriously
while dancing
74
00:09:09,678 --> 00:09:15,998
So I sent Fanck my photos
and the rave reviews
75
00:09:16,494 --> 00:09:20,549
Presumably because of the pictures
and reviews...
76
00:09:20,839 --> 00:09:22,740
..he visited me in hospital
77
00:09:23,154 --> 00:09:29,439
To my amazement he handed me
a script on which was written:
78
00:09:29,592 --> 00:09:35,300
"'The Sacred Mountain' written in 3 days
and nights for Leni Riefenstahl"
79
00:09:35,600 --> 00:09:37,390
Then Fanck wrote to me:
80
00:09:37,667 --> 00:09:42,113
You're the one who's crazy.
She'll be Germany's greatest star
81
00:09:42,406 --> 00:09:48,978
She's going to be your leading lady
so see you get on with her
82
00:10:06,168 --> 00:10:11,755
The script said I had to be buried
by an avalanche
83
00:10:12,065 --> 00:10:15,778
We were quite mad to do it
84
00:10:16,087 --> 00:10:21,726
I can show you the spot
or as near as makes no difference
85
00:10:24,319 --> 00:10:26,689
Up there
86
00:10:26,995 --> 00:10:31,280
We stood on a rock-face like that
87
00:10:31,423 --> 00:10:32,902
Maybe even steeper
88
00:10:43,309 --> 00:10:45,240
I had to cling...
89
00:10:45,369 --> 00:10:49,975
...onto a rock with my hands...
90
00:10:51,204 --> 00:10:54,020
...until the avalanche came down
91
00:11:05,905 --> 00:11:09,114
Not just once but two or three times
92
00:11:11,316 --> 00:11:17,466
People today say it was madness,
but Fanck demanded our all
93
00:11:23,666 --> 00:11:28,021
This is where I did
my first directing
94
00:11:28,532 --> 00:11:32,710
Since the last time we filmed here...
95
00:11:32,988 --> 00:11:35,557
...sixty-six years have gone by
96
00:11:45,500 --> 00:11:47,615
I will never forget this scene
97
00:11:47,905 --> 00:11:51,214
It wasn't only my first time
as director...
98
00:11:51,504 --> 00:11:55,681
...it was the first time
I had to wind a camera
99
00:11:55,987 --> 00:12:00,862
In those days there were
no electric cameras
100
00:12:01,194 --> 00:12:06,195
It would all have gone wonderfully
but there was an accident
101
00:12:06,502 --> 00:12:10,890
The moment I began
turning the handle to shoot...
102
00:12:11,200 --> 00:12:15,368
...there was a terrible bang
as a torch exploded
103
00:12:15,724 --> 00:12:20,364
The boy holding it was behind me.
There was a sheet of flame
104
00:12:20,533 --> 00:12:22,457
My face was burnt
105
00:12:22,788 --> 00:12:25,259
...but I went on filming
106
00:12:28,271 --> 00:12:31,354
I could feel the pain...
107
00:12:31,683 --> 00:12:34,268
...but I finished the shot
108
00:12:34,576 --> 00:12:38,998
And when I'd finished
I looked in the mirror
109
00:12:39,326 --> 00:12:41,240
My face was black
110
00:12:41,536 --> 00:12:46,844
Then I heard a little boy had also
nearly been burnt...
111
00:12:47,191 --> 00:12:48,863
...but they rescued him
112
00:12:50,515 --> 00:12:52,999
In the Berlin of the early 1920s,
113
00:12:52,999 --> 00:12:55,629
war profiteers and
black market millionaires
114
00:12:55,629 --> 00:12:57,153
flaunted their wealth
115
00:13:04,187 --> 00:13:07,346
But, for most of the people,
life was wretched
116
00:13:07,614 --> 00:13:08,628
Many was starving
117
00:13:08,904 --> 00:13:12,307
Soup kitchens and food queues
were a common sight on the streets
118
00:13:12,539 --> 00:13:14,675
Social unrest was rife.
119
00:13:33,953 --> 00:13:36,164
Berlin, 60 years later
120
00:13:36,922 --> 00:13:41,714
For this film, Leni Riefenstahl and her
companion of many years, Horst Kettner
121
00:13:42,076 --> 00:13:45,819
visit the legendary
UFA Filmstudios in Babelsberg
122
00:13:46,364 --> 00:13:49,677
This is where all the
classic German silent film were made
123
00:14:02,662 --> 00:14:05,356
The camera follows you...
124
00:14:05,681 --> 00:14:09,506
...and you tell us how you first
came to the studios
125
00:14:09,766 --> 00:14:13,393
- As I'm walking along?
- Yes, is that a problem?
126
00:14:13,685 --> 00:14:17,441
- I can't speak when I'm walking
- Couldn't you walk a bit?
127
00:14:17,724 --> 00:14:21,268
No, I've never done that in my life
128
00:14:23,145 --> 00:14:27,829
I've never talked while I'm walking
I'm not a ghost
129
00:14:28,218 --> 00:14:29,244
Just try it
130
00:14:29,561 --> 00:14:33,219
I'm just saying I can't talk
while I'm walking
131
00:14:33,533 --> 00:14:39,111
Even when I dream, I lie down or sit.
I can't talk and walk
132
00:14:39,428 --> 00:14:40,892
No one told me...
133
00:14:42,793 --> 00:14:44,805
You won't listen, will you?
134
00:14:45,094 --> 00:14:46,992
I did listen
135
00:14:47,292 --> 00:14:50,343
I'll ask you a question
roughly like this
136
00:14:50,694 --> 00:14:55,075
You'll answer while we pull back
slowly
137
00:14:55,896 --> 00:15:01,101
But you can't walk backwards.
I'd have to speak like this
138
00:15:01,215 --> 00:15:02,751
But I'm here
139
00:15:13,009 --> 00:15:16,079
How did the studio atmosphere
strike you?
140
00:15:16,432 --> 00:15:18,753
It was very impressive
141
00:15:19,416 --> 00:15:23,031
Three big films were being made here
142
00:15:23,177 --> 00:15:26,619
Fritz Lang's 'Metropolis',
with Brigitte Helm
143
00:15:26,929 --> 00:15:31,686
Murnau's 'Faust' with Camilla Horn
and our film 'The Sacred Mountain'
144
00:15:32,012 --> 00:15:35,208
Admittedly, we were in a small studio
145
00:15:36,298 --> 00:15:41,995
But here in this studio, where I
later shot scenes for 'Tiefland'...
146
00:15:42,795 --> 00:15:46,618
they'd built some fantastic sets
147
00:15:46,951 --> 00:15:49,647
They were hundreds of extras
148
00:15:52,244 --> 00:15:55,060
Did you meet any famous directors?
149
00:15:55,371 --> 00:15:57,056
I never met Lang...
150
00:15:57,348 --> 00:16:02,848
...but Fanck wanted me to go for the
part of Gretchen in Murnau's 'Faust'
151
00:16:03,145 --> 00:16:07,300
I got hold of a long blonde wig
152
00:16:07,625 --> 00:16:12,527
Fanck was convinced
Murnau would hire me
153
00:16:12,685 --> 00:16:14,251
Muranu was interested
154
00:16:14,583 --> 00:16:20,499
I was on the short-list
but Camilla was his final choice
155
00:16:22,970 --> 00:16:26,769
Leni Riefenstahl never
became star tied to the studio
156
00:16:27,004 --> 00:16:29,694
From her first film,
she was drawn over and over again
157
00:16:29,899 --> 00:16:32,297
away from Berlin, into the mountains
158
00:16:39,498 --> 00:16:41,677
This was my favorite area
159
00:16:41,963 --> 00:16:46,716
There's hardly a rock-face or peak
I haven't climbed
160
00:17:02,281 --> 00:17:04,902
See how steep it is?
161
00:17:16,482 --> 00:17:22,601
To the left of that ridge, there's
a sheer drop of over 2,000 ft
162
00:17:26,295 --> 00:17:27,518
Wonderful!
163
00:17:37,121 --> 00:17:39,665
For these mountain films,
the actress from Berlin
164
00:17:39,665 --> 00:17:41,868
had to learn to ski and rock climb
165
00:17:42,022 --> 00:17:44,138
and quickly became a skilled mountaineer
166
00:18:02,840 --> 00:18:07,065
She even climbed without ropes
and in bare feet for the cameras
167
00:18:11,832 --> 00:18:17,192
In those days, mountain climbing was
strenuous activity practiced exclusively by men
168
00:18:17,478 --> 00:18:21,349
But Riefenstahl never had any
difficulty asserting herself
169
00:18:21,918 --> 00:18:24,390
Later on, she would become
the only woman
170
00:18:24,502 --> 00:18:28,699
to play a significant role
in the rise of National Socialism
171
00:18:30,586 --> 00:18:36,314
You can only get a general shot
of the mountains behind me
172
00:18:36,616 --> 00:18:38,987
The camera must be on me...
173
00:18:39,132 --> 00:18:41,200
...or it won't work
174
00:18:41,595 --> 00:18:47,918
If you want me to talk about
climbing, I must face the rocks...
175
00:18:48,420 --> 00:18:50,408
But we're too far away...
176
00:18:50,718 --> 00:18:56,872
No, while I'm talking, you can film
the rock-face with the telephoto
177
00:18:57,599 --> 00:18:59,484
You can edit that in
178
00:18:59,778 --> 00:19:04,187
- The mountains will be too small
- But we need a general shot
179
00:19:04,497 --> 00:19:06,594
Yes, but not like that
180
00:19:06,739 --> 00:19:09,667
You must find a cinematic solution
181
00:19:09,946 --> 00:19:12,206
The mountains make no impression
182
00:19:12,444 --> 00:19:17,258
You can only do it in the cutting,
never with a camera-angle
183
00:19:18,996 --> 00:19:22,289
Don't tell me you want
a Hitler-salute
184
00:19:31,240 --> 00:19:36,695
Over there is the famous east face
185
00:19:37,838 --> 00:19:44,202
We had to bivouac a rope's length
below the summit
186
00:19:44,707 --> 00:19:50,215
Way down, I could see lights
in the huts below
187
00:19:56,608 --> 00:19:58,592
I suppose I didn't realise...
188
00:19:58,755 --> 00:20:02,917
It was fascinating because
you forgot everything
189
00:20:03,214 --> 00:20:09,253
All your worries and problems...
you just concentrated on not falling
190
00:20:10,571 --> 00:20:13,143
It's a sport...
191
00:20:13,289 --> 00:20:16,027
...which involves the whole body
192
00:20:17,462 --> 00:20:22,530
It gives you a feeling of freedom,
being so close...
193
00:20:22,659 --> 00:20:25,533
...to the rocks, to nature,
and the mountains
194
00:20:25,818 --> 00:20:27,551
When you reach the top...
195
00:20:27,881 --> 00:20:30,612
...there's such a feeling of
bliss...
196
00:20:30,918 --> 00:20:36,060
...you just want to experience it
as often as possible
197
00:20:55,282 --> 00:20:57,934
For the best of Arnold Fanck's
mountain films,
198
00:20:58,063 --> 00:21:02,184
Riefenstahl persuaded the director
to hire the famous stunt-flier Udet
199
00:21:02,349 --> 00:21:08,234
And to bring in his co-director, one of the
great names in German Cinema, W.G. Pabst
200
00:21:18,356 --> 00:21:24,849
Yes, Fanck was so wonderful
outdoor director for filming nature
201
00:21:25,190 --> 00:21:29,072
Pabst was a fabulous
feature-film director
202
00:21:29,381 --> 00:21:33,037
I brought the two together
and it worked wonderfully
203
00:21:33,184 --> 00:21:37,839
That's the reason why 'Pizpalü'
was such a success worldwide
204
00:21:38,540 --> 00:21:42,096
These shots are from a home movie,
filmed by a member of the crew
205
00:21:42,242 --> 00:21:44,671
on Morteratsch Glacier in St. Moritz
206
00:21:53,571 --> 00:21:56,621
When Pabst told me to look right...
207
00:21:56,884 --> 00:22:00,569
...I looked left.
When he said left, I looked right
208
00:22:00,692 --> 00:22:06,040
So he said, "You're not the director.
Stop looking from the camera's angle"
209
00:22:06,344 --> 00:22:10,189
He was the first to make me see..
210
00:22:10,343 --> 00:22:13,150
...I'd a talent for directing
211
00:22:15,107 --> 00:22:18,841
An entire rock-face was
iced over to create the illusion
212
00:22:18,841 --> 00:22:21,228
that the glacier had
moved into the valley
213
00:22:24,296 --> 00:22:27,985
Working with Fanck was always
a mental and a physical challenge
214
00:22:32,489 --> 00:22:35,570
We were on an ice-wall in 'Pizpalü'
215
00:22:35,704 --> 00:22:38,422
It was minus 28 degrees
216
00:22:38,547 --> 00:22:43,015
The Engadine hadn't been so cold
for 50 years
217
00:22:43,305 --> 00:22:48,750
We were working at night and the
wind-machine blew snow in my face
218
00:22:50,259 --> 00:22:55,014
- He might lose consciousness
- Tie hum tight or he'll fall
219
00:23:22,857 --> 00:23:26,255
Pabst was quite different from Fanck
220
00:23:26,515 --> 00:23:32,314
Fanck gave very few directions.
We had to more or less improvise
221
00:23:32,592 --> 00:23:35,699
But Pabst knew exactly
what he wanted
222
00:23:35,979 --> 00:23:40,241
Without acting out the part for us,
he put the actor...
223
00:23:40,411 --> 00:23:44,728
...in the mental state he wanted,
which is very important
224
00:23:44,892 --> 00:23:50,093
You forgot the camera and became
the character you were portraying
225
00:24:06,750 --> 00:24:08,815
Maria, the rope!
226
00:24:40,667 --> 00:24:43,814
While filming with Arnold Fanck,
Riefenstahl and Luis Trenker
227
00:24:44,312 --> 00:24:46,214
were themselves learning how to direct
228
00:24:47,071 --> 00:24:50,229
Fanck was a perfectionist,
a stickler for details
229
00:24:50,479 --> 00:24:52,920
Even when his actors were
being tested to the limit
230
00:24:56,758 --> 00:25:00,284
Oh, I'd rather not think about that
231
00:25:00,435 --> 00:25:03,107
It wasn't just bad, it was awful
232
00:25:03,416 --> 00:25:09,802
Fanck's plan was to have me hauled
up and let an avalanche drop on me
233
00:25:10,239 --> 00:25:14,468
I said, "Count me out.
It's out of the question"
234
00:25:14,621 --> 00:25:18,995
So he said, "Leni darling,
it won't be a real avalanche"
235
00:25:19,286 --> 00:25:22,546
"We'll just drop a bit of snow
on you"
236
00:25:22,851 --> 00:25:26,806
He was very persuasive and promised
extra money
237
00:25:27,023 --> 00:25:30,596
I agreed and was tied up with rope
238
00:25:33,469 --> 00:25:37,797
The camera crew were up above,
and off we went
239
00:25:52,279 --> 00:25:54,253
I'd only gone 10 feet...
240
00:25:54,521 --> 00:25:58,332
...when a real avalanche
enveloped me
241
00:25:58,596 --> 00:26:01,412
I screamed, my ears and eyes hurt
242
00:26:02,197 --> 00:26:05,457
Fanck kept the camera rolling
on and on
243
00:26:14,782 --> 00:26:16,740
Then they pulled me in
244
00:26:16,982 --> 00:26:23,321
For weeks I was black and blue
all over. I really hated Fanck
245
00:26:24,136 --> 00:26:28,952
In 1920s Berlin, the National Socialists
were parading through the streets
246
00:26:29,367 --> 00:26:31,285
And the young fanatic
named Goebbels
247
00:26:31,285 --> 00:26:34,702
was gaining notoriety with
his inflammatory speeches
248
00:26:37,053 --> 00:26:40,157
As the struggle for power
raged between the rival parties
249
00:26:40,304 --> 00:26:44,157
the Babelsberg studios decided
to try and take on Hollywood
250
00:26:53,342 --> 00:26:56,404
In the studio,
now named Marlene Dietrich Hall
251
00:26:56,662 --> 00:27:01,090
Riefenstahl furthered her education
when she met Josef von Sternberg
252
00:27:10,054 --> 00:27:14,274
Von Sternberg brought me
to the studio every day...
253
00:27:14,568 --> 00:27:18,000
...until it got too much for Marlene
254
00:27:18,308 --> 00:27:24,621
I liked her a lot, I idolised her.
She was exceptional but very jealous
255
00:27:24,930 --> 00:27:30,755
One day we had quite a row
in the studio, She started it
256
00:27:31,071 --> 00:27:35,375
There was this famous scene
where she sits on a barrel...
257
00:27:35,529 --> 00:27:38,775
...and sings 'Falling in Love Again'
258
00:27:39,038 --> 00:27:42,952
She starting behaving very crudely...
259
00:27:43,345 --> 00:27:47,126
...to try and make me leave
in disgust
260
00:27:47,639 --> 00:27:51,226
Sternberg noticed and stepped in...
261
00:27:51,525 --> 00:27:56,279
...but she said she'd leave the film
if I came to the studio again
262
00:28:01,278 --> 00:28:07,707
He said to me, "Leni, you're
the complete opposite of Marlene
263
00:28:08,033 --> 00:28:12,800
"You're both very special
but quite different
264
00:28:16,922 --> 00:28:19,321
"I've shaped Marlene...
265
00:28:19,472 --> 00:28:22,546
"...into this wonderful creation...
266
00:28:22,857 --> 00:28:25,810
"...and I'll do the same for you
267
00:28:26,155 --> 00:28:28,642
"You haven't been discovered yet"
268
00:28:31,162 --> 00:28:37,207
I really regret the fact that, when
he offered me work in Hollywood...
269
00:28:37,511 --> 00:28:39,042
...I was unable to go
270
00:28:39,417 --> 00:28:43,878
I was deeply involved with a man
at the time...
271
00:28:44,016 --> 00:28:46,242
...and didn't want to leave him
272
00:28:46,393 --> 00:28:52,639
I have that to thank...
273
00:28:52,912 --> 00:28:57,101
...or to regret
for my not going to Hollywood
274
00:28:57,930 --> 00:29:01,467
When Von Sternberg later saw
Riefenstahl's own first film,
275
00:29:01,753 --> 00:29:04,679
he was able to make a more
precise judgment about her
276
00:29:05,812 --> 00:29:09,816
Yes, he'd seen me in
'The Blue Light'...
277
00:29:10,085 --> 00:29:13,438
...where I played the role of
Junta...
278
00:29:13,593 --> 00:29:19,082
...an innocent, naive
child of nature...
279
00:29:19,377 --> 00:29:22,768
...who is intentionally asexual...
280
00:29:23,806 --> 00:29:28,787
...whereas Marlene was the sexy type,
erotic, a sort of sphinx...
281
00:29:29,083 --> 00:29:31,498
...a star, an elegant super-star
282
00:29:31,839 --> 00:29:36,187
He thought I was the absolute
opposite of Marlene
283
00:29:36,551 --> 00:29:39,016
I think that was probably true
284
00:29:40,440 --> 00:29:45,274
While Riefenstahl made films for Hitler,
Dietrich chose to emigrate
285
00:29:45,942 --> 00:29:50,211
In his memoirs, Von Sternberg makes
no reference to Riefenstahl
286
00:29:52,274 --> 00:29:56,407
In the streets of Berlin,
Nazis were still struggling to win elections
287
00:29:57,062 --> 00:30:02,651
Hitler, waiting in the wings
was certainly ready, but, was Germany?
288
00:30:06,750 --> 00:30:10,455
We Germans wanted a Führer...
289
00:30:10,610 --> 00:30:14,144
...and we got one, right?
290
00:30:14,421 --> 00:30:19,296
We Germans are all like that,
we want a Führer
291
00:30:19,661 --> 00:30:23,774
And what happens?
This ghastly Hitler comes along...
292
00:30:23,920 --> 00:30:28,398
...and everyone says,
"Wonderful, here's a real Führer
293
00:30:28,769 --> 00:30:30,969
"Someone to tell us what to do"
294
00:30:31,296 --> 00:30:34,626
There's something
in what Marlene says
295
00:30:34,919 --> 00:30:39,261
For us, at school and at home...
296
00:30:39,583 --> 00:30:44,670
...discipline came first.
She's right there
297
00:30:46,639 --> 00:30:50,620
Germans would be very
enamored of someone...
298
00:30:50,760 --> 00:30:54,882
...they thought they could
model themselves on
299
00:30:55,177 --> 00:30:59,092
They're happy to let themselves
be led, that's for sure
300
00:31:04,714 --> 00:31:08,967
While the Germans rallied around their
new Führer in ever increasing numbers,
301
00:31:09,221 --> 00:31:11,831
Riefenstahl set off again for the mountains
302
00:31:12,533 --> 00:31:15,048
In the south Tirol,
she made her first film
303
00:31:15,611 --> 00:31:20,202
a romantic fairy-tale, which
she produced, directed and starred
304
00:31:37,391 --> 00:31:40,948
This rocky peak in the
Brenta Massif of the south Tirol
305
00:31:41,104 --> 00:31:46,007
is transformed by Leni Riefenstahl's
camera into a mysterious presence
306
00:31:46,433 --> 00:31:48,740
mythical and Wagnerian
307
00:31:56,251 --> 00:32:01,284
The girl holding the crystal
is an outcast, a witch
308
00:32:02,717 --> 00:32:06,960
The crystal or crystals...
309
00:32:07,265 --> 00:32:13,165
...are in fact the symbolic theme
of 'The Blue Light'
310
00:32:18,545 --> 00:32:20,011
Junta...
311
00:32:20,309 --> 00:32:25,544
...who is a wild, innocent
mountain girl...
312
00:32:25,835 --> 00:32:29,424
...was fascinated by the light
in this grotto
313
00:32:29,580 --> 00:32:33,805
In the mountains was a crystal grotto
which only Junta knew about
314
00:32:34,106 --> 00:32:36,554
It was only visible...
315
00:32:36,709 --> 00:32:41,840
...by the blue light of a full moon
shining through a crack
316
00:32:42,310 --> 00:32:45,029
Then it was a shimmer of blue
317
00:32:52,096 --> 00:32:53,476
Symbolic...
318
00:32:53,617 --> 00:32:58,135
...of the ideal one always dreams of
but never attains
319
00:32:58,370 --> 00:33:00,453
That's the film's theme
320
00:33:05,643 --> 00:33:08,576
Why did you choose a fairy-tale
for your first film?
321
00:33:08,868 --> 00:33:11,996
I suppose because Dr. Fanck's films...
322
00:33:12,142 --> 00:33:18,107
...although realistic, were set
in fairy-tale landscapes
323
00:33:18,411 --> 00:33:21,035
I found that a conflict of styles
324
00:33:21,331 --> 00:33:26,057
Fairy-tale landscapes and realistic
action didn't work together for me
325
00:33:26,206 --> 00:33:31,831
But since I also loved beautiful,
fairy-tale, picturesque landscape...
326
00:33:32,164 --> 00:33:36,819
...I thought it would be better
to fit a fairy-story into it
327
00:33:39,144 --> 00:33:43,409
No one in the film understands how
power of a mysterious mountain
328
00:33:43,715 --> 00:33:46,086
had access to the precious stones
329
00:33:47,636 --> 00:33:48,740
You witch
330
00:33:57,929 --> 00:34:01,300
Go away, you ugly old witch
331
00:34:25,618 --> 00:34:26,904
How beautiful
332
00:34:41,792 --> 00:34:46,203
Before I worked with Fanck,
when I was a dancer...
333
00:34:46,358 --> 00:34:50,051
...I'd written scripts
but no screenplays
334
00:34:50,342 --> 00:34:54,421
Then I met Carl Mayer,
the famous playwright...
335
00:34:54,641 --> 00:34:58,257
...who'd written the material
for Murnau's film...
336
00:34:58,408 --> 00:35:03,292
...and Bela Balazs, who was
the best screen-writer then
337
00:35:03,596 --> 00:35:07,802
They liked my material so much
they gave me some good tips
338
00:35:08,112 --> 00:35:10,894
Balazs even helped me for free
339
00:35:11,178 --> 00:35:15,097
Balazs wrote the dialogue
and I did the visual scenes
340
00:35:15,434 --> 00:35:18,021
It was the ideal collaboration
341
00:35:18,360 --> 00:35:19,590
Here, for instance...
342
00:35:19,904 --> 00:35:24,592
...I drew the waterfall
and the position of the sun
343
00:35:25,683 --> 00:35:29,518
It says here, 7:10 a.m.
344
00:35:29,814 --> 00:35:33,285
Shooting must be finished by 8
345
00:35:33,858 --> 00:35:39,578
I even put the lens to be used:
a 7.5 focal length
346
00:35:39,890 --> 00:35:41,599
It's all noted
347
00:35:41,926 --> 00:35:45,762
You put down every scene
in writing
348
00:35:46,051 --> 00:35:51,411
I fine-tuned every scene through
the camera, worked out the light...
349
00:35:51,690 --> 00:35:55,691
...and tested everything in advance.
It ran like clockwork
350
00:35:55,984 --> 00:35:59,131
We even did a rush of every scene
351
00:35:59,420 --> 00:36:04,207
We made a negative to see whether
we could improve on it
352
00:36:04,501 --> 00:36:08,257
We placed a lot of importance
on picture quality
353
00:36:16,817 --> 00:36:20,587
Riefenstahl was a perfectionist,
and would only settle for the best
354
00:36:21,197 --> 00:36:25,254
For her first film, she ordered
a special lens to be sent over from Hollywood
355
00:36:25,409 --> 00:36:29,337
and asked the labs to develop a
new film stock for the night scenes
356
00:36:47,158 --> 00:36:52,489
I was able to do that because Agfa
made some special film-stock for me
357
00:36:52,776 --> 00:36:54,913
It was later called R-Stock
358
00:36:55,261 --> 00:37:01,447
If you use it with a red filter,
the blue comes out dark, almost black
359
00:37:01,737 --> 00:37:06,989
I could do climbing shots as if they
were at night, without a spotlight
360
00:37:07,250 --> 00:37:09,342
It was an experiment
361
00:37:48,787 --> 00:37:52,981
As Rosselini and De Sica told me,
I was the first...
362
00:37:53,131 --> 00:37:57,180
...to film in real locations,
like a church
363
00:37:57,574 --> 00:38:00,161
We built nothing in the studio
364
00:38:00,457 --> 00:38:04,335
I was given permission to film
in a church...
365
00:38:04,633 --> 00:38:11,016
...while the priests were
conducting a service
366
00:38:22,705 --> 00:38:26,209
The inn scenes were filmed in
Bolzano
367
00:38:26,357 --> 00:38:29,267
In fact all the interior scenes...
368
00:38:29,542 --> 00:38:35,340
...were shot in real locations
for the first time in a feature film
369
00:39:06,904 --> 00:39:12,479
When the film was ready, I showed it
to Agfa, who were the distributors
370
00:39:12,616 --> 00:39:18,245
They didn't like it at all
and I was also disappointed with it
371
00:39:18,567 --> 00:39:22,072
The film did not look
as I'd envisaged it
372
00:39:22,402 --> 00:39:25,440
So I went and showed it to Fanck
373
00:39:25,745 --> 00:39:31,144
And he said, "Come back tomorrow
and we'll improve it
374
00:39:31,401 --> 00:39:34,658
"It has weaknesses and boring bits"
375
00:39:34,804 --> 00:39:37,721
When I went back the next day...
376
00:39:38,029 --> 00:39:44,065
...he'd cut up my copy into hundreds
of pieces and completely re-edited it
377
00:39:44,431 --> 00:39:45,845
I was horrified
378
00:39:46,123 --> 00:39:50,417
His version didn't work either.
All my effort was wasted
379
00:39:52,160 --> 00:39:55,563
Riefenstahl's steely determination
enabled her to conquer
380
00:39:55,563 --> 00:40:00,609
not a new rock-face, but also to
overcome all obstacles in her career
381
00:40:01,480 --> 00:40:04,356
The fight in the editing room
was to prove the first of many
382
00:40:05,050 --> 00:40:07,127
And she always got her way
383
00:40:11,422 --> 00:40:17,631
For several days, I just wept
and then I began to edit it again
384
00:40:17,763 --> 00:40:22,813
And this exercise was
very therapeutic
385
00:40:23,093 --> 00:40:26,437
Although I didn't like Fanck's cut...
386
00:40:26,736 --> 00:40:32,336
...I noticed lots of things
he'd done...
387
00:40:32,661 --> 00:40:38,624
...which I'd never have thought of,
like the inter-cutting of scenes
388
00:41:06,837 --> 00:41:11,787
Fanck had cut too much but I saw
it was wrong not to cut at all
389
00:41:11,935 --> 00:41:15,442
So I took it over and edited it
in a rhythm...
390
00:41:15,586 --> 00:41:20,068
...I felt right for the subject.
I hadn't done that before
391
00:41:20,354 --> 00:41:23,839
If a director shoots a scene
that goes on too long...
392
00:41:23,988 --> 00:41:27,696
...he doesn't always realise
it needs cutting
393
00:41:27,955 --> 00:41:31,336
A particularly important scene was
in the moonlight...
394
00:41:31,634 --> 00:41:34,249
...when the peasants shut their doors
395
00:41:34,518 --> 00:41:40,505
At first I'd edited it - man shuts the door,
next a man shuts door and so on
396
00:41:40,744 --> 00:41:44,343
That was the logical way but Fanck
did it differently
397
00:41:44,526 --> 00:41:50,609
He had one man starting to shut his
door, the next continuing the action
398
00:41:50,904 --> 00:41:54,152
This variety gave more interest
and tension
399
00:41:54,446 --> 00:41:59,370
It was a very special method
which I intuitively understood...
400
00:41:59,674 --> 00:42:03,302
...and which I applied to my subject
401
00:42:03,581 --> 00:42:09,173
I still did things more slowly than
he had, but not as slowly as before
402
00:42:09,319 --> 00:42:11,176
I was learning
403
00:42:18,301 --> 00:42:20,678
Don't close the shutters...
404
00:42:20,980 --> 00:42:23,421
...in this fine weather
405
00:42:24,122 --> 00:42:25,991
It's full moon
406
00:42:27,185 --> 00:42:29,743
Ah, the blue light
407
00:42:38,400 --> 00:42:44,131
I played this girl Junta,
who is a kind of witch
408
00:42:44,277 --> 00:42:50,671
It's as if it were a premonition
of my own life
409
00:42:51,642 --> 00:42:53,996
Junta was loved and hated
410
00:42:54,149 --> 00:42:59,187
It's been the same for me -
I've been loved and hated
411
00:42:59,484 --> 00:43:03,437
Just as Junta lost her ideal...
412
00:43:03,599 --> 00:43:07,232
...through the shattering of
the crystal...
413
00:43:07,548 --> 00:43:13,891
...in the same way I lost my ideals
at the end of that terrible war
414
00:43:15,532 --> 00:43:21,980
To that extent the film was indeed
a premonition of my own destiny
415
00:43:34,016 --> 00:43:37,587
Were you already in contact with
the National Socialists?
416
00:43:37,722 --> 00:43:44,162
I didn't know of their existence.
I hadn't even heard of Hitler
417
00:43:44,885 --> 00:43:49,208
When I was filming 'The Blue Light'
I had no idea
418
00:43:50,636 --> 00:43:55,294
Didn't Hans Jaeger say something
to you about Hitler?
419
00:43:55,627 --> 00:43:57,717
He said to me:
420
00:43:58,016 --> 00:44:03,666
"Are you going to this National
Socialist meeting today?"
421
00:44:03,933 --> 00:44:07,543
I didn't understand so I said
"Why? What about it?"
422
00:44:07,824 --> 00:44:13,256
"Hitler's speaking today in Berlin,
in the Sports Palace", he said
423
00:44:13,529 --> 00:44:15,219
"So what?" I said
424
00:44:15,350 --> 00:44:19,162
Then he said, "I've a feeling...
425
00:44:19,762 --> 00:44:25,592
"...that if you heard him,
it could change your life"
426
00:44:25,883 --> 00:44:29,843
I laughed and asked
"How could it do that?"
427
00:44:29,971 --> 00:44:36,505
So Jaeger, who was an anti-Nazi,
though I didn't know that, said:
428
00:44:37,255 --> 00:44:39,290
"Take my advice and go"
429
00:44:39,598 --> 00:44:44,234
And as I was curious, I went
430
00:44:45,273 --> 00:44:48,436
And indeed it did change my fate
431
00:44:55,259 --> 00:44:57,392
I know, my comrades...
432
00:44:57,791 --> 00:45:03,043
...that it was hard for you when
you thought change must come...
433
00:45:03,342 --> 00:45:04,728
...and it never came
434
00:45:05,050 --> 00:45:11,352
When endless appeals were made
to you that the fight must go on
435
00:45:11,659 --> 00:45:15,113
Calls not to act but to obey
436
00:45:15,275 --> 00:45:21,630
To resist but not to bend under
this monstrous pressure
437
00:45:21,793 --> 00:45:26,669
It was the first time I'd ever seen
a political meeting
438
00:45:26,956 --> 00:45:33,260
I found it immensely impressive and
I was carried away by the atmosphere
439
00:45:33,576 --> 00:45:37,598
Hitler really fascinated me
440
00:45:38,174 --> 00:45:42,304
So I immediately wrote him a letter
441
00:45:42,592 --> 00:45:45,083
I wanted to meet him. I thought:
442
00:45:45,398 --> 00:45:48,809
May be he is the man
who can save Germany
443
00:45:49,379 --> 00:45:55,823
When I asked his adjutant
why I'd received a reply, he said:
444
00:45:55,958 --> 00:46:01,841
"The Führer was thrilled with
your dance by the sea...
445
00:46:02,114 --> 00:46:04,625
"...in 'The Sacred Mountain'"
446
00:46:28,613 --> 00:46:31,371
What was your impression of him?
447
00:46:31,674 --> 00:46:36,920
Interestingly, quite the opposite
of my impression at the Stadium
448
00:46:37,244 --> 00:46:40,943
There he'd seemed a politician...
449
00:46:41,225 --> 00:46:44,785
...trying to enthuse people
450
00:46:45,054 --> 00:46:48,960
Now he seemed a modest,
private individual
451
00:46:49,267 --> 00:46:52,741
You couldn't imagine him
stirring the masses
452
00:46:53,060 --> 00:46:58,375
He seemed very natural,
straightforward, modest and friendly
453
00:46:58,679 --> 00:47:05,989
When I'd seen his face on posters,
I'd thought him decidedly ugly
454
00:47:06,142 --> 00:47:10,391
But when I met him personally,
that all disappeared
455
00:47:10,655 --> 00:47:15,119
You just didn't notice his features
and the mustache
456
00:47:15,434 --> 00:47:18,370
He radiated something very powerful
457
00:47:18,679 --> 00:47:22,356
You forgot all the rest
458
00:47:22,652 --> 00:47:26,431
But as a man he did not interest me
at all
459
00:47:26,676 --> 00:47:31,285
You sensed he had a kind of
demonic power of suggestion?
460
00:47:31,603 --> 00:47:34,457
Yes, at the public meeting...
461
00:47:34,886 --> 00:47:38,279
...and even more strongly
when I met him
462
00:47:38,411 --> 00:47:42,546
He radiated something which had
a kind of hypnotic effect
463
00:47:42,815 --> 00:47:45,974
That frightened me a little
464
00:47:46,242 --> 00:47:51,103
I didn't want to lose my own will
and my freedom
465
00:47:51,368 --> 00:47:53,836
I already felt...
466
00:47:54,117 --> 00:47:59,101
...I had to avoid this atmosphere
at all costs
467
00:47:59,418 --> 00:48:02,548
It would paralyse one's free will
468
00:48:02,704 --> 00:48:08,234
What did you make of
his political programme?
469
00:48:08,533 --> 00:48:11,432
I knew nothing about it...
470
00:48:11,652 --> 00:48:16,754
...and had no time to find out
because I was off to Greenland
471
00:48:21,494 --> 00:48:25,545
She was soon being typecast.
In this big Hollywood production,
472
00:48:25,545 --> 00:48:29,880
Leni Riefenstahl once again plays
the part of the beautiful daredevil
473
00:48:30,158 --> 00:48:32,560
The plucky rescue pilot
in the Arctic
474
00:48:50,020 --> 00:48:54,086
She embodied an ideal which Hitler
was cleverly to exploit
475
00:48:55,009 --> 00:48:57,666
Incidentally, he said then:
476
00:48:57,968 --> 00:49:03,145
"When we come to power,
you must make my films"
477
00:49:03,300 --> 00:49:07,983
I certainly didn't take him
seriously. I said:
478
00:49:08,277 --> 00:49:13,562
"I can only do what I enjoy. I'm
an actress, I want nice parts to play"
479
00:49:15,132 --> 00:49:19,422
It is precisely these roles which
created the image of Riefenstahl
480
00:49:19,512 --> 00:49:23,377
that Hitler so admired,
a heroic superwoman,
481
00:49:23,682 --> 00:49:27,579
the queen of the mountains,
enthroned high among the peaks,
482
00:49:28,672 --> 00:49:34,161
beyond the reach of the masses,
an idol, a myth larger than life
483
00:49:35,109 --> 00:49:39,433
In other words, exactly what
Hitler himself so much wanted to be
484
00:49:39,745 --> 00:49:43,540
but so conspicuously lacked
the artistic tinge to achieve
485
00:49:45,799 --> 00:49:51,133
Then Hitler said, "Well, when
you're older and more mature...
486
00:49:51,436 --> 00:49:54,444
"...maybe you'll understand my ideas"
487
00:49:54,743 --> 00:49:56,520
I was ignorant then
488
00:49:59,071 --> 00:50:03,441
In January 1933, Hitler
became Reich's Chancellor
489
00:50:03,473 --> 00:50:05,278
with immediate consequences
490
00:50:10,496 --> 00:50:12,843
German men and women...
491
00:50:14,057 --> 00:50:19,318
...the age of pettifogging
Jewish intellectualism...
492
00:50:19,744 --> 00:50:21,856
...is at an end
493
00:50:22,621 --> 00:50:26,238
The breakthrough
of the German revolution...
494
00:50:26,390 --> 00:50:30,017
...had cleared the path ahead
for Germany
495
00:50:30,358 --> 00:50:34,471
I consign all that is un-German
to the flames
496
00:50:35,369 --> 00:50:38,569
I consign to the fire
the writings...
497
00:50:38,842 --> 00:50:40,396
...of Heinrich Mann...
498
00:50:40,563 --> 00:50:42,073
...Ernst Glaeser...
499
00:50:42,396 --> 00:50:44,045
{\a8}...and Erich Kästner
500
00:50:42,591 --> 00:50:47,148
As ever, at the crucial time,
Leni Riefenstahl was absent
501
00:50:44,318 --> 00:50:49,039
{\a8}Down with time-servers and political traitors
502
00:50:47,427 --> 00:50:49,169
filming in the Swiss Alps
503
00:50:49,143 --> 00:50:54,305
I heard nothing about the book-burning.
We hadn't television then
504
00:50:54,506 --> 00:50:57,981
I learnt about it on my return...
505
00:50:58,267 --> 00:51:02,426
...and particularly about
friends of mine...
506
00:51:02,726 --> 00:51:04,138
Who had emigrated?
507
00:51:04,285 --> 00:51:07,190
I found their letters in my post
508
00:51:07,491 --> 00:51:11,763
They wrote to me and that really
upset me
509
00:51:18,489 --> 00:51:22,185
And when I was summoned...
510
00:51:22,483 --> 00:51:27,925
...to see Hitler, I immediately
spoke to him about it
511
00:51:28,210 --> 00:51:33,063
His face darkened suddenly
and he said:
512
00:51:33,363 --> 00:51:38,306
"I must ask you, Fräulein,
not to speak to me on this matter"
513
00:51:38,606 --> 00:51:40,910
You did try to raise the subject?
514
00:51:41,202 --> 00:51:45,617
Immediately. It was the first thing
I tried...
515
00:51:45,917 --> 00:51:48,764
...and realised it wasn't possible
516
00:51:49,030 --> 00:51:54,730
He immediately called his adjutant
and had me ushered out
517
00:51:55,028 --> 00:51:57,967
He wouldn't talk to me about it
518
00:51:59,307 --> 00:52:02,713
Clearly, something in Germany
had fundamentally changed
519
00:52:03,534 --> 00:52:07,152
In the brutal boycott of Jewish shops
gave her no cause to doubt
520
00:52:07,848 --> 00:52:11,471
How could she have overlooked
what she saw around her in Germany?
521
00:52:12,468 --> 00:52:16,451
My friends who'd emigrated...
522
00:52:16,724 --> 00:52:20,367
...and Manfred Georg
in particular...
523
00:52:20,661 --> 00:52:23,809
...urged me to stay and
stick it out
524
00:52:24,081 --> 00:52:28,691
By staying, we could prevent
the spread of anti-semitism
525
00:52:28,932 --> 00:52:32,007
We were to be a bulwark against it
526
00:52:35,477 --> 00:52:39,046
And we all thought it was just
electioneering...
527
00:52:39,286 --> 00:52:42,685
...a temporary thing
that would die down
528
00:52:43,013 --> 00:52:45,934
We didn't foresee the danger
529
00:52:47,407 --> 00:52:51,150
Didn't 'Mein Kampf'
open your eyes...
530
00:52:51,440 --> 00:52:53,395
...to Hitler's aims?
531
00:52:53,525 --> 00:52:55,378
It was very interesting
532
00:52:55,651 --> 00:53:00,070
I hadn't read it all -
just a few chapters
533
00:53:00,202 --> 00:53:04,302
Some things in it appealed to me
very much
534
00:53:04,422 --> 00:53:07,784
Everything that dealt with
social problems
535
00:53:08,083 --> 00:53:13,773
I think that was why Hitler had
so many supporters then
536
00:53:14,017 --> 00:53:16,971
Six million unemployed,
the poverty...
537
00:53:17,386 --> 00:53:22,504
Obviously I didn't like
his racial theories
538
00:53:22,760 --> 00:53:28,797
I made notes in the book which later
happened to fall into Hitler's hands
539
00:53:29,062 --> 00:53:34,801
I had written 'good' or 'bad', 'not good'
etc. So I had made my choices
540
00:53:35,067 --> 00:53:39,113
- How did he react to this critique?
- He laughed
541
00:53:39,816 --> 00:53:43,155
{\a8}Ladies and gentlemen
542
00:53:40,802 --> 00:53:45,406
Goebbels' diaries for the year 1933
give the distinct impression that
543
00:53:44,198 --> 00:53:48,405
{\a8}With one bold and magnificent stroke...
544
00:53:45,406 --> 00:53:50,090
Riefenstahl was on good terms socially
with both Hitler and Goebbels
545
00:53:48,671 --> 00:53:52,643
{\a8}...we've put our enemies to flight
546
00:53:53,229 --> 00:53:56,880
What was your relationship with
the Propaganda Minister, Goebbels?
547
00:53:57,148 --> 00:54:00,084
The worst you can ever imagine
548
00:54:00,471 --> 00:54:03,551
We met before they came to power
549
00:54:03,721 --> 00:54:10,009
It was in the lift at the Hotel Kaiserhof.
We were both going up
550
00:54:10,470 --> 00:54:14,355
He pursued me and was determined
to have me
551
00:54:14,495 --> 00:54:18,088
He wanted me as his mistress
and so on
552
00:54:18,233 --> 00:54:21,460
But he was not my type at all
553
00:54:21,612 --> 00:54:25,223
I felt nothing for him
554
00:54:25,372 --> 00:54:31,758
He never forgave me for rejecting
him. Later it became worse
555
00:54:32,048 --> 00:54:35,077
I can say he was almost an enemy
556
00:54:35,380 --> 00:54:40,452
Reading Goebbels' diaries for
1933, we get the impression...
557
00:54:40,586 --> 00:54:43,928
...you were on visiting terms with
him and Hitler
558
00:54:44,356 --> 00:54:49,111
You must show me these entries.
I've never read them
559
00:54:49,262 --> 00:54:54,107
I've never read anything saying I was
on visiting terms. It's sheer fantasy
560
00:54:55,370 --> 00:55:00,280
Saw Leni Riefenstahl this afternoon,
suggested a film about Hitler to her
561
00:55:00,598 --> 00:55:01,938
She was enthusiastic
562
00:55:02,608 --> 00:55:05,920
In the evening to Madam Butterfly
with Magda and Leni
563
00:55:07,331 --> 00:55:12,429
At the start of 1933 I'd never
visited him. He never said I had
564
00:55:12,743 --> 00:55:14,622
Drove back with Hitler in the evening
565
00:55:14,891 --> 00:55:19,953
Later at home, Philipp von Hessen
and Leni Riefenstahl called 'very nice'
566
00:55:20,505 --> 00:55:21,923
I never went there
567
00:55:22,224 --> 00:55:26,067
Nor to Schwanenwerder, where
everyone went
568
00:55:26,355 --> 00:55:29,449
I wasn't even invited. Not once
569
00:55:30,123 --> 00:55:34,171
Saw a film with Hitler starring
Hans Albers, terrible rubbish
570
00:55:34,569 --> 00:55:38,842
Gerda, Maria and Leni Riefenstahl
were there. Three beautiful women
571
00:55:39,087 --> 00:55:43,821
This makes me so angry.
What you say is incredible
572
00:55:44,135 --> 00:55:45,322
Let me show you
573
00:55:45,573 --> 00:55:50,181
That I was on social terms... there's
nothing about that in the diaries...
574
00:55:50,473 --> 00:55:52,776
It's simply not true. Herr Müller
575
00:55:53,046 --> 00:55:59,346
OK, show me where it says I was
in and out of their houses, socially
576
00:56:00,132 --> 00:56:06,362
What to believe? The diaries of Goebbels
or the memories of last surviving witness
577
00:56:08,440 --> 00:56:11,398
Goebbels was a master of the lie
578
00:56:14,461 --> 00:56:19,701
Nuremberg, the imperial castle of the
Holy Roman Emperors, the Kaiserberg
579
00:56:20,343 --> 00:56:22,683
A place special significance for Hitler
580
00:56:23,670 --> 00:56:28,142
In his imagination, Hitler saw himself
in the tradition of the German Emperors
581
00:56:28,294 --> 00:56:33,953
And like them based his ideal of the
Führer on an image of the Roman Caesers
582
00:56:34,979 --> 00:56:39,254
That's why the congresses of the
Nazi party were organized in Nuremberg
583
00:56:40,297 --> 00:56:42,988
Today, very little remains
of the Nazi buildings,
584
00:56:43,456 --> 00:56:47,885
the popular enthusiasm for the big
courage is no longer comprehensible
585
00:56:50,308 --> 00:56:55,491
This is where the great march pasts took place
involving as many as a hundred thousand men
586
00:57:12,549 --> 00:57:18,258
Riefenstahl's film of the 1934 Party Congress
was the turning point in her life
587
00:57:18,805 --> 00:57:20,366
It changed everything
588
00:57:22,712 --> 00:57:27,731
{\a8}38,000 workers on parade for the ceremony
589
00:57:24,416 --> 00:57:27,035
Later Congresses were filmed
by other directors
590
00:57:27,251 --> 00:57:29,063
But they've long been forgotten
591
00:57:46,123 --> 00:57:49,798
The first film was to have been
the one and only
592
00:57:50,134 --> 00:57:53,837
Never two or three.
Just the one Party Congress film
593
00:57:54,039 --> 00:57:59,638
But the first one in 1933
was never completed
594
00:57:59,938 --> 00:58:06,235
We only filmed a few metres
before we were interrupted
595
00:58:06,704 --> 00:58:13,061
The Party didn't want us to make
the film despite Hitler's commission
596
00:58:13,419 --> 00:58:14,816
It was boycotted
597
00:58:18,425 --> 00:58:23,315
Until recently, Riefenstahl's first film
of the Nazi Congresses in Nuremberg,
598
00:58:23,425 --> 00:58:26,356
Victory of Faith, was
thought to have been lost
599
00:58:26,710 --> 00:58:29,508
Many doubted that it was
ever actually been made
600
00:58:33,992 --> 00:58:39,398
Grotesque as it may sound, the Party
who were supposed to make the film...
601
00:58:39,698 --> 00:58:42,359
...didn't want me to make it
602
00:58:42,547 --> 00:58:47,122
But you were involved in the other
film? You brought that up yourself
603
00:58:47,404 --> 00:58:51,481
I know, but it's very hard
to keep them apart
604
00:58:51,751 --> 00:58:53,426
We can cut it out
605
00:58:53,588 --> 00:58:56,106
It's hard to keep it separate
606
00:58:56,494 --> 00:59:00,558
I'm happy to talk about it
but not in this bloody light
607
00:59:04,907 --> 00:59:08,018
Reporting to the Führer
608
00:59:08,273 --> 00:59:13,554
{\a8}100,000 Storm-Troopers, Stahlhelm...
609
00:59:09,833 --> 00:59:12,361
In those days,
Hitler and Ernst Röhm
610
00:59:12,730 --> 00:59:15,252
were still the partners
in the struggle for power
611
00:59:13,688 --> 00:59:19,008
{\a8}...and SS on parade before the Führer
612
00:59:23,868 --> 00:59:25,779
Heil, SA
613
00:59:27,866 --> 00:59:32,963
You talked about the first film
and the second. You can't do that
614
00:59:33,130 --> 00:59:38,709
I have to say what the first film is.
You can't talk about both at once
615
00:59:39,018 --> 00:59:42,304
- You mentioned the second film
- And you the first
616
00:59:42,469 --> 00:59:46,873
- That's the one I want to discuss
- Not me. I hardly did anything on it
617
00:59:49,185 --> 00:59:53,408
With its amateury shots of Hitler,
and rather elementary camera angles
618
00:59:53,671 --> 00:59:59,313
Victory of Faith is perhaps understandably a
film Riefenstahl is very reluctant to talk about
619
01:00:08,620 --> 01:00:12,522
To this day, she is annoyed about
the conditions in which she had to film
620
01:00:12,920 --> 01:00:16,262
and which made it impossible for her
to achieve her usual perfection
621
01:00:21,954 --> 01:00:26,269
No, the first one wasn't
a proper Party Congress film
622
01:00:26,540 --> 01:00:31,806
It was just a few shots I put together,
because Hitler wanted it
623
01:00:31,934 --> 01:00:35,107
It has nothing to do with
my technique
624
01:00:35,422 --> 01:00:38,565
You can only discuss technique
in 'Triumph of the Will'
625
01:00:38,824 --> 01:00:40,948
In the first film there was
no technique?
626
01:00:41,220 --> 01:00:45,905
No, we couldn't prepare. When I arrived
the Congress was in progress
627
01:00:46,192 --> 01:00:51,362
Let me explain why. My dear
Herr Müller, I could do nothing
628
01:00:51,523 --> 01:00:56,728
The party forbade it. Hitler and
Goebbels had had a row
629
01:01:29,426 --> 01:01:32,196
If you mention the first film...
630
01:01:32,512 --> 01:01:36,129
...I must say why I couldn't use
my techniques
631
01:01:36,408 --> 01:01:37,383
Go ahead
632
01:01:37,621 --> 01:01:41,109
But, my God, it's too important
to discuss here!
633
01:01:42,605 --> 01:01:47,119
Not only was the camera work shoddy,
but the organization of the event itself
634
01:01:47,409 --> 01:01:49,409
seemed uncharacteristically chaotic
635
01:01:49,938 --> 01:01:53,813
The Nazis have not yet learned
how to march like Nazis
636
01:02:14,349 --> 01:02:19,160
It is quite obvious that both Hitler and
Riefenstahl were still trying to get it right
637
01:02:20,620 --> 01:02:23,400
The first wasn't a proper film
638
01:02:23,654 --> 01:02:29,572
Just a few scenes of them running
around here, which we put together
639
01:02:29,744 --> 01:02:31,782
Didn't you edit it yourself?
640
01:02:32,051 --> 01:02:37,159
Yes I did. I had to put it together
but I had scarcely any material
641
01:02:37,818 --> 01:02:40,192
{\a8}A society...
642
01:02:39,207 --> 01:02:43,902
However some sequences already have
the characteristic Riefenstahl touch
643
01:02:41,299 --> 01:02:43,907
{\a8}...without regard...
644
01:02:44,915 --> 01:02:48,867
...to origin, class...
645
01:02:49,703 --> 01:02:55,162
...profession, wealth or education
646
01:02:56,131 --> 01:02:57,712
A society...
647
01:02:57,981 --> 01:03:04,254
...which feels itself bound
together, united...
648
01:03:06,463 --> 01:03:11,454
{\a8}...in one great faith and one great purpose
649
01:03:07,810 --> 01:03:11,753
In places like this, the mark of
Riefenstahl was unmistakable
650
01:03:11,602 --> 01:03:13,707
{\a8}Not for position...
651
01:03:12,156 --> 01:03:16,200
A dramatic intensity humped up by
the composition and the editing
652
01:03:13,813 --> 01:03:16,140
{\a8}...and not for party
653
01:03:16,303 --> 01:03:18,248
Not for profession...
654
01:03:18,393 --> 01:03:20,944
...and not for class...
655
01:03:21,505 --> 01:03:25,747
...but united in our one Germany
656
01:03:25,898 --> 01:03:27,724
Your clients were satisfied?
657
01:03:27,885 --> 01:03:34,385
They'd have been happy with any old
newsreel provided it showed swastikas
658
01:03:34,594 --> 01:03:39,922
Nevertheless the film had to be
edited. It became a short
659
01:03:40,274 --> 01:03:46,254
It was shown in some cinema
or other, I forget where
660
01:03:46,511 --> 01:03:49,673
Hitler and the others liked it
661
01:03:49,823 --> 01:03:54,293
It was interesting
but they weren't satisfied
662
01:03:54,523 --> 01:03:57,891
Hitler insisted I make another film
the following year
663
01:03:58,164 --> 01:03:59,726
Were you dissatisfied too?
664
01:04:00,039 --> 01:04:04,018
To me it wasn't a proper film.
Just some shots
665
01:04:06,176 --> 01:04:10,763
Again and again one can see clearly that
Hitler was not yet in sole command
666
01:04:11,604 --> 01:04:14,204
Beside him, and on the
same level stands his
667
01:04:14,204 --> 01:04:16,849
storm trooper commander, Ernst Röhm
668
01:04:17,405 --> 01:04:20,355
Shortly afterwards, Hitler had
him assassinated
669
01:04:50,250 --> 01:04:52,880
An attempt by the the party
to boycott her filming angered
670
01:04:53,007 --> 01:04:57,127
angered Riefenstahl so much that she
immediately complained to Hitler
671
01:05:02,636 --> 01:05:05,879
I explained exactly what
the problem was
672
01:05:06,183 --> 01:05:12,550
Goebbels was present, and you can
imagine what happened next
673
01:05:13,148 --> 01:05:16,753
Goebbels went white as a sheet
674
01:05:16,892 --> 01:05:21,830
Hitler was furious, beside himself.
He said:
675
01:05:22,142 --> 01:05:26,737
"This must never happen again.
You will make the film next year"
676
01:05:26,900 --> 01:05:30,203
I said I can't. I'll never do
another one"
677
01:05:30,503 --> 01:05:33,076
I'd made up my mind not to
678
01:05:33,348 --> 01:05:36,423
I ran out in floods of tears...
679
01:05:36,724 --> 01:05:42,019
...and soon after I got home,
there was a phone call to say...
680
01:05:42,285 --> 01:05:45,009
...I had to go and see Goebbels
681
01:05:45,297 --> 01:05:50,607
It was the day Goebbels went
to Geneva...
682
01:05:50,779 --> 01:05:55,814
...to announce that Germany was
leaving the League of Nations
683
01:05:56,106 --> 01:05:57,554
That's why I remember
684
01:05:57,942 --> 01:06:04,285
I got to his office in the Propaganda
Ministry and he screamed at me:
685
01:06:06,427 --> 01:06:10,897
"If you were a man and
not a woman...
686
01:06:11,150 --> 01:06:13,625
"...I'd throw you downstairs
687
01:06:20,955 --> 01:06:27,258
"You're a dangerous woman.
Never let me set eyes on you again"
688
01:06:27,408 --> 01:06:30,146
That's how it ended
689
01:06:30,411 --> 01:06:35,214
And everything that came later
resulted from this hate
690
01:06:35,675 --> 01:06:40,377
In 1934, Riefenstahl was back
filming in Nuremberg
691
01:06:40,705 --> 01:06:44,249
This time she was given a free hand,
a triumph of her own will,
692
01:06:42,423 --> 01:06:45,830
{\a8}TRIUMPH OF THE WILL
693
01:06:44,249 --> 01:06:45,870
or a pact with the devil
694
01:06:45,944 --> 01:06:48,488
Today it's easy to think that
695
01:06:48,757 --> 01:06:55,090
Now that we know all the terrible
things he did and got others to do...
696
01:06:55,349 --> 01:07:00,600
then clearly it was
a pact with the Devil
697
01:07:00,901 --> 01:07:02,513
But we didn't know then
698
01:07:02,787 --> 01:07:08,569
Hitler probably was schizophrenic,
both a devil...
699
01:07:08,716 --> 01:07:14,313
...and its opposite, but we could
only see one side of him
700
01:07:14,463 --> 01:07:17,808
Not that terrible, dangerous side
701
01:07:35,810 --> 01:07:38,935
I just wanted to act
702
01:07:39,246 --> 01:07:42,587
I didn't want to take on
this terrible workload
703
01:07:42,746 --> 01:07:48,356
I wasn't against it for political
reasons. Not at all
704
01:07:48,657 --> 01:07:52,042
I just wanted to do something
different
705
01:07:52,473 --> 01:07:55,173
But Hitler's wish was his command
706
01:07:55,475 --> 01:08:01,530
It would have been difficult
if not impossible to get out of it
707
01:08:01,750 --> 01:08:08,076
I made one last attempt by driving to
Nuremberg where I knew Hitler was
708
01:08:08,214 --> 01:08:13,771
I saw him at a meeting with Speer
and others, and he had the plans
709
01:08:14,075 --> 01:08:15,029
He said:
710
01:08:15,442 --> 01:08:21,197
"Fräulein Riefenstahl, give me six
days of your life, just six days
711
01:08:22,003 --> 01:08:28,211
"I want this film to be made by an
artist and not a Party film-director"
712
01:08:29,521 --> 01:08:31,622
"I'll make it", I said...
713
01:08:31,915 --> 01:08:38,384
"...if you promise me I'll never have to
make another film for the Reich...
714
01:08:38,532 --> 01:08:41,618
"...for you or the Party"
715
01:08:55,591 --> 01:09:00,541
At vast expense, Riefenstahl made
'Triumph of the Will', which to this day
716
01:09:00,541 --> 01:09:05,580
is regarded by film historians as
the best propaganda film of all time
717
01:09:06,365 --> 01:09:09,788
Riefenstahl has always maintained
that the making of this film
718
01:09:09,788 --> 01:09:13,651
was just a job, which she
performed to perfection
719
01:09:17,491 --> 01:09:22,826
When I began my documentary...
720
01:09:23,082 --> 01:09:29,444
...I wondered what I could do to
make it better than the newsreels
721
01:09:29,763 --> 01:09:36,206
In 1934, when I made
'Triumph of the Will'...
722
01:09:37,061 --> 01:09:42,756
...newsreels were very static,
no movement, no travelling shots
723
01:09:43,010 --> 01:09:48,585
I thought the shots should be made
mobile and thus more interesting
724
01:09:48,867 --> 01:09:53,575
That's why my crew began trying
to shoot on roller-skates
725
01:09:53,713 --> 01:09:56,853
But above all I needed
lots of different...
726
01:09:57,142 --> 01:09:58,713
...camera positions
727
01:11:06,627 --> 01:11:11,143
It doesn't look like a documentary,
more like an art film
728
01:11:11,309 --> 01:11:14,094
How did you achieve this
artistic intensity?
729
01:11:14,406 --> 01:11:20,259
It's a feeling for links
between images
730
01:11:20,420 --> 01:11:23,961
A connection between one picture
and the next...
731
01:11:24,308 --> 01:11:30,013
...or from one visual colour-range,
say from grey tones, to another
732
01:11:30,324 --> 01:11:34,129
It's like a musical composition
733
01:11:34,434 --> 01:11:36,760
It's very important...
734
01:11:37,050 --> 01:11:42,906
...to put climax at the right point
in a film...
735
01:11:43,213 --> 01:11:46,420
...so that there's a continuous
build-up
736
01:12:10,468 --> 01:12:13,059
We stand here
737
01:12:14,022 --> 01:12:16,683
We stand at the ready...
738
01:12:16,960 --> 01:12:21,062
...to take Germany into
the new age
739
01:12:21,339 --> 01:12:22,737
Germany
740
01:12:23,068 --> 01:12:26,887
I tried a hundred different ways
at the editing stage
741
01:12:27,135 --> 01:12:30,034
It took me over five months
742
01:12:30,183 --> 01:12:35,917
First I was working 12 hours
a day, then 14, 18...
743
01:12:36,060 --> 01:12:38,447
...and in the end 20
744
01:12:38,737 --> 01:12:44,233
That meant I couldn't do anything
but sit at my editing-suite...
745
01:12:44,494 --> 01:12:49,113
...trying to find ways to
avoid jumps...
746
01:12:49,220 --> 01:12:53,134
...so it would all flow
in an interesting way
747
01:12:53,565 --> 01:12:56,376
I tried hundreds of ways
748
01:12:56,661 --> 01:12:58,581
Comrade, where are you from?
749
01:13:00,700 --> 01:13:02,062
From Friesland
750
01:13:03,245 --> 01:13:04,821
And you?
751
01:13:04,954 --> 01:13:06,959
- From Bavaria
- And you?
752
01:13:08,159 --> 01:13:09,943
From Kaiserstuhl
753
01:13:10,225 --> 01:13:11,245
And you?
754
01:13:11,494 --> 01:13:12,839
From Pomerania
755
01:13:13,129 --> 01:13:14,893
And from Königsberg
756
01:13:15,042 --> 01:13:16,338
From Silesia
757
01:13:16,597 --> 01:13:18,706
From the North Sea coast
758
01:13:18,967 --> 01:13:20,915
From Black Forest
759
01:13:21,188 --> 01:13:22,394
From Dresden
760
01:13:22,816 --> 01:13:25,392
- From the Danube
- From the Rhine
761
01:13:25,544 --> 01:13:27,521
And from the Saar
762
01:13:27,665 --> 01:13:28,702
One people...
763
01:13:30,105 --> 01:13:32,385
...one Führer, one Reich
764
01:13:34,020 --> 01:13:35,338
Germany
765
01:13:36,146 --> 01:13:39,857
This artistic depth you mention...
766
01:13:40,008 --> 01:13:45,275
...brought accusations against you later
of glorifying the Nazis
767
01:13:45,898 --> 01:13:52,383
But those people should have tried
making the film themselves
768
01:13:53,418 --> 01:13:58,149
Either one makes a newsreel
and those were made...
769
01:13:58,441 --> 01:14:02,359
...or one can try to make
the material into a film...
770
01:14:02,504 --> 01:14:06,500
...that's more interesting -
but without posed shots
771
01:14:08,035 --> 01:14:10,019
In Flanders...
772
01:14:11,871 --> 01:14:13,468
...in the west...
773
01:14:13,639 --> 01:14:15,581
...in the east...
774
01:14:15,752 --> 01:14:17,618
...in the south...
775
01:14:19,364 --> 01:14:25,019
...on land and water
and in the skies...
776
01:14:28,204 --> 01:14:33,524
...the Red menace and forces of reaction
have been brought down
777
01:14:37,265 --> 01:14:40,552
Did you notice that in this film...
778
01:14:40,702 --> 01:14:46,735
...there was no commentary
in the normal sense of the word?
779
01:14:46,903 --> 01:14:51,227
There's no commentator
to explain everything
780
01:14:51,551 --> 01:14:54,299
That's one way it differs...
781
01:14:54,685 --> 01:14:59,100
...from a documentary
and a propaganda film
782
01:14:59,230 --> 01:15:04,694
If it were propaganda, as many say,
there'd be a commentator...
783
01:15:04,970 --> 01:15:09,947
...to explain the significance and
value of the occasion
784
01:15:10,235 --> 01:15:11,571
This wasn't the case
785
01:15:12,855 --> 01:15:15,031
The looming close-ups
of Hitler in this film
786
01:15:15,031 --> 01:15:17,911
were the first that
the German people had ever seen
787
01:15:31,438 --> 01:15:36,864
It wasn't hard because Hitler
never let himself be distracted
788
01:15:37,161 --> 01:15:39,536
You could dance round him
all you liked
789
01:15:39,815 --> 01:15:41,756
Didn't you build a track round him?
790
01:15:42,112 --> 01:15:47,959
Yes, that was one idea. I had to film
3 or 4 of Hitler's speeches
791
01:15:48,243 --> 01:15:54,136
How could I make each one different
and avoid repetition?
792
01:15:54,263 --> 01:16:00,692
I thought, for one of the speeches,
of laying a circular track round him
793
01:16:00,969 --> 01:16:06,208
The speech would be more interesting
than if shot from a fixed point
794
01:16:07,057 --> 01:16:11,156
We want a final end to
class differences
795
01:16:11,302 --> 01:16:16,391
You must not let them develop
among you
796
01:16:16,990 --> 01:16:20,854
We want one day to see one Reich
797
01:16:21,140 --> 01:16:25,143
You must make yourselves fit for it
798
01:16:25,425 --> 01:16:29,452
We want this people one day
to be obedient...
799
01:16:29,737 --> 01:16:32,925
...so you must learn obedience
800
01:16:33,220 --> 01:16:39,521
We want our people to be
peace-loving but also brave...
801
01:16:39,814 --> 01:16:42,396
...so you must be peaceable
802
01:16:53,827 --> 01:16:56,151
You see that lift there?
803
01:16:57,658 --> 01:17:02,403
We had such difficulty getting
permission for that. I'll run it back
804
01:17:02,704 --> 01:17:04,406
We got permission...
805
01:17:04,669 --> 01:17:09,761
...to build a tiny camera lift
into the flag-poles
806
01:17:10,305 --> 01:17:14,183
The effect was very good
807
01:17:20,168 --> 01:17:22,441
What's striking is the contrast...
808
01:17:22,705 --> 01:17:27,397
...between the huge crowds
and one individual - Hitler
809
01:17:27,683 --> 01:17:29,427
Is that a conscious technique?
810
01:17:29,721 --> 01:17:34,448
There was nothing else.
Just Hitler and the people
811
01:17:59,675 --> 01:18:04,535
Wasn't it difficult since you had
no idea about politics...
812
01:18:04,854 --> 01:18:07,117
...to edit political speeches?
813
01:18:07,408 --> 01:18:11,364
That has nothing to do with politics.
It's a technical matter
814
01:18:11,656 --> 01:18:15,399
If a 2-hour speech,
regardless of it content...
815
01:18:15,535 --> 01:18:21,745
...trees or fish or politics -
needs cutting down to 5 minutes...
816
01:18:22,050 --> 01:18:26,124
...any editor will take out
everything he can
817
01:18:26,393 --> 01:18:30,561
The speech must have a beginning
and an end...
818
01:18:30,924 --> 01:18:35,737
...and two or three important
sentences in the middle
819
01:18:36,032 --> 01:18:41,343
Everything else has to go. You need
a real beginning, an end...
820
01:18:41,583 --> 01:18:46,968
...and in the middle
something which thrills the people
821
01:18:47,252 --> 01:18:50,905
Any editor can do that.
It's not a problem
822
01:18:51,163 --> 01:18:53,203
You were guided by the applause?
823
01:18:53,354 --> 01:18:55,929
Yes, the effect, people's expressions
824
01:18:56,197 --> 01:18:57,815
If you're an editor...
825
01:18:58,095 --> 01:19:03,635
...and you can cut out
Hitler wiping his nose or coughing...
826
01:19:03,897 --> 01:19:10,362
...you drop that and use the shots where
his expression is more interesting
827
01:19:10,526 --> 01:19:15,534
Of course you do. An editor must
decide which shots work best
828
01:19:15,820 --> 01:19:21,315
That isn't politics. Anyway, a speech
will only have one theme
829
01:19:21,591 --> 01:19:24,281
We live by one great
commandment...
830
01:19:25,110 --> 01:19:29,479
...and this was not given us...
831
01:19:29,772 --> 01:19:31,902
...by any earthly authority
832
01:19:32,048 --> 01:19:34,431
It was given us by God...
833
01:19:34,689 --> 01:19:37,213
...who created our people
834
01:19:42,805 --> 01:19:47,477
These Congresses were so well
staged, and still seem so today
835
01:19:47,737 --> 01:19:51,368
Did you direct them
or who planned them?
836
01:19:51,782 --> 01:19:55,157
Don't make me laugh.
Why should I be involved?
837
01:19:55,390 --> 01:19:59,365
I wasn't even a Party member,
let alone an organiser
838
01:19:59,635 --> 01:20:02,635
What makes you think I was involved?
839
01:20:02,940 --> 01:20:07,047
They were great productions.
Who dreamed them up?
840
01:20:07,284 --> 01:20:09,737
- Hitler and Speer
- All by themselves?
841
01:20:09,947 --> 01:20:16,236
Yes. I had nothing to do with it.
I knew nothing. I'd no idea about it
842
01:20:16,565 --> 01:20:20,275
I just observed and tried to film it
well
843
01:20:20,520 --> 01:20:25,397
The idea that I helped to plan it
is downright absurd
844
01:20:38,489 --> 01:20:42,438
Those crowd scenes look like
something out of a Wagner opera
845
01:20:42,591 --> 01:20:45,867
You see such scenes in Moscow
and Peking
846
01:20:46,149 --> 01:20:51,717
You saw those huge parades
a few months ago...
847
01:20:51,875 --> 01:20:56,180
...in Peking and in Korea.
You see them everywhere
848
01:20:56,327 --> 01:20:58,796
Those parades were vast
849
01:20:59,084 --> 01:21:02,873
Far more grandiose than in
'Triumph of the Will'
850
01:21:03,183 --> 01:21:06,965
You saw weapons and missiles
going past
851
01:21:07,116 --> 01:21:12,745
Platform decorated with hundreds
of red flags. All on a huge scale
852
01:22:42,576 --> 01:22:47,367
It had to be filmed the way
an artist, not a politician, sees it
853
01:22:47,690 --> 01:22:53,745
Hitler didn't want a political film.
He wanted an artistic film
854
01:22:53,904 --> 01:22:58,218
That's what he got.
I'd no idea I could do it
855
01:22:58,470 --> 01:23:02,139
My not wanting to make the film had
nothing to do with politics
856
01:23:02,410 --> 01:23:07,832
I just lacked confidence.
It seemed an insoluble task
857
01:23:08,160 --> 01:23:13,217
Still, you were later accused of
seducing people with this film
858
01:23:13,366 --> 01:23:17,722
OK, a few idiots say that
859
01:23:17,876 --> 01:23:21,076
All I can say is
it's thoroughly stupid
860
01:23:21,369 --> 01:23:26,159
It would mean that I staged it,
that I was Hitler himself...
861
01:23:26,359 --> 01:23:30,134
...and I'd made all these people
pose for me
862
01:24:13,458 --> 01:24:17,567
Didn't a film-maker have
terrific public influence...
863
01:24:17,718 --> 01:24:20,551
...in the days before radio and
television?
864
01:24:20,934 --> 01:24:24,529
Doesn't that artist have a special
responsibility?
865
01:24:24,822 --> 01:24:26,635
What was my responsibility?
866
01:24:27,009 --> 01:24:31,195
By that time 90% of the people
were in favour of Hitler
867
01:24:31,327 --> 01:24:36,705
Should I have been a resistance fighter?
There were a very few of those
868
01:24:36,982 --> 01:24:40,305
Should I have been one of them?
869
01:24:40,534 --> 01:24:43,600
No, since you say politics didn't
interest you...
870
01:24:43,893 --> 01:24:48,484
Not at all. To me the film wasn't
about politics, it was an event
871
01:24:48,736 --> 01:24:54,158
I'd have made exactly the same film
in Moscow, if the need arose...
872
01:24:54,319 --> 01:24:56,500
...though I'd have preferred not
873
01:24:56,749 --> 01:25:01,076
Or in America, if something of
the sort had taken place there
874
01:25:01,699 --> 01:25:08,080
I shot the subject-matter as well
as I could and shaped it into a film
875
01:25:08,977 --> 01:25:14,543
Now, whether it was about politics or
about vegetables or fruit...
876
01:25:14,823 --> 01:25:18,952
...I couldn't give a damn.
I don't get it
877
01:25:19,355 --> 01:25:21,013
If I'd been political...
878
01:25:21,167 --> 01:25:26,018
...I'd have joined the Party
and I would have been interested
879
01:25:26,249 --> 01:25:32,699
- I didn't mean it like that
- I never went to any meetings
880
01:25:32,989 --> 01:25:38,487
I turned down all offers to make
other political films
881
01:25:38,882 --> 01:25:40,480
I never made a single one
882
01:25:40,636 --> 01:25:42,438
My question is this
883
01:25:42,758 --> 01:25:46,830
If one works in the media, mustn't one
interest oneself in politics?
884
01:25:47,108 --> 01:25:52,373
Nowadays, perhaps, but not then.
And anyway, who'd have done it?
885
01:25:52,667 --> 01:25:54,479
Everyone was behind Hitler
886
01:26:28,206 --> 01:26:30,680
If you were an artist today...
887
01:26:30,955 --> 01:26:36,164
...what would you feel your political
responsibility to be?
888
01:26:36,423 --> 01:26:42,785
The artist should maybe ask himself
what will be done with his creation
889
01:26:43,035 --> 01:26:46,478
How are we to judge artists...
890
01:26:46,629 --> 01:26:53,015
...who, for example, made films
during the Stalin period?
891
01:26:53,236 --> 01:26:57,202
Like Eisenstein or Pudovkin.
What should we say...
892
01:26:57,473 --> 01:27:02,621
...about those who made films -
very good ones - in the GDR?
893
01:27:02,907 --> 01:27:08,381
What should we say about artists who
made good films in the Third Reich?
894
01:27:08,641 --> 01:27:14,788
What does political responsibility mean?
And to whom is one responsible?
895
01:27:15,084 --> 01:27:18,544
Take politics today.
How can you tell...
896
01:27:18,702 --> 01:27:22,135
...who can assure us the right kind
of future?
897
01:27:22,513 --> 01:27:24,937
It's our desire and intention...
898
01:27:25,213 --> 01:27:27,627
...that this Reich shall exist...
899
01:27:27,932 --> 01:27:30,085
...for thousands of years to come
900
01:27:30,350 --> 01:27:31,688
We can be happy...
901
01:27:31,972 --> 01:27:38,076
...in the knowledge that
this future belongs wholly to us
902
01:27:51,358 --> 01:27:54,012
There's another thing I want to say
903
01:27:54,271 --> 01:27:59,856
If an artist dedicates himself
totally to his work...
904
01:28:00,189 --> 01:28:02,565
...he cannot think politically
905
01:28:03,250 --> 01:28:07,432
That's true of practically every
artist in the past...
906
01:28:07,707 --> 01:28:11,208
...who produced great works
907
01:28:11,478 --> 01:28:17,495
Be it Michelangelo, Rodin, Rubens
or the Impressionists
908
01:28:17,885 --> 01:28:20,441
None of these people...
909
01:28:20,844 --> 01:28:24,394
...had any time a feeling
for politics
910
01:28:24,649 --> 01:28:28,912
And even if they had, they shouldn't
see into the future
911
01:28:29,183 --> 01:28:32,361
You also asked -
I'll answer that later...
912
01:28:32,635 --> 01:28:36,540
...whether 'Triumph of the Will'
had any message
913
01:28:36,797 --> 01:28:42,749
While I was actually filming,
of course I had no such thoughts
914
01:28:43,036 --> 01:28:45,910
But when I was editing...
915
01:28:46,204 --> 01:28:52,231
...I did discover a certain message
in it. You can find it yourself
916
01:28:52,493 --> 01:28:58,838
It's firstly the creation of jobs,
through the labour-service scheme...
917
01:28:59,101 --> 01:29:03,558
...and above all the speech by Hess
where he says:
918
01:29:03,690 --> 01:29:04,963
You were...
919
01:29:05,273 --> 01:29:07,942
...the guarantor of victory
920
01:29:08,363 --> 01:29:12,864
You are our guarantor of peace
921
01:29:13,102 --> 01:29:16,335
Adolf Hitler. Sieg heil!
922
01:29:22,643 --> 01:29:26,929
At the time we felt that one
of the messages was peace
923
01:29:27,066 --> 01:29:30,061
It recurs throughout the film
924
01:29:30,211 --> 01:29:33,777
Other political motives or objectives
aren't mentioned
925
01:29:33,933 --> 01:29:37,887
There's nothing about anti-semitism
or race-theory
926
01:29:38,164 --> 01:29:42,623
Work and peace are the only messages
in 'Triumph of the Will'
927
01:30:06,423 --> 01:30:10,820
There were films with far more
swastika-banners...
928
01:30:11,082 --> 01:30:13,558
...full of political bias
929
01:30:13,697 --> 01:30:15,845
'Triumph' had none of this...
930
01:30:16,130 --> 01:30:22,044
...so I never felt I'd done anything
that could do any damage
931
01:30:22,208 --> 01:30:28,552
If it had been harmful, the French would
never have given it a gold medal...
932
01:30:22,504 --> 01:30:23,571
Olympic's film on camera
933
01:30:23,838 --> 01:30:24,906
That was a week before war broke out
934
01:30:25,440 --> 01:30:27,041
At the time she says, all that matter
to her was the aesthetics of film
935
01:30:28,809 --> 01:30:33,595
...two years before the
outbreak of war
936
01:30:37,699 --> 01:30:42,432
The National Film Prize for 1934/35
is awarded...
937
01:30:42,724 --> 01:30:47,299
...to Leni Riefenstahl for her film
of the Nuremberg Party Congress...
938
01:30:47,551 --> 01:30:49,417
'Triumph of the Will'
939
01:30:51,297 --> 01:30:54,709
This work stands out as
a great achievement...
940
01:30:54,988 --> 01:30:57,903
...in the year's film output
941
01:30:58,443 --> 01:31:03,024
It is especially relevant because
it presents our age
942
01:31:03,296 --> 01:31:06,993
It shows, in monumental images
never before seen...
943
01:31:07,133 --> 01:31:11,382
...the thrilling events
of our political life
944
01:31:11,935 --> 01:31:17,700
It is the great vision
of the Führer on film...
945
01:31:17,830 --> 01:31:22,379
...presented in images
of a vividness never before seen
946
01:31:22,650 --> 01:31:26,214
Politically speaking,
the significance of this film...
947
01:31:26,383 --> 01:31:30,069
...was that it was in tune with
the times
948
01:31:30,233 --> 01:31:35,800
That's to say, 90% of Germans,
and a majority of foreigners...
949
01:31:36,081 --> 01:31:40,463
...believed in the peace
that was being proclaimed
950
01:32:02,801 --> 01:32:07,205
When you look at
'Triumph of the Will' now...
951
01:32:07,486 --> 01:32:10,029
...you must be proud of it
952
01:32:10,299 --> 01:32:15,903
But it had also made the second
half of your life extremely hard
953
01:32:16,171 --> 01:32:17,596
How do you see it?
954
01:32:17,804 --> 01:32:21,096
I've never been proud of it.
Neither today, nor then
955
01:32:21,368 --> 01:32:26,824
Proud of what? All that was slaving,
all that work - it was ghastly
956
01:32:27,108 --> 01:32:32,979
I nearly ruined my health
editing the film, and for what?
957
01:32:33,266 --> 01:32:36,717
True, the film was considered
a good documentary
958
01:32:36,865 --> 01:32:41,695
But since the war it's been slated
because it's seen as propaganda
959
01:32:41,827 --> 01:32:47,036
Before the war, of course, the film
got all the international awards...
960
01:32:47,174 --> 01:32:52,335
...like the Gold Medal in Paris
and the one at the Biennale
961
01:32:52,599 --> 01:32:56,093
But after the war
I not only got brickbats...
962
01:32:56,334 --> 01:32:59,175
...I was castigated because of it
963
01:32:59,322 --> 01:33:01,456
So not only am I not proud...
964
01:33:01,725 --> 01:33:06,936
...I'm deeply unhappy I made it
965
01:33:07,205 --> 01:33:12,354
If I'd known what the film would
bring me. I'd never have made it
966
01:33:20,865 --> 01:33:23,760
Half a century later,
the terrible legacy
967
01:33:23,831 --> 01:33:27,096
of the Nazis is still
being digested in Germany
968
01:33:29,565 --> 01:33:33,354
After the war, Leni Riefenstahl,
the obsessed and politically
969
01:33:33,488 --> 01:33:38,191
blinkered filmmaker was boycotted
and universally despised
970
01:33:39,076 --> 01:33:43,727
To this day, she's not been able to
make another film, that is the price
971
01:33:43,727 --> 01:33:47,723
she's had to pay for her
brilliant career under the Nazis
972
01:33:55,484 --> 01:33:59,917
This shot is one of my favorites
973
01:34:00,200 --> 01:34:06,421
I got the effect... I brought out
the festive quality...
974
01:34:07,991 --> 01:34:09,953
...by using a telephoto lens
975
01:34:12,174 --> 01:34:16,050
That's why the banners look
so densely packed
976
01:34:21,666 --> 01:34:24,232
And here comes something else
977
01:34:24,570 --> 01:34:28,408
It's the effect of the shots
taken from the lift
978
01:34:31,314 --> 01:34:32,948
Now the camera swings...
979
01:34:34,979 --> 01:34:37,817
...to one side...
980
01:34:39,267 --> 01:34:40,654
...over to the right
981
01:34:43,605 --> 01:34:46,334
And then the camera swings...
982
01:34:46,504 --> 01:34:47,623
...the other way...
983
01:34:48,895 --> 01:34:50,535
...to the left
984
01:34:52,444 --> 01:34:58,313
These two angles produce
the form of a circle...
985
01:34:58,596 --> 01:35:00,633
...thus making a powerful impact
986
01:35:02,056 --> 01:35:06,470
Here the two lines of banners appear
to be cutting across each other
987
01:35:06,632 --> 01:35:10,085
That was made possible by using
different camera positions
988
01:35:10,398 --> 01:35:14,568
And the editing gives it
a balletic quality
989
01:35:14,853 --> 01:35:17,062
It's cut in time to the music
990
01:35:21,665 --> 01:35:24,868
Those are the banners of
the Stahlhelm
991
01:35:25,008 --> 01:35:30,411
There were various formations
marching past
992
01:35:31,946 --> 01:35:35,427
That's interesting too
993
01:35:35,568 --> 01:35:38,255
{\a8}The way they walk down the steps
994
01:35:37,002 --> 01:35:41,018
Today, Triumph of the Will
remains under lockened key in Germany
995
01:35:39,541 --> 01:35:41,457
{\a8}Here, do you see?
996
01:35:41,830 --> 01:35:44,569
People are still afraid to
examine the film seriously
997
01:35:45,595 --> 01:35:48,245
{\a8}Precisely in time with the music
998
01:35:47,469 --> 01:35:50,146
Can a film really be that dangerous?
999
01:35:50,833 --> 01:35:56,321
Or is it too vivid a reminder of
something that many would prefer to forget
1000
01:35:56,908 --> 01:35:58,855
Interesting, isn't it?
1001
01:35:59,799 --> 01:36:03,534
End of the first part
1002
01:36:56,338 --> 01:37:02,692
In 1936, Leni Riefenstahl made the official
film of the Olympic Games in Berlin
1003
01:37:15,893 --> 01:37:19,491
After the war, this documentary was
listed in America as one of the
1004
01:37:19,491 --> 01:37:21,663
world's ten best films
1005
01:37:24,350 --> 01:37:30,713
I wondered, could I make this film?
Could I make it interesting?
1006
01:37:30,863 --> 01:37:34,674
And suddenly I had before my eyes
a picture...
1007
01:37:34,943 --> 01:37:40,391
...of the Olympic Games
in ancient Greece
1008
01:37:40,550 --> 01:37:42,090
Not only the stadium...
1009
01:37:42,342 --> 01:37:47,330
...but the whole culture -
the temples, the sculptures
1010
01:38:02,407 --> 01:38:05,690
The transition from the ancient world
to the modern...
1011
01:38:05,943 --> 01:38:09,535
...had wonderful dramatic
possibilities
1012
01:38:09,824 --> 01:38:13,757
It was easier to present it in purely
visual terms...
1013
01:38:13,880 --> 01:38:17,289
...rather than as a series
of actions
1014
01:39:04,341 --> 01:39:05,776
Riefenstahl was to direct the
1015
01:39:05,776 --> 01:39:08,770
entire film, even the sport sequences
1016
01:39:22,659 --> 01:39:26,254
Athlete models freeze by the
bold take for Riefenstahl's camera
1017
01:39:47,543 --> 01:39:50,554
Under Riefenstahl's direction,
the athletes would turn from
1018
01:39:50,554 --> 01:39:53,732
ordinary models into sporting Gods
1019
01:40:11,365 --> 01:40:16,285
- How did you prepare for the film?
- Mainly by training the cameramen
1020
01:40:16,665 --> 01:40:19,768
Everything depended on them
1021
01:40:20,031 --> 01:40:24,812
I had four or five young men
that I trained for months...
1022
01:40:24,962 --> 01:40:28,935
...at athletics meetings,
football matches and so on
1023
01:40:29,232 --> 01:40:33,983
Often without film, just to practice
camera movements...
1024
01:40:34,123 --> 01:40:39,580
...and get the quick reactions
we needed
1025
01:40:40,965 --> 01:40:44,956
Never before had so much been spent
on preparing to film a documentary
1026
01:40:45,609 --> 01:40:49,623
Officially Riefenstahl had received
the assignment from the Olympic committee,
1027
01:40:50,206 --> 01:40:53,488
but it was the German Ministry of
Propaganda which actually provided
1028
01:40:53,488 --> 01:40:56,272
the funds through indirect channels
1029
01:40:57,037 --> 01:41:00,054
Despite the economic problems
of the times, the resources put
1030
01:41:00,054 --> 01:41:03,143
to the director's disposal
were almost unlimited
1031
01:41:03,925 --> 01:41:07,513
For the first time in many years,
Riefenstahl is reunited
1032
01:41:04,805 --> 01:41:06,025
{\a8}You still look so well
1033
01:41:06,025 --> 01:41:08,436
{\a8}I've no complaints
1034
01:41:07,513 --> 01:41:09,599
with two of her old cameramen
1035
01:41:08,650 --> 01:41:11,364
{\a8}Congratulations
1036
01:41:11,489 --> 01:41:14,651
You never change, do you?
1037
01:41:17,790 --> 01:41:24,371
My two best cameramen here again
after half a century
1038
01:41:25,025 --> 01:41:28,627
Walter Frentz on the right
was an expert in handheld camera
1039
01:41:28,947 --> 01:41:31,022
On the left is Guzzi Lantschner
1040
01:41:31,266 --> 01:41:34,782
I'll tell you something.
Diving I can still do...
1041
01:41:35,065 --> 01:41:40,057
...but that film - I couldn't make it
again
1042
01:41:40,269 --> 01:41:42,160
Much too strenuous
1043
01:41:43,541 --> 01:41:45,562
We worked like mad
1044
01:41:45,704 --> 01:41:50,646
Late into the night.
We couldn't do that now
1045
01:42:05,071 --> 01:42:08,770
Look. Just as it was
1046
01:42:09,061 --> 01:42:12,005
Do you remember, Guzzi...
1047
01:42:12,300 --> 01:42:15,708
...how we looked for places to get
the best angles?
1048
01:42:16,028 --> 01:42:19,801
We turned the stadium into
a film studio
1049
01:42:22,923 --> 01:42:26,163
Many technical innovations
were tried out in Olympiad
1050
01:42:26,589 --> 01:42:29,900
It was the first film in which
pits were dug, so that the athletes
1051
01:42:29,900 --> 01:42:31,668
could be filmed against the sky
1052
01:42:33,913 --> 01:42:36,943
We had to fight for every hole we dug
1053
01:42:37,070 --> 01:42:38,641
You were always the one...
1054
01:42:38,885 --> 01:42:41,625
...with the exact eye...
1055
01:42:41,780 --> 01:42:43,249
...for a shot
1056
01:42:43,525 --> 01:42:46,816
Whether it should be half a metre
right or left
1057
01:42:48,110 --> 01:42:50,984
Riefenstahl now had the
full scope to apply the lesson
1058
01:42:50,984 --> 01:42:54,195
she had learned from Arnold Fanck,
her great mentor
1059
01:42:57,403 --> 01:43:03,798
The best idea we had - I think
it was your idea - was the catapult
1060
01:43:04,524 --> 01:43:08,844
We built a track with
a catapult on it which travelled...
1061
01:43:09,138 --> 01:43:11,006
...alongside the sprinters
1062
01:43:11,312 --> 01:43:16,215
It was fantastic but they banned it
1063
01:43:18,559 --> 01:43:20,643
We had lots of new ideas
1064
01:43:20,934 --> 01:43:24,911
Yes. The most important one was...
1065
01:43:25,192 --> 01:43:28,802
...digging a hole for
the pole-vault
1066
01:43:29,375 --> 01:43:31,865
Out in the field, to the left
1067
01:43:32,132 --> 01:43:34,710
And we filmed the whole thing...
1068
01:43:35,077 --> 01:43:40,057
...against the Olympic flame.
It gave us some marvellous shots
1069
01:43:40,314 --> 01:43:44,320
She was later reproached for many
of the images pioneered in Olympiad
1070
01:43:44,740 --> 01:43:47,363
Her critics felt that
the cult of the body beautiful
1071
01:43:47,584 --> 01:43:50,974
Riefenstahl's obsession with
strength and athletic perfection
1072
01:43:51,229 --> 01:43:52,886
were unmistakably fascist
1073
01:43:54,037 --> 01:43:57,255
The same was later said of her
photographs of Nuba tribesmen
1074
01:43:57,976 --> 01:44:01,307
It was important
that each cameraman...
1075
01:44:01,588 --> 01:44:05,134
...had a different lens and camera
1076
01:44:05,408 --> 01:44:11,125
You sometimes had a Bell & Howell
and sometimes Sinclair
1077
01:44:11,262 --> 01:44:15,838
- And you had a Bell & Howell
- With two speeds
1078
01:44:15,988 --> 01:44:20,181
Normal, 24 frames per second
and fast, up to 48
1079
01:44:20,449 --> 01:44:23,052
That was important for the diving
1080
01:44:23,342 --> 01:44:26,575
The body could be seen
so much more clearly
1081
01:44:26,846 --> 01:44:28,085
That was the first time...
1082
01:44:43,619 --> 01:44:48,295
Then we got the close-ups
with the Ascania
1083
01:44:48,487 --> 01:44:53,952
We had a special lens made for us -
a 600mm telephoto
1084
01:44:54,247 --> 01:44:56,860
They didn't exist then
1085
01:44:57,184 --> 01:45:01,961
Herr Shalck got those marvellous
close-ups
1086
01:45:02,094 --> 01:45:05,374
Even though we couldn't get near
the runners
1087
01:45:05,634 --> 01:45:08,252
We still got tight in on faces
1088
01:45:23,765 --> 01:45:29,756
Owens in the lead, Strandberg
behind him, Rosenthal creeping up
1089
01:45:30,882 --> 01:45:36,415
Metcalfe makes a spurt. It's over.
Owens wins the 100 metre sprint
1090
01:45:37,688 --> 01:45:39,419
I remember something else
1091
01:45:39,720 --> 01:45:42,509
The balloon. Do you remember?
1092
01:45:47,580 --> 01:45:51,294
Everyday we sent up a balloon...
1093
01:45:51,578 --> 01:45:55,376
...with a tiny 5 metre camera...
1094
01:45:55,525 --> 01:45:59,278
...to get an overall aerial view
1095
01:46:00,185 --> 01:46:06,725
Everyday it landed somewhere
different - on roofs and things
1096
01:46:06,878 --> 01:46:11,280
None of the shots were any use
1097
01:46:15,971 --> 01:46:19,597
Anyone finding this camera would
discover a little note in it
1098
01:46:19,708 --> 01:46:23,085
asking them to return it to
the Leni Riefenstahl production team
1099
01:46:25,470 --> 01:46:29,812
We had the balloon at the regatta
in Grünau
1100
01:46:30,110 --> 01:46:33,905
It crashed before the races finished
1101
01:46:34,179 --> 01:46:37,848
I cried. It was terrible
1102
01:46:41,420 --> 01:46:43,451
There was nothing they
did not try out
1103
01:46:43,754 --> 01:46:47,706
A many of these experiments have become
standard practice in film production
1104
01:46:50,273 --> 01:46:51,376
A break in the shoot
1105
01:46:51,695 --> 01:46:54,728
Leni and her old campaigners
stop for coffee
1106
01:46:57,209 --> 01:47:00,566
I had so many arguments
in those days
1107
01:47:00,980 --> 01:47:07,306
And them, in 1935, Churchill said
"I envy the Germans their Führer"
1108
01:47:07,716 --> 01:47:13,962
I thought "How can I be cleverer
than Churchill? He really said that"
1109
01:47:14,093 --> 01:47:20,564
Two years later, he said "The German
swine must now be slaughtered"
1110
01:47:24,752 --> 01:47:28,256
I like your style. You'll do
1111
01:47:28,542 --> 01:47:30,630
And you were well in there...
1112
01:47:30,934 --> 01:47:36,266
...because you flew to Moscow
with Ribbentrop...
1113
01:47:36,928 --> 01:47:39,672
...with the two copies of the Treaty
1114
01:47:39,988 --> 01:47:44,979
{\a8}Stalin wrote a letter which
the Russian ambassador gave me
1115
01:47:43,757 --> 01:47:45,772
Riefenstahl refuses to get drawn into
1116
01:47:45,153 --> 01:47:48,568
{\a8}That was a week before war broke out
1117
01:47:45,772 --> 01:47:47,259
a political discussion about the
1118
01:47:47,259 --> 01:47:48,065
Olympic's film on camera
1119
01:47:49,764 --> 01:47:52,183
At the time she says
all that mattered to her
1120
01:47:52,183 --> 01:47:53,967
was the aesthetics of film
1121
01:47:59,289 --> 01:48:00,948
I had 30 cameramen
1122
01:48:01,358 --> 01:48:07,199
Not all here. There were
other events in Grünau and Kiel
1123
01:48:07,467 --> 01:48:13,485
There were also indoor events and
the cameramen were spread around
1124
01:48:15,297 --> 01:48:19,740
Much of what is now a normal practice
in an age of electronic live reporting,
1125
01:48:19,845 --> 01:48:22,632
was first tried out then by Leni Riefenstahl
1126
01:48:25,754 --> 01:48:29,644
In Olympiad, she set new standards
for filming sporting events
1127
01:48:29,799 --> 01:48:33,613
and went far beyond the traditional
bounds of a sport documentary
1128
01:48:34,491 --> 01:48:36,145
Nothing was left to chance
1129
01:48:36,725 --> 01:48:39,136
Dramatic scenes, which her crew
could not get close enough to
1130
01:48:39,136 --> 01:48:42,928
during the competition, were
filmed in advance during training
1131
01:48:43,130 --> 01:48:45,374
and later spliced into
the final footage
1132
01:48:46,086 --> 01:48:49,918
In this way, many of the documentary
sequences had changed the dramatic impact
1133
01:48:49,918 --> 01:48:51,231
of a feature film
1134
01:49:13,614 --> 01:49:17,239
It was worst when there were
a lot of us
1135
01:49:17,530 --> 01:49:21,398
I had to assign jobs to everyone
1136
01:49:21,678 --> 01:49:26,977
I could only organise this
once the day's shoot had finished
1137
01:49:27,133 --> 01:49:30,701
There was a production meeting
every night
1138
01:49:30,939 --> 01:49:34,886
I'd have just 5 minutes
to talk to each person...
1139
01:49:35,133 --> 01:49:38,953
...and give out assignments...
1140
01:49:39,227 --> 01:49:41,658
{\a8}...according to people's skills
1141
01:49:40,830 --> 01:49:43,131
The logistics of the operation
were remarkable
1142
01:49:43,335 --> 01:49:45,231
They had no walkie-talkies or talkback
1143
01:49:45,815 --> 01:49:49,026
Riefenstahl planned the entire
shoot like a military campaign
1144
01:49:49,253 --> 01:49:52,160
Every camera angle was
deliberate and coordinated
1145
01:49:52,460 --> 01:49:54,654
I really admired her
1146
01:49:54,942 --> 01:50:00,501
She had an incredible ability
for composing shots
1147
01:50:00,777 --> 01:50:03,163
And a tremendous eye
1148
01:50:03,466 --> 01:50:09,810
The shots she selected
were always just right
1149
01:51:00,172 --> 01:51:02,011
The winner is England
1150
01:51:05,617 --> 01:51:08,982
She had such energy and
determination
1151
01:51:09,172 --> 01:51:12,907
When we began the Olympics film...
1152
01:51:13,081 --> 01:51:18,015
...we wanted to dig a hole beside
the pole-vault...
1153
01:51:18,206 --> 01:51:22,656
...so we could film the vaulters
against the sky
1154
01:51:22,970 --> 01:51:29,281
But the Olympic Committee said
it would endanger the athletes
1155
01:51:29,429 --> 01:51:34,588
So Leni said "Let me talk to them"
She went to the Committee and said:
1156
01:51:34,738 --> 01:51:39,077
"Our film will be ruined
if we can't do this"
1157
01:51:39,229 --> 01:51:44,505
She came back that night and said
"We can do it". I cried my eyes out
1158
01:52:00,170 --> 01:52:04,754
As a superbly organized sporting event,
the Berlin Olympics gave the Nazis
1159
01:52:04,754 --> 01:52:07,802
an opportunity to present
Germany as a peaceful,
1160
01:52:07,802 --> 01:52:11,616
tolerant and powerful nation.
And it is natural to assume
1161
01:52:12,162 --> 01:52:14,473
that Hitler would've welcomed the games
1162
01:52:15,806 --> 01:52:20,541
Hitler wasn't pleased
I was making the film
1163
01:52:20,808 --> 01:52:25,593
Hitler wasn't in the least interested
in the Olympics
1164
01:52:26,320 --> 01:52:32,642
He didn't like the Games at all.
He told me so himself
1165
01:52:33,209 --> 01:52:35,313
It was understandable
1166
01:52:35,903 --> 01:52:40,082
Hitler wouldn't enjoy watching
blacks win
1167
01:52:40,385 --> 01:52:46,374
Seeing all those international stars
when he was such a Nationalist
1168
01:52:48,061 --> 01:52:53,376
A new world record.
And gold for America
1169
01:53:03,967 --> 01:53:09,414
Wasn't this a chance to
present a certain image of Germany?
1170
01:53:09,707 --> 01:53:13,076
Possibly - but Hitler wasn't
interested
1171
01:53:13,403 --> 01:53:17,181
It took a lot of convincing
to make him come
1172
01:53:17,379 --> 01:53:21,466
Come to the Games and Germany
will do better, they said
1173
01:53:21,821 --> 01:53:25,822
He didn't care.
He didn't like the stadium
1174
01:53:26,114 --> 01:53:27,727
It was too small
1175
01:53:27,943 --> 01:53:30,991
He didn't like the architecture
1176
01:53:31,801 --> 01:53:34,878
Ask anyone who was there
1177
01:53:35,113 --> 01:53:39,284
They'll tell you Hitler had
no interest in the Games
1178
01:53:46,974 --> 01:53:52,096
The result of all this complicated
coverage was 250 miles of film
1179
01:53:52,475 --> 01:53:57,752
You shot 400 km of film. How did you
cope with so much material?
1180
01:53:57,901 --> 01:54:04,245
First of all, people don't understand
why we shot so much film
1181
01:54:04,407 --> 01:54:10,912
They should remember that
there were 136 different events
1182
01:54:11,067 --> 01:54:17,170
In the athletics heats, we never knew
if a record would be broken
1183
01:54:17,437 --> 01:54:23,655
So we had to film everything -
hence the quantities of film
1184
01:54:25,219 --> 01:54:28,700
Once again, Riefenstahl's
legendary sense of order
1185
01:54:28,700 --> 01:54:31,723
and impeccable planning
enabled her and her team
1186
01:54:31,988 --> 01:54:34,277
to keep a grasp on this vast project
1187
01:54:34,881 --> 01:54:38,972
Even so, the editing alone
took two years, as always,
1188
01:54:38,972 --> 01:54:43,567
she did it herself, obsessively
editing and re-editing her film
1189
01:54:47,751 --> 01:54:49,901
This little machine...
1190
01:54:50,136 --> 01:54:54,550
The Litax machine invented by
Dr. Fanck...
1191
01:54:54,719 --> 01:54:59,036
...made it possible to edit very fast
1192
01:54:59,340 --> 01:55:05,711
We didn't have to splice the
strips of film into reels...
1193
01:55:06,001 --> 01:55:08,728
...which was so time consuming
1194
01:55:08,888 --> 01:55:15,309
All we did was slot the film
into this machine...
1195
01:55:16,515 --> 01:55:19,710
...and snap it shut
1196
01:55:19,871 --> 01:55:25,093
We could then look and edit the film
accurately
1197
01:55:25,252 --> 01:55:31,070
If I don't like a sequence,
I throw the film into the bin...
1198
01:55:31,979 --> 01:55:35,201
...or put it round my neck for later
1199
01:55:35,499 --> 01:55:41,757
Then I take another sequence
and compare it
1200
01:55:46,383 --> 01:55:49,349
This enables me...
1201
01:55:50,334 --> 01:55:52,926
...without exaggeration...
1202
01:55:53,195 --> 01:55:58,611
...to work ten times faster
than otherwise
1203
01:55:58,780 --> 01:56:04,214
This system only works for
documentaries, not for features...
1204
01:56:04,348 --> 01:56:07,838
...because here the soundtrack
is put on later
1205
01:56:14,426 --> 01:56:17,586
One of the most difficult sequences
was the marathon.
1206
01:56:17,825 --> 01:56:20,323
The ultimate test of sporting endurance
1207
01:56:20,670 --> 01:56:23,143
Once again, she used
feature film techniques
1208
01:56:23,143 --> 01:56:25,584
to capture the sweat and the pain
1209
01:56:26,344 --> 01:56:31,831
I had to think hard how I could
shape the 26-mile race...
1210
01:56:32,098 --> 01:56:38,569
...into a few short minutes that
would be exciting and interesting
1211
01:56:38,714 --> 01:56:44,521
I soon realised
I couldn't achieve this...
1212
01:56:44,809 --> 01:56:49,425
...just by filming the race
step by step
1213
01:56:49,705 --> 01:56:52,513
Instead, I'd have to try...
1214
01:56:52,655 --> 01:56:57,894
...to show the feelings, the
mental state of the marathon runners
1215
01:56:58,153 --> 01:57:02,388
And I thought I could best
express that...
1216
01:57:02,686 --> 01:57:07,022
...by showing the exhaustion
in their faces
1217
01:57:07,290 --> 01:57:10,576
How, though their legs were
like lead...
1218
01:57:10,805 --> 01:57:15,407
...they didn't collapse but kept
going by sheer willpower
1219
01:57:15,564 --> 01:57:21,024
Willpower can't be shown visually
but can be indicated by music
1220
01:57:21,335 --> 01:57:26,852
If you listen, you'll hear the music
seeming to drive the runners on
1221
01:57:40,951 --> 01:57:46,557
The music expresses the will not to
collapse but to reach the stadium
1222
01:57:46,872 --> 01:57:51,994
The camera looks down the torso,
as we'd practised it...
1223
01:57:52,311 --> 01:57:55,770
...to the tired legs almost
sticking to the asphalt
1224
01:57:56,009 --> 01:57:59,150
And this difference,
this portrayal...
1225
01:57:59,412 --> 01:58:04,080
...maybe raised the film above
the level of ordinary reportage
1226
01:59:26,733 --> 01:59:32,029
Leni Riefenstahl, on an official
mission, visits the exhibition
1227
01:59:32,314 --> 01:59:35,285
The star of German cinema speaks
1228
01:59:35,536 --> 01:59:41,394
You've been invited here
to present your film
1229
01:59:41,540 --> 01:59:46,490
It was very hard work but I'm happy
the task was entrusted to me
1230
01:59:46,760 --> 01:59:52,679
People don't understand why 'Olympia'
has taken so long to release
1231
01:59:52,969 --> 01:59:57,111
We shot 400,000 metres of film
1232
01:59:57,364 --> 02:00:02,418
And it's a huge task,
sorting through this footage...
1233
02:00:02,560 --> 02:00:06,064
...putting it in order and
making a film out of it
1234
02:00:06,619 --> 02:00:12,526
Just viewing all the film
took 10 weeks
1235
02:00:12,681 --> 02:00:16,855
I spent 10 hours a day
in the projection-room
1236
02:00:17,104 --> 02:00:20,037
That gives you an idea
of what's involved
1237
02:00:22,519 --> 02:00:28,963
For the men's high diving,
we experimented a lot
1238
02:00:29,421 --> 02:00:33,290
Up till then it had been done
rather boringly...
1239
02:00:33,564 --> 02:00:37,594
...with a single shot of the man
plunging off the board
1240
02:00:37,726 --> 02:00:42,752
We set up three cameras
for this event
1241
02:00:44,262 --> 02:00:48,176
Guzzi Lantschner was up there
with a hand-held camera
1242
02:00:48,452 --> 02:00:50,563
And Hans Ertl below...
1243
02:00:50,692 --> 02:00:53,506
...with an underwater camera
1244
02:00:53,671 --> 02:00:57,338
Over there was
the slow motion camera...
1245
02:00:57,493 --> 02:01:01,260
...so that the diving could be filmed
from all angles
1246
02:01:01,402 --> 02:01:07,228
The most interesting experiment
was the underwater shooting
1247
02:01:07,517 --> 02:01:09,524
It had never been done before
1248
02:01:09,826 --> 02:01:14,931
Ertl had built himself a camera
and sat in the water
1249
02:01:15,078 --> 02:01:21,250
He followed the diver down
till he hit the water...
1250
02:01:21,533 --> 02:01:24,353
...switched to slow motion,
changed focus...
1251
02:01:24,632 --> 02:01:29,403
...and kept the camera on the diver
until he surfaced
1252
02:01:36,897 --> 02:01:40,093
It's the Japanese girl again
1253
02:01:52,877 --> 02:01:56,363
We experimented with
the swimming too
1254
02:01:56,586 --> 02:02:01,169
Over there for the swimming...
1255
02:02:01,411 --> 02:02:07,812
...we pushed the camera along on
a rubber raft, hanging from a rig...
1256
02:02:08,009 --> 02:02:12,096
...to get close-ups of
the swimmers' faces
1257
02:02:12,228 --> 02:02:16,045
But we couldn't use it
in the finals
1258
02:02:18,684 --> 02:02:19,958
Higgins
1259
02:02:23,798 --> 02:02:25,042
Yldefonzo...
1260
02:02:27,019 --> 02:02:28,130
Koike...
1261
02:02:29,574 --> 02:02:30,902
Ito
1262
02:02:32,450 --> 02:02:34,462
A fight to the finish
1263
02:02:54,201 --> 02:02:56,475
I wanted a crescendo of intensity
1264
02:02:56,633 --> 02:03:02,587
I began mundanely enough
with the women's diving...
1265
02:03:02,736 --> 02:03:08,740
...giving the diver's names.
With the men I left that out
1266
02:03:08,907 --> 02:03:13,672
I just edited to highlight the
diving itself and the movement
1267
02:03:13,803 --> 02:03:17,618
They looked like birds
swooping through the air
1268
02:03:17,888 --> 02:03:21,417
This looked very attractive...
1269
02:03:21,675 --> 02:03:26,036
...so, to heighten the effect,
I used different tempi when editing
1270
02:03:26,183 --> 02:03:31,313
If you look, you'll see
the first dive is at normal speed
1271
02:03:31,458 --> 02:03:37,116
Then the next one is a bit slower -
not quite slow motion but almost
1272
02:03:37,285 --> 02:03:41,436
And so on until full slow motion
1273
02:03:41,735 --> 02:03:47,171
But even that wasn't enough.
They really had to look like birds
1274
02:03:50,265 --> 02:03:52,326
Her creative editing
techniques are seen to
1275
02:03:52,326 --> 02:03:54,894
greatest artistic effect in high diving
1276
02:03:55,787 --> 02:03:59,087
It's only when you disentangle
her handy work on an editing desk
1277
02:03:59,344 --> 02:04:02,424
that you realize how some of the
sequences were printed backwards
1278
02:04:02,652 --> 02:04:05,275
and that the diver was actually
springing out of water
1279
02:04:05,498 --> 02:04:08,959
reversing through the air and
landing back on the spring-board
1280
02:04:22,817 --> 02:04:27,565
I achieved this by sometimes
splicing in a sequence back to front
1281
02:04:27,845 --> 02:04:33,029
But it was hardly noticeable. It just
enhanced the feeling of movement
1282
02:04:33,283 --> 02:04:37,047
It simply became a form
of artistic expression
1283
02:05:26,601 --> 02:05:30,424
The creative sport photography
in Olympiad has rarely been bettered
1284
02:05:30,949 --> 02:05:34,624
To what extent, though, of these films
an expression of the Fascist spirit
1285
02:05:34,899 --> 02:05:37,299
which prevailed in Germany at that time?
1286
02:05:37,969 --> 02:05:40,800
Is Riefenstahl no more than
an artist obsessed,
1287
02:05:41,043 --> 02:05:43,526
blind to events outside her cutting?
1288
02:05:44,664 --> 02:05:46,465
The question remains unanswered
1289
02:05:47,736 --> 02:05:52,261
Today, aged 90, she still repeats
what she has always said
1290
02:05:52,638 --> 02:05:55,895
that art and politics are
two different things,
1291
02:05:56,334 --> 02:05:58,903
that one has nothing
to do with the other
1292
02:06:21,593 --> 02:06:26,157
The premier of Olympiad took place
on Hitler's 49th birthday
1293
02:06:37,976 --> 02:06:41,715
Immediately afterwards, she went
on a European tour with her film
1294
02:06:42,844 --> 02:06:45,786
It was hailed everywhere as a triumph
and success
1295
02:06:46,809 --> 02:06:50,989
The German Film Prize 1937-38...
1296
02:06:51,119 --> 02:06:53,165
...goes to Leni Riefenstahl...
1297
02:06:53,304 --> 02:06:57,908
...for the film "Olympia"
1298
02:06:59,577 --> 02:07:02,936
April 1938, the premiere in Vienna
1299
02:07:03,356 --> 02:07:06,750
Eighteen months later, the
Second World War broke out
1300
02:07:09,705 --> 02:07:15,389
All Vienna welcomes you
1301
02:07:15,630 --> 02:07:19,225
Thank you for your kind words
1302
02:07:19,486 --> 02:07:25,449
I am so very happy to be in Vienna
and attending the premiere
1303
02:07:25,774 --> 02:07:28,502
I've not been here for five years
1304
02:07:28,767 --> 02:07:34,462
This is my first chance to see Vienna
since our Führer came to power
1305
02:07:37,106 --> 02:07:40,034
In November of that year, Germany
witnessed the notorious Kristallnacht
1306
02:07:41,290 --> 02:07:44,637
The persecution of the Jews
reached new extremes
1307
02:07:49,025 --> 02:07:52,073
But once again Riefenstahl
wasn't there to see it
1308
02:07:52,518 --> 02:07:56,384
It was on a boat sailing for New York
that she first learnt of the Kristallnacht
1309
02:07:57,494 --> 02:07:59,369
But her trip to Hollywood was a fiasco
1310
02:08:00,060 --> 02:08:04,115
The film industry which included many
German emigrants demanded a boycott
1311
02:08:04,468 --> 02:08:09,045
I didn't believe it. It seemed
impossible
1312
02:08:09,311 --> 02:08:15,137
I'd read so many false reports about
Germany in the American newspapers
1313
02:08:15,434 --> 02:08:19,103
I thought it was lies, so I said so
1314
02:08:19,474 --> 02:08:25,578
Its nothing true, what the American
newspapers write about the Nazis
1315
02:08:25,762 --> 02:08:30,823
I couldn't believe it but, when I got
to New York. I saw huge headlines
1316
02:08:30,984 --> 02:08:36,812
One page said "Synagogues burnt down,
shops looted. Jews persecuted"
1317
02:08:37,121 --> 02:08:39,195
On the next page:
"Riefenstahl says..."
1318
02:08:39,343 --> 02:08:42,985
Its nothing true, what the American
newspapers write about the Nazis
1319
02:08:43,127 --> 02:08:49,619
Whenever I was asked, I said
"It can't be true. It's impossible"
1320
02:08:50,213 --> 02:08:52,153
KILL THE JEWS
1321
02:08:54,713 --> 02:08:59,928
Now you're going to ask me
why I didn't leave Germany
1322
02:09:00,197 --> 02:09:03,589
You see, I loved my homeland
1323
02:09:03,858 --> 02:09:09,450
The ones who left were emigrants
and people who'd been banned
1324
02:09:09,708 --> 02:09:14,384
I could work. I was free. I hoped
it would never happen again
1325
02:09:14,534 --> 02:09:18,694
We all hoped it was
an isolated event
1326
02:09:21,462 --> 02:09:25,348
All true art must imprint...
1327
02:09:25,631 --> 02:09:29,796
...the stamp of beauty on itself
1328
02:09:31,076 --> 02:09:35,039
All that is healthy
is right and natural
1329
02:09:35,196 --> 02:09:38,165
What is right and natural
is beautiful
1330
02:09:40,979 --> 02:09:44,431
It's our task to discover
true beauty
1331
02:09:45,897 --> 02:09:48,205
We must not be led astray...
1332
02:09:48,428 --> 02:09:51,285
...by the mad, impudent drivel...
1333
02:09:51,472 --> 02:09:54,226
...of effete literati who decry...
1334
02:09:54,389 --> 02:09:57,411
...the natural and beautiful
as kitsch
1335
02:09:58,467 --> 02:10:00,522
The pictures were awful
1336
02:10:00,832 --> 02:10:03,334
They were all kitsch
1337
02:10:03,488 --> 02:10:06,193
I hardly saw a picture I liked
1338
02:10:06,466 --> 02:10:12,478
I was very disappointed at the time
because my great love was modern art
1339
02:10:12,630 --> 02:10:17,970
Along with the French Impressionists
and Cranach
1340
02:10:18,120 --> 02:10:21,166
But what the National Socialists...
1341
02:10:21,444 --> 02:10:26,925
...considered - or called or admired
as art - was for me kitsch
1342
02:10:27,235 --> 02:10:31,096
EXHIBITION OF DEGENERATE ART
ADMISSION FREE
1343
02:10:31,993 --> 02:10:38,229
Pure German artistic sensibility
means nothing to a rootless Jew
1344
02:10:38,530 --> 02:10:43,125
What he calls art must titillate
as depraved senses
1345
02:10:43,399 --> 02:10:47,239
It must be cloaked in corruption
as sickness
1346
02:10:47,376 --> 02:10:51,450
It must be unnatural, grotesque,
perverse...
1347
02:10:51,738 --> 02:10:53,066
...or pathological
1348
02:10:55,212 --> 02:10:57,470
These febrile fantasies...
1349
02:10:57,620 --> 02:10:59,082
...of incurably sick minds...
1350
02:10:59,359 --> 02:11:03,036
...were once flaunted before the public
by Jewish art critics...
1351
02:11:03,159 --> 02:11:07,600
...as the highest form of
artistic expression
1352
02:11:07,877 --> 02:11:11,148
Surely speeches like this
would've made any sensitive artist
1353
02:11:11,217 --> 02:11:12,791
stop and ponder
1354
02:11:13,203 --> 02:11:17,131
After everything that had happened
it was the least one could expect
1355
02:11:18,970 --> 02:11:25,314
Hitler made a speech about art
and it was so wrong that I thought:
1356
02:11:25,571 --> 02:11:31,673
"If he can be so wrong and yet
sound so convincing about art -
1357
02:11:31,949 --> 02:11:35,541
"...so convincing
many believed him -
1358
02:11:35,792 --> 02:11:39,224
"...maybe he's making
political mistakes too"
1359
02:11:39,378 --> 02:11:43,665
That's when I began to have
real doubts
1360
02:11:43,911 --> 02:11:50,389
I became much more critical
when I listened to his speeches...
1361
02:11:50,965 --> 02:11:55,443
...but I must admit I was never
an opponent
1362
02:11:57,343 --> 02:12:00,944
In 1939, German troops marched
into Poland
1363
02:12:01,585 --> 02:12:04,538
Riefenstahl was sent to
the front as a war reporter
1364
02:12:19,262 --> 02:12:24,135
But on her first day there she witnessed
the brutal ill treatment of Polish civilians
1365
02:12:24,650 --> 02:12:27,011
A photograph seems to
testify to her horror
1366
02:12:28,224 --> 02:12:31,980
Riefenstahl made an official complaint
to the Nazi General in charge
1367
02:12:32,101 --> 02:12:34,134
And left Poland immediately
1368
02:12:37,010 --> 02:12:40,827
In August 1940, the German troops
marched into Paris
1369
02:12:41,248 --> 02:12:43,405
The Blitzkrieg in the west was over
1370
02:12:47,862 --> 02:12:50,617
Riefenstahl sent a
Euphoric telegram to the Führer
1371
02:12:53,576 --> 02:12:58,934
Mein Führer, it is with indescribable joy,
deep emotion and warm gratitude,
1372
02:12:59,329 --> 02:13:02,687
that we share your greatest
and Germany's greatest victory,
1373
02:13:03,391 --> 02:13:05,742
the entry of German troops into Paris
1374
02:13:06,134 --> 02:13:09,100
Your deeds exceed the
power of human imagination
1375
02:13:09,653 --> 02:13:12,213
they are without equal
in the history of mankind,
1376
02:13:12,506 --> 02:13:13,965
how can we ever thank you?
1377
02:13:14,514 --> 02:13:18,948
Simply to offer you my congratulations
is an inadequate expression of the feelings
1378
02:13:18,948 --> 02:13:20,319
that have stirred me
1379
02:13:21,082 --> 02:13:23,522
I didn't send the telegram...
1380
02:13:23,794 --> 02:13:29,007
...because our troops were in France,
and because of our victory...
1381
02:13:29,252 --> 02:13:35,205
...but because we thought the war was
over. We were in a frenzy of joy
1382
02:13:35,463 --> 02:13:40,583
For three days the bells rang
and people kissed on the streets
1383
02:13:40,826 --> 02:13:44,099
We all believed this terrible war
was over
1384
02:13:44,373 --> 02:13:50,068
It was in this mood that I sent
Hitler my enthusiastic telegram
1385
02:13:58,140 --> 02:14:00,952
However there was
no question of peace now.
1386
02:14:01,368 --> 02:14:05,268
after Germany's attack on Russia
the conflict in Europe escalated
1387
02:14:05,410 --> 02:14:07,191
and became a World War
1388
02:14:13,757 --> 02:14:16,385
But Riefenstahl has retreated
to the mountains again
1389
02:14:17,008 --> 02:14:19,826
She had begun work on
Tiefland, the lowlands
1390
02:14:19,910 --> 02:14:22,104
A film version of d'Albert's opera
1391
02:14:36,276 --> 02:14:38,384
It was forced on me...
1392
02:14:38,687 --> 02:14:44,501
...because I wanted to keep my head
down and avoid making war films
1393
02:14:44,744 --> 02:14:47,553
"Tiefland" was a neutral subject
1394
02:14:47,808 --> 02:14:51,030
Since "Olympia" had paid off...
1395
02:14:51,420 --> 02:14:56,760
...I was completely free and had
enough money to make a film...
1396
02:14:57,018 --> 02:15:00,147
...from a purely artistic perspective
1397
02:15:06,705 --> 02:15:10,126
Once again, Riefenstahl had an
opportunity to dance.
1398
02:15:10,716 --> 02:15:13,732
Set in Spain, the story
tackles the social conflict
1399
02:15:13,732 --> 02:15:15,929
between farmers and land owners
1400
02:15:32,858 --> 02:15:36,767
When the production was later moved
to Bavaria, they needed characters
1401
02:15:36,767 --> 02:15:38,377
who looked Mediterranean
1402
02:15:39,793 --> 02:15:44,318
Gypsies were brought in from a
Gypsy concentration camp near Salzburg
1403
02:15:44,702 --> 02:15:46,853
to be used as extras
1404
02:15:48,314 --> 02:15:51,937
This is one of the main accusations
that continues to be levelled
1405
02:15:51,937 --> 02:15:54,060
at Riefenstahl to this day
1406
02:15:58,839 --> 02:16:04,077
List of extras from detention camp
in Leopoldskron
1407
02:16:21,842 --> 02:16:25,925
With Hitler's support at the beginning
of the project, Riefenstahl was given
1408
02:16:23,890 --> 02:16:25,510
{\a8}Come to the castle.
1409
02:16:25,510 --> 02:16:27,361
{\a8}She shall dance for me
1410
02:16:25,925 --> 02:16:30,056
as much foreign currency as she needed
to start filming in Spain
1411
02:16:30,858 --> 02:16:33,393
But the production was dogged
by misfortune
1412
02:16:34,790 --> 02:16:37,653
It was a disaster from the start
1413
02:16:37,934 --> 02:16:43,633
We began by looking for
our locations in Spain...
1414
02:16:43,861 --> 02:16:46,428
...to keep costs down
1415
02:16:46,752 --> 02:16:50,850
But the war came and we couldn't
stay in Spain
1416
02:16:51,109 --> 02:16:54,399
Our crew left by the very last plane
1417
02:16:54,649 --> 02:16:59,501
We then had to build all the sets
with mountains behind
1418
02:16:59,765 --> 02:17:04,124
We had to build an entire
Bavarian village. It was very hard
1419
02:17:04,371 --> 02:17:09,827
Then the snow came and destroyed
the village and it had to be rebuilt
1420
02:17:10,032 --> 02:17:15,863
As we weren't part of the war effort,
we waited 2 years for a studio
1421
02:17:16,131 --> 02:17:22,106
We had to tear our sets down
so propaganda films could be made
1422
02:17:53,668 --> 02:17:58,422
Many of these look like paintings.
How did you achieve this effect?
1423
02:17:58,546 --> 02:18:02,579
It was my intention,
with this film...
1424
02:18:02,839 --> 02:18:06,390
...to concentrate on the visual...
1425
02:18:06,528 --> 02:18:09,555
...and maintain the art of filming
in black and white
1426
02:18:09,694 --> 02:18:14,493
At that time there was a big switch
to colour
1427
02:18:14,622 --> 02:18:19,239
Most films were in colour and hardly
anything was in black and white
1428
02:18:19,503 --> 02:18:23,064
Black and white is a special kind
of art, like graphic art
1429
02:18:23,328 --> 02:18:25,178
I wanted to make a film...
1430
02:18:25,466 --> 02:18:30,821
...which would prove there are
effects in black and white...
1431
02:18:31,105 --> 02:18:35,124
...that can't be bettered - or
achieved at all - with colour
1432
02:18:47,964 --> 02:18:49,552
God be with you, Pedro
1433
02:18:49,800 --> 02:18:51,855
Good day to you, Nando!
1434
02:18:53,428 --> 02:18:58,032
- I'm glad to be up here again
- You're up from the Deep Valley?
1435
02:18:59,861 --> 02:19:05,629
I've brought flour and salt.
Up here, Pedro, I feel so much freer
1436
02:19:05,883 --> 02:19:08,181
I worked a lot with filters
1437
02:19:08,327 --> 02:19:14,599
Here I used an orange filter
so this shot - I remember clearly...
1438
02:19:14,890 --> 02:19:18,432
...had to have an aperture
of around 3.2...
1439
02:19:18,682 --> 02:19:23,268
- For depth...
- No, for an airy, atmospheric effect
1440
02:19:49,266 --> 02:19:54,492
In my films I always made sure
the men...
1441
02:19:54,771 --> 02:19:57,868
...actors or not, were lit
differently...
1442
02:19:58,141 --> 02:19:59,617
...from the women
1443
02:19:59,759 --> 02:20:01,630
They were lit...
1444
02:20:01,933 --> 02:20:05,049
...from the side
so their features stood out
1445
02:20:05,406 --> 02:20:10,440
Whereas, what's important with
women is to make them look...
1446
02:20:10,688 --> 02:20:13,148
...young and lovely
1447
02:20:13,388 --> 02:20:17,704
The same lighting can make
a woman look...
1448
02:20:17,992 --> 02:20:23,834
...20 years youngers or olders,
depending on the angle
1449
02:20:26,820 --> 02:20:28,698
Make yourself beautiful
1450
02:20:51,897 --> 02:20:54,154
That's how you must look
1451
02:20:54,995 --> 02:20:58,818
With a young woman, who must
look beautiful...
1452
02:20:58,979 --> 02:21:02,468
...you need a very soft light
from the front
1453
02:21:02,619 --> 02:21:08,619
No side-lighting at all, so no
facial lines or flaws are visible
1454
02:21:08,900 --> 02:21:13,021
The only really pretty subjects
to photograph are babies
1455
02:21:13,307 --> 02:21:15,445
They've absolutely no wrinkles
1456
02:21:15,616 --> 02:21:19,680
Even if a woman has only slight
lines on her face...
1457
02:21:19,955 --> 02:21:23,387
...they'll appear worse on film
1458
02:21:23,953 --> 02:21:28,593
Lighting is very important
1459
02:21:32,642 --> 02:21:36,728
Marlene Dietrich always had
the same lighting
1460
02:21:36,860 --> 02:21:41,104
Same lighting with a lamp
right above her
1461
02:21:41,369 --> 02:21:47,354
It shone down on her face, gave
her shadows, and made her look thin
1462
02:21:47,656 --> 02:21:50,855
Another woman would need
different lighting
1463
02:21:51,206 --> 02:21:52,551
What kind did you need?
1464
02:21:52,823 --> 02:21:59,242
I needed a soft front light - quite
high, but not as high as Marlene's
1465
02:21:59,397 --> 02:22:04,930
I didn't want to look as gaunt as her
but I did need soft front-lighting
1466
02:22:08,443 --> 02:22:10,205
Wait till I'm sitting
1467
02:22:10,470 --> 02:22:14,334
I just want to see what I need
1468
02:22:17,816 --> 02:22:22,395
Better go in a bit closer
1469
02:22:32,661 --> 02:22:37,104
To achieve this picturesque effect...
1470
02:22:37,378 --> 02:22:42,924
...you must look for subjects which
make a composition in themselves
1471
02:22:43,204 --> 02:22:46,284
You can't set up a camera
just anywhere
1472
02:22:46,541 --> 02:22:52,453
Outdoors, the aperture is generally
reduced because there's so much light
1473
02:22:52,729 --> 02:22:57,861
This gives a sharp focus and robs
the shot of air and atmosphere
1474
02:22:58,126 --> 02:23:03,014
To avoid this sharpness and still
keep a feeling of realism...
1475
02:23:03,292 --> 02:23:05,983
...I used very strong filters
1476
02:23:06,645 --> 02:23:10,827
I could filter out the light
without reducing the aperture...
1477
02:23:11,110 --> 02:23:14,998
...and achieve this picturesque effect -
sometimes with coloured filters
1478
02:23:27,296 --> 02:23:31,969
The hut wasn't built
and then filmed
1479
02:23:32,245 --> 02:23:37,158
First we chose it, selected the
background and set up the camera
1480
02:23:37,298 --> 02:23:40,179
Then, using the eye of the camera...
1481
02:23:40,464 --> 02:23:45,540
...we incorporated the hut
into the whole composition
1482
02:23:45,679 --> 02:23:49,932
That's how we achieved
this harmonious effect
1483
02:23:59,720 --> 02:24:04,651
- Can I have something to drink?
- Yes, I've plenty of milk
1484
02:24:05,410 --> 02:24:09,368
The film was almost finished
when the war ended
1485
02:24:09,677 --> 02:24:14,263
Everything was carted off to France
where it lay for 10 years
1486
02:24:14,512 --> 02:24:19,293
The French hacked it about
and tried to make it into a film
1487
02:24:19,591 --> 02:24:21,604
A lot of footage was lost
1488
02:24:21,926 --> 02:24:26,657
I had to employ several lawyers
to get the material back
1489
02:24:26,951 --> 02:24:31,181
Then I had to put it together.
It was quite a saga
1490
02:24:33,151 --> 02:24:38,033
While Riefenstahl was working on
Tiefland, the war entered its final phase
1491
02:24:55,161 --> 02:24:57,697
As the bombs rained down on Berlin,
1492
02:24:58,105 --> 02:25:01,904
Riefenstahl took her production
company, and set off for the Tirol
1493
02:25:06,192 --> 02:25:10,169
She acquired a farmhouse at the foot of
the Wilder Kaiser mountain near Kitzbühel,
1494
02:25:10,556 --> 02:25:13,914
an idyllic refuge, in the
midst of total war
1495
02:25:18,314 --> 02:25:20,456
Here she continued to edit Tiefland,
1496
02:25:20,698 --> 02:25:22,669
right to the final days of the war
1497
02:25:23,278 --> 02:25:24,517
Obsessed with her work,
1498
02:25:24,517 --> 02:25:29,304
she can hardly to have heard the allied bombers
flying over daily on their way to Berlin
1499
02:25:30,561 --> 02:25:33,289
At what point was her
image of Hitler shattered?
1500
02:25:36,375 --> 02:25:40,294
My image of Hitler was shattered
much too late
1501
02:25:40,560 --> 02:25:43,331
Right at the end of the war
1502
02:25:43,604 --> 02:25:47,818
When I saw he wasn't visiting
the bombed cities...
1503
02:25:48,164 --> 02:25:51,840
...and seeing the misery for himself
1504
02:25:52,246 --> 02:25:57,044
And that he even recruited old people
and children for the 'Volkssturm'...
1505
02:25:57,310 --> 02:26:01,216
...I was appalled. His image
was totally shattered
1506
02:26:14,700 --> 02:26:16,958
When did you last see Hitler?
1507
02:26:17,228 --> 02:26:22,600
After my war-marriage,
which was on 21st March, 1944
1508
02:26:24,897 --> 02:26:27,785
My husband and I were invited...
1509
02:26:27,916 --> 02:26:30,561
...to the Berghof
1510
02:26:32,949 --> 02:26:34,820
That was the last time
1511
02:26:35,140 --> 02:26:39,537
He was very distracted and kept up
a continual monologue
1512
02:26:39,818 --> 02:26:46,216
He no longer seemed like a man in
touch with reality, more like a ghost
1513
02:26:48,339 --> 02:26:50,257
The final battle for Berlin
1514
02:27:01,053 --> 02:27:05,131
By the beginning of 1945, it was
all over for Germany
1515
02:27:05,570 --> 02:27:07,713
The country lay in ruins
1516
02:27:16,397 --> 02:27:20,267
First French and then American
troops marched into the Tirol
1517
02:27:20,453 --> 02:27:22,801
And Riefenstahl was arrested in Kitzbühel
1518
02:27:27,261 --> 02:27:33,663
It was a time that
beggars description
1519
02:27:34,209 --> 02:27:40,664
So sad, so dreadful.
All our ideals were shattered
1520
02:27:41,460 --> 02:27:44,533
One just could not comprehend it all
1521
02:27:44,846 --> 02:27:50,438
It was a terrible fall
into the abyss
1522
02:27:51,881 --> 02:27:57,108
It was only when I was interrogated
by the Americans in Dachau...
1523
02:27:57,397 --> 02:28:00,615
...that I saw pictures of the camps
1524
02:28:00,858 --> 02:28:06,502
I'd never seen any pictures
or heard anything about them
1525
02:28:21,090 --> 02:28:27,020
It was such a terrible shock
1526
02:28:27,298 --> 02:28:30,367
I couldn't believe...
1527
02:28:30,503 --> 02:28:34,096
...human beings could do such things
1528
02:28:34,264 --> 02:28:40,434
And these things had been done
on Hitler's orders
1529
02:28:46,923 --> 02:28:53,240
It was quite a time
before I could believe it
1530
02:28:53,395 --> 02:28:58,574
And, when I did, my life fell apart
because I'd believed in Hitler
1531
02:29:22,872 --> 02:29:25,090
It was so shattering...
1532
02:29:25,404 --> 02:29:30,292
...that one's own life seemed
utterly unimportant
1533
02:29:30,529 --> 02:29:33,730
There were only two possibilities
1534
02:29:33,996 --> 02:29:40,257
Either to live with this appalling
burden of guild weighing us down...
1535
02:29:40,537 --> 02:29:41,697
...or to die
1536
02:29:42,119 --> 02:29:45,215
It was a constant dilemma,
to live or to die
1537
02:29:49,997 --> 02:29:55,771
This bloody struggle had so far caused
60 million human lives in Europe alone
1538
02:30:00,727 --> 02:30:05,198
After you discovered the crimes
of the Third Reich...
1539
02:30:05,442 --> 02:30:08,641
...did you look on your work
differently?
1540
02:30:08,891 --> 02:30:15,239
No. I was just appalled and confused
to have lived through that period
1541
02:30:16,334 --> 02:30:19,794
I did look at it differently...
1542
02:30:20,169 --> 02:30:25,787
...to the extent that I put myself
into the minds of the victims
1543
02:30:26,041 --> 02:30:32,447
How awful for them to see those
swastikas, the SS men and the SA -
1544
02:30:32,745 --> 02:30:38,790
...people we'd never thought of
as criminals
1545
02:30:38,932 --> 02:30:45,353
It was a breakdown that's
actually been permanent
1546
02:30:45,745 --> 02:30:48,704
I've never recovered from the horror
1547
02:31:14,657 --> 02:31:16,413
People say of me:
1548
02:31:16,561 --> 02:31:22,039
"She's blind. She doesn't want
to know
1549
02:31:22,308 --> 02:31:25,001
"She'll always be a Nazi"
1550
02:31:25,157 --> 02:31:29,235
But none of this applied to me
1551
02:31:29,613 --> 02:31:34,424
I was never a Nazi,
so I can't be one still
1552
02:31:34,564 --> 02:31:40,965
I condemn all that happened but it
doesn't help. They don't believe me
1553
02:31:43,294 --> 02:31:47,955
At the denazification trial in Freiburg,
Leni Riefenstahl's connection with the
1554
02:31:47,955 --> 02:31:51,114
National Socialists was scrutinized closely
1555
02:31:51,748 --> 02:31:55,465
Most of the witnesses who testified
at the trial are still alive
1556
02:31:56,010 --> 02:31:58,956
and continue to confirm the statements
they made then
1557
02:32:00,008 --> 02:32:04,354
Riefenstahl's trial attracted
huge attention from the world's press
1558
02:32:05,139 --> 02:32:09,756
Finally the court declared that
she couldn't be condemned as a Nazi
1559
02:32:10,112 --> 02:32:12,603
but classed as a sympathizer
1560
02:32:14,052 --> 02:32:19,202
The judges found no political activity
in support of the Nazi regime
1561
02:32:19,386 --> 02:32:21,164
that would justify punishment
1562
02:32:21,654 --> 02:32:24,465
There were many however, who
remembered Riefenstahl's
1563
02:32:24,584 --> 02:32:26,704
prominent position in the Third Reich
1564
02:32:26,886 --> 02:32:28,595
and were unhappy with the verdict
1565
02:32:29,968 --> 02:32:34,854
Character assassination is
all too easy
1566
02:32:35,090 --> 02:32:37,619
I've been attached countless times
1567
02:32:37,951 --> 02:32:42,727
The most incredible things
have been said about me
1568
02:32:42,892 --> 02:32:47,326
For instance, that I was Hitler's
mistress, his lover...
1569
02:32:47,577 --> 02:32:52,470
Goebbel's lover, or Goering's -
or of all of them
1570
02:32:52,627 --> 02:32:57,367
That I'd used gypsies from
a concentration camp for a film...
1571
02:32:57,681 --> 02:32:59,329
...which I never did
1572
02:32:59,482 --> 02:33:02,453
All this was stated...
1573
02:33:02,707 --> 02:33:09,061
...to try and finish me and
ensure I never worked again
1574
02:33:10,470 --> 02:33:12,828
After the war, for over 20 years,
1575
02:33:13,065 --> 02:33:16,861
Riefenstahl lived alone with her
mother in an attic in Munich
1576
02:33:17,395 --> 02:33:19,141
She was never to make another film
1577
02:33:23,232 --> 02:33:27,670
Despite this, she still receives
fanmails from all over the world
1578
02:33:28,231 --> 02:33:31,818
For in the 1960s, she made a well
publicized comeback
1579
02:33:32,661 --> 02:33:35,724
In her travels she had discovered
a new continent
1580
02:33:35,840 --> 02:33:38,421
and a fresh inspiration in Africa
1581
02:33:47,333 --> 02:33:52,589
In 1962, Riefenstahl travelled to
the southern Sudan to visit the Nuba
1582
02:33:52,871 --> 02:33:55,580
a remote community of around a 100 tribes
1583
02:33:55,713 --> 02:33:58,286
who'd had a little contact
with the outside world
1584
02:34:11,717 --> 02:34:14,963
Her love of Africa had begun
some years earlier,
1585
02:34:14,963 --> 02:34:19,309
when she visited Kenya to make a film
about the modern day slave trade
1586
02:34:20,817 --> 02:34:24,571
The film was called Black Cargo,
and was never finished
1587
02:34:25,436 --> 02:34:30,110
On her way back to Nairobi, Riefenstahl
was involved in a major car crash
1588
02:34:30,193 --> 02:34:31,286
and nearly killed
1589
02:34:32,213 --> 02:34:37,499
It was a grave setback, but she never
lost her passion for the dark continent
1590
02:34:42,591 --> 02:34:47,199
Her first book of photographs of
the Nuba was published in 1973
1591
02:35:22,072 --> 02:35:25,197
How did your fascination
with the Nuba begin?
1592
02:35:25,502 --> 02:35:26,985
With a photo
1593
02:35:27,195 --> 02:35:32,589
An ordinary photo that I happened
to see in an old issue of 'Stern'...
1594
02:35:32,835 --> 02:35:38,818
...when I was lying in hospital
in Nairobi, after a car accident
1595
02:35:38,963 --> 02:35:43,933
This photo, which I always keep
on my desk...
1596
02:35:44,216 --> 02:35:49,126
...where I'm working with the Nuba,
had changed my life
1597
02:35:49,731 --> 02:35:52,687
It shows two wrestlers...
1598
02:35:52,946 --> 02:35:57,853
Nubas, just what I wanted
for my film 'Black Cargo'
1599
02:35:58,120 --> 02:36:03,825
I needed men like that but in Kenya
and Tanzania I couldn't find any
1600
02:36:04,118 --> 02:36:06,758
The Masai were slim and graceful...
1601
02:36:07,038 --> 02:36:12,054
...but black athletes of the kind
I needed weren't to be found
1602
02:36:12,325 --> 02:36:15,625
So I went looking for them
1603
02:36:17,400 --> 02:36:22,204
At the age of 60, Riefenstahl went
to live alone with the Nuba
1604
02:36:22,324 --> 02:36:23,328
for eight months
1605
02:36:31,517 --> 02:36:37,138
This is the little bed where I slept
for months...
1606
02:36:37,277 --> 02:36:43,191
...with hundreds of wild dogs
around me
1607
02:36:43,502 --> 02:36:47,089
Strangely enough, I was happy
1608
02:37:15,228 --> 02:37:19,175
Wrestlers from different tribes assembled
to play for a wrestling festival
1609
02:37:53,102 --> 02:37:57,377
Funded by a friend, August Arnold,
who ran a camera company in Munich,
1610
02:37:57,755 --> 02:38:00,429
Riefenstahl took both
photographs and film footage
1611
02:38:00,429 --> 02:38:02,395
of the Nuba during his stay
1612
02:38:03,720 --> 02:38:07,166
Her Nuba footage has never
been shown publicly before
1613
02:38:08,017 --> 02:38:11,621
But it was her Nuba photographs
that brought her back to prominence
1614
02:38:27,672 --> 02:38:33,602
The photos weren't so important. I
went there to get to know the people
1615
02:38:33,732 --> 02:38:38,723
But, as always when I'm travelling,
I took a few shots
1616
02:38:38,933 --> 02:38:43,207
Whatever appealed to me - their
lifestyle, the way they moved...
1617
02:38:43,342 --> 02:38:47,865
...their physical types, their faces,
their rituals
1618
02:38:48,117 --> 02:38:52,250
I never thought I'd publish
the results
1619
02:39:10,310 --> 02:39:13,034
The Seraba, a herdsmen's encampment
1620
02:39:21,035 --> 02:39:23,327
The young men would live in
the Seraba encampment,
1621
02:39:23,327 --> 02:39:26,339
cut-off from the village,
and prepare themselves for
1622
02:39:26,339 --> 02:39:28,388
the traditional wrestling contests
1623
02:39:31,292 --> 02:39:34,021
The adolescents go through
an initiation rite
1624
02:39:34,388 --> 02:39:37,168
Only then can they take part
in the wrestling
1625
02:39:37,962 --> 02:39:41,005
As a mark of their membership
of the Seraba, the young men
1626
02:39:41,005 --> 02:39:43,917
cover themselves with ash
and paint their bodies
1627
02:39:44,649 --> 02:39:47,008
The ash has a ritual significance.
1628
02:39:47,516 --> 02:39:50,833
It is meant to give them
strength and beauty
1629
02:39:52,671 --> 02:39:57,016
The Nuba were strange beings to me
1630
02:39:58,363 --> 02:40:04,831
I'd never met native Africans
before
1631
02:40:05,104 --> 02:40:08,238
They surprised me by their character
1632
02:40:10,330 --> 02:40:12,218
They were poor
1633
02:40:12,527 --> 02:40:17,961
They only had their land and
a little water but they were happy
1634
02:40:18,122 --> 02:40:23,666
They weren't suspicious. We soon got
to know each other using a few words
1635
02:40:23,825 --> 02:40:27,622
They were so warm and cheerful
1636
02:40:27,918 --> 02:40:32,857
It made me think "How little
one needs to be happy"
1637
02:40:32,997 --> 02:40:38,060
I've often been back and
I've always felt at ease there
1638
02:40:50,134 --> 02:40:54,374
Over 3000 metres of film footage
of the Nuba is stored in
1639
02:40:54,374 --> 02:40:56,352
Leni Riefenstahl's basement
1640
02:40:56,943 --> 02:41:00,646
But the film about the Nuba,
a pet project for so many years
1641
02:41:00,911 --> 02:41:02,463
has never been completed
1642
02:41:03,433 --> 02:41:07,236
It is true that some important material
was destroyed during processing
1643
02:41:07,972 --> 02:41:12,871
But what prevents such an enthusiastic
editor from cutting her own work
1644
02:41:16,220 --> 02:41:19,238
Just before setting off on her
second Nuba expedition
1645
02:41:19,492 --> 02:41:21,989
Riefenstahl was to have a decisive encounter
1646
02:41:22,355 --> 02:41:24,161
She met Horst Kettner,
1647
02:41:24,757 --> 02:41:28,358
40 years her junior, he
nevertheless became her companion
1648
02:41:28,599 --> 02:41:31,664
working and travelling with her
as he still does today
1649
02:41:34,686 --> 02:41:38,824
For the next Nuba expedition,
Riefenstahl would be better equipped
1650
02:41:39,362 --> 02:41:40,877
Horst would be her cameraman
1651
02:41:41,813 --> 02:41:44,363
She had trained him herself
in the course of her travels
1652
02:42:38,549 --> 02:42:41,157
A wrestling festival
among the Masaki Nuba
1653
02:42:41,920 --> 02:42:44,803
These Masaki Nuba wrestling
festivals begin
1654
02:42:44,803 --> 02:42:46,997
after first harvest in November
1655
02:42:46,997 --> 02:42:49,398
and last until the end of March
1656
02:42:53,957 --> 02:42:56,284
The contests never end brutally
1657
02:42:56,566 --> 02:42:59,973
The wrestler who throws his
opponent on his back wins
1658
02:43:00,263 --> 02:43:02,884
There is a referee to oversee
the fair play
1659
02:43:30,026 --> 02:43:33,154
A 160 miles away,
is another tribe
1660
02:43:33,352 --> 02:43:36,063
with very different customs and language
1661
02:43:44,710 --> 02:43:50,141
These are the Nuba of Kao.
They're Nuba too but quite different
1662
02:43:51,312 --> 02:43:56,538
Their nature is quite unlike
the Masaki Nuba
1663
02:43:57,235 --> 02:44:00,769
They're wild.
Not as peaceable as the other Nuba
1664
02:44:00,913 --> 02:44:05,194
It's difficult to work with them
but worth the effort
1665
02:44:05,322 --> 02:44:07,076
They're artists
1666
02:44:07,382 --> 02:44:12,986
More gifted than any other tribe
I've seen
1667
02:44:13,409 --> 02:44:15,501
They paint wonderful masks
1668
02:44:15,796 --> 02:44:20,649
Each one more interesting
than the last
1669
02:44:20,798 --> 02:44:24,071
And they do them in just
20-30 minutes
1670
02:44:24,347 --> 02:44:25,803
What are they for?
1671
02:44:26,336 --> 02:44:31,677
Purely to beautify themselves.
It's just decoration
1672
02:44:31,857 --> 02:44:37,895
There's a ritual symbolism to
the signs found on many of them
1673
02:44:38,055 --> 02:44:39,279
For instance...
1674
02:44:39,466 --> 02:44:42,443
...some have exaggerated their eyes
1675
02:44:42,705 --> 02:44:46,173
They want to make their eyes
seem larger
1676
02:44:46,470 --> 02:44:51,983
And on others the lines are
stylised representations...
1677
02:44:52,278 --> 02:44:57,454
...of gazelles and other animals
they know
1678
02:45:06,472 --> 02:45:12,159
It's amazing. Every mask is different
1679
02:45:21,196 --> 02:45:27,681
I'm more attracted by an aesthetic
subject than by an ugly one
1680
02:45:29,139 --> 02:45:32,566
I can't be creative with
a negative subject
1681
02:45:32,871 --> 02:45:37,370
I only become creative
and have ideas...
1682
02:45:37,534 --> 02:45:43,583
...when dealing with something
which stimulated my enthusiasm
1683
02:45:43,895 --> 02:45:46,321
That's been true of all my films
1684
02:45:47,644 --> 02:45:50,309
A dance ceremony of the Nuba of Kao
1685
02:45:50,868 --> 02:45:54,749
These ceremonies take place
after the traditional knife contests
1686
02:45:58,168 --> 02:46:00,414
Only virgins are allowed to dance
1687
02:46:00,817 --> 02:46:03,583
The girls woo the fighters
with their dancing
1688
02:46:09,816 --> 02:46:12,028
According to an American anthropologist
1689
02:46:12,663 --> 02:46:17,429
the Nuba consider their own bodies
as the highest form of art
1690
02:47:09,004 --> 02:47:14,536
It's not just the masks of these Nuba
that are interesting...
1691
02:47:14,871 --> 02:47:17,125
...but also their hair decorations
1692
02:47:17,407 --> 02:47:22,100
Here you see, for example,
this notch in the hair
1693
02:47:22,229 --> 02:47:28,101
And here too. That means he's a
Kaduma - they're the only men...
1694
02:47:28,444 --> 02:47:30,393
...allowed to fight
1695
02:47:36,066 --> 02:47:40,493
Comparing her famous Nuba photographs
with the massive film footage,
1696
02:47:40,715 --> 02:47:45,593
it is easier to understand why her
promised Nuba film never materialized
1697
02:47:46,382 --> 02:47:48,283
Working without a professional cameraman
1698
02:47:48,641 --> 02:47:51,564
and unable to dictate and
influence all the actions,
1699
02:47:51,928 --> 02:47:57,564
Riefenstahl, the obsessive perfectionist
couldn't be in total control of the material
1700
02:47:57,967 --> 02:48:00,973
and could not reach the aesthetic
heights to which she aspired
1701
02:48:03,997 --> 02:48:07,458
You mean Susan Sontag?
1702
02:48:09,146 --> 02:48:13,672
It's a mystery to me...
1703
02:48:13,806 --> 02:48:17,968
...how such an intelligent woman
can talk such rubbish
1704
02:48:18,244 --> 02:48:20,124
I took these pictures...
1705
02:48:20,380 --> 02:48:24,631
...of the Nuba, just as they live,
unobserved, without posing
1706
02:48:24,873 --> 02:48:28,478
What can be fascist about that?
I don't understand
1707
02:48:28,745 --> 02:48:33,002
Her involvement with the Nuba led
once again to doubts about her intentions
1708
02:48:33,262 --> 02:48:35,168
and questions of her aesthetics
1709
02:48:35,651 --> 02:48:37,057
The cult of the body beautiful
1710
02:48:37,331 --> 02:48:40,041
The celebration of masculine power
and strength
1711
02:48:40,487 --> 02:48:42,715
Riefenstahl had heard these
reproaches before
1712
02:48:43,536 --> 02:48:45,515
It's a lot of rubbish
1713
02:48:45,818 --> 02:48:50,558
If you're living among such natural
people and carry a camera...
1714
02:48:50,819 --> 02:48:53,405
...and they don't want to be
photographed...
1715
02:48:53,541 --> 02:48:59,948
...you can still take shots
because they get to know you
1716
02:49:00,205 --> 02:49:04,778
But what has that got to do with
Strength and Beauty?
1717
02:49:05,041 --> 02:49:07,789
I've not changed these people
1718
02:49:14,529 --> 02:49:20,218
They're very healthy human beings.
There's no sickness in the tribe
1719
02:49:20,473 --> 02:49:26,884
The old people sit in dark houses,
in shadow, so you can't film them
1720
02:49:27,060 --> 02:49:31,453
Those who walk about outside
are mainly young, healthy
1721
02:49:31,725 --> 02:49:35,495
Many also happen to be beautiful
1722
02:49:35,770 --> 02:49:38,805
But I didn't create them. God did
1723
02:50:00,062 --> 02:50:06,076
Have you ever thought how one
might define a fascist aesthetic?
1724
02:50:06,356 --> 02:50:10,560
I don't understand the question.
I've no concept of fascism...
1725
02:50:10,740 --> 02:50:14,271
...unless it be the Hitler salute...
1726
02:50:14,450 --> 02:50:19,725
...or the fascist salute with
the raised right hand
1727
02:50:19,882 --> 02:50:23,098
- I can't imagine anything
- No visual aesthetic?
1728
02:50:23,238 --> 02:50:27,958
No, I've no idea
what that might mean
1729
02:51:28,413 --> 02:51:32,383
In the 1970s, Riefenstahl
discovered another refuge
1730
02:51:32,489 --> 02:51:35,481
far from the madding crowd,
underwater
1731
02:51:45,035 --> 02:51:51,375
Horst, could you kindly bring me the
reel with the sharks in close-up?
1732
02:52:01,861 --> 02:52:07,238
We've a shot somewhere of Herbert...
1733
02:52:07,640 --> 02:52:11,078
...with a fish in his mouth
and the shark snatching it
1734
02:52:11,395 --> 02:52:13,209
I'd like that shot
1735
02:52:16,936 --> 02:52:20,845
I think it's in Reel 3.
I'll fetch it for you
1736
02:52:21,130 --> 02:52:22,803
Please, it's important
1737
02:53:17,737 --> 02:53:21,942
At the age of 70, Riefenstahl
passed her scuba diving test
1738
02:53:22,358 --> 02:53:24,295
In order to be allowed to
take the test at all,
1739
02:53:24,814 --> 02:53:26,573
she had to claim to be only 50
1740
02:53:27,423 --> 02:53:29,712
Since then, she has dived
with Horst in some of
1741
02:53:29,712 --> 02:53:32,802
the world's most spectacular
underwater locations
1742
02:53:39,035 --> 02:53:41,247
She trained Horst to be her cameraman
1743
02:53:41,697 --> 02:53:44,696
Horst uses an underwater
video camera that is protected
1744
02:53:44,696 --> 02:53:47,028
by a casing designed by himself
1745
02:53:50,155 --> 02:53:53,140
They are now working on an
ambitious underwater epic
1746
02:53:53,424 --> 02:53:55,863
that would probably prove to be their last
1747
02:53:58,720 --> 02:54:03,783
How long can we stay underwater?
1748
02:54:04,231 --> 02:54:08,886
- Twenty minutes maximum
- We'll need to shoot all the scenes
1749
02:54:18,878 --> 02:54:23,371
As always, Riefenstahl takes stills
and supervises the lighting
1750
02:54:23,614 --> 02:54:25,610
while Horst operates the camera
1751
02:54:43,519 --> 02:54:48,121
At the age of 90, Riefenstahl is
probably the oldest diver in the world
1752
02:54:48,692 --> 02:54:51,630
Her increasing concern about
the threat to marine life
1753
02:54:51,917 --> 02:54:54,674
has led her to become
a member of Greenpeace
1754
02:54:57,510 --> 02:54:59,833
Give me the mouthpiece
1755
02:55:15,269 --> 02:55:18,277
- There's no air in it
- Yes, look
1756
02:59:32,920 --> 02:59:34,721
It was great
1757
02:59:47,654 --> 02:59:51,104
The 'crown of thorns' we filmed today
was good
1758
02:59:59,418 --> 03:00:03,058
But you didn't hold the camera
steady
1759
03:00:03,316 --> 03:00:07,397
I was being pushed by the current
1760
03:00:11,098 --> 03:00:13,481
The visibility is very poor
1761
03:00:15,167 --> 03:00:18,645
We should really shoot it again
1762
03:00:18,927 --> 03:00:22,980
- There was too much plankton
- That's quite good
1763
03:00:26,350 --> 03:00:29,537
Well done. That's a good shot
1764
03:00:30,128 --> 03:00:33,048
I tried a bit of side-lighting
1765
03:00:33,312 --> 03:00:36,586
But you kept telling me to
take the lamp away
1766
03:00:36,724 --> 03:00:39,537
I meant the one with the blue filter
1767
03:00:39,853 --> 03:00:42,630
I see. You wanted the red
1768
03:00:42,801 --> 03:00:48,070
That's very good.
I like that very much
1769
03:00:51,284 --> 03:00:54,011
This is too dark, as if you had
under-exposed it
1770
03:00:54,148 --> 03:00:57,930
- That was deliberate
- Why deliberate? It was too dark
1771
03:01:04,551 --> 03:01:06,506
Now that's a good shot
1772
03:01:13,977 --> 03:01:18,075
Diving up a depth of a 100 ft.
they encounter a giant stingray
1773
03:01:18,738 --> 03:01:21,177
One touch of its tail
would be lethal
1774
03:03:31,313 --> 03:03:36,862
That's really fantastic.
We were so lucky
1775
03:03:37,633 --> 03:03:42,884
In 18 years' diving, we've never
had that
1776
03:03:43,172 --> 03:03:45,431
We've never had it before
1777
03:03:46,139 --> 03:03:48,580
Is that the first or the second?
1778
03:03:48,862 --> 03:03:52,251
That's the big one eating
1779
03:04:10,571 --> 03:04:14,064
From great mountain heights
and worldwide fame
1780
03:04:14,515 --> 03:04:18,443
Riefenstahl has descended
in the twilight years of her life
1781
03:04:18,548 --> 03:04:20,384
to a silent world
1782
03:04:22,959 --> 03:04:26,818
It is no longer the noble
human form that preoccupies her
1783
03:04:27,393 --> 03:04:30,441
but the exotic marine life
of the underwater kingdom
1784
03:05:13,045 --> 03:05:18,003
Underwater, far from the public gaze
is where she is happiest
1785
03:05:18,906 --> 03:05:22,293
But, even here
she cannot escape
1786
03:05:22,293 --> 03:05:26,391
the long shadows cast
by her past
1787
03:05:26,929 --> 03:05:28,383
I feel this country...
1788
03:05:28,660 --> 03:05:32,092
...is still waiting for you to say
publicly:
1789
03:05:32,364 --> 03:05:35,416
"I made a mistake. I'm sorry"
1790
03:05:35,981 --> 03:05:39,377
Being sorry isn't nearly enough
1791
03:05:39,656 --> 03:05:43,365
But I can't tear myself apart
or destroy myself
1792
03:05:43,665 --> 03:05:48,917
It's so terrible. I've suffered
anyway for over half a century
1793
03:05:49,218 --> 03:05:51,561
And it will never end, until I die
1794
03:05:51,873 --> 03:05:56,428
It's such an incredible burden,
that to say sorry...
1795
03:05:58,632 --> 03:06:03,735
It's inadequate, it expresses
too little
1796
03:06:04,018 --> 03:06:09,226
Doesn't it hurt to read again and again
that you're irredeemable?
1797
03:06:09,520 --> 03:06:14,737
Of course it hurts.
It makes me very, very sad
1798
03:06:15,007 --> 03:06:19,619
But because it never stops and
people keep on saying it...
1799
03:06:19,760 --> 03:06:21,869
...I have to live with it
1800
03:06:22,156 --> 03:06:25,134
It casts such a shadow
over my life...
1801
03:06:25,284 --> 03:06:30,184
...that death will be
a blessed release
1802
03:06:30,764 --> 03:06:33,340
I feel people are expecting...
1803
03:06:33,602 --> 03:06:36,104
...an admission of guilt from you
1804
03:06:36,792 --> 03:06:40,872
Well, what do you mean by that?
What am I guilty of?
1805
03:06:41,010 --> 03:06:45,363
I can and do regret making the film
of the 1934 Party Congress...
1806
03:06:45,615 --> 03:06:47,426
...'Triumph of the Will'
1807
03:06:47,710 --> 03:06:52,944
I regret... no, I can't regret
that I was alive in that period
1808
03:06:53,227 --> 03:06:59,068
But no words of anti-semitism ever
passed my lips. Nor did I write any
1809
03:06:59,240 --> 03:07:03,790
I was never anti-semitic
and I never joined the Nazi Party
1810
03:07:03,946 --> 03:07:06,808
So what am I guilty of? Tell me that
1811
03:07:06,948 --> 03:07:11,242
I didn't drop any atom bombs.
I didn't denounce anyone
1812
03:07:11,410 --> 03:07:13,946
So where does my guilt lie?
1813
03:07:14,725 --> 03:08:17,940
Surf the internet with browser of future
osdb.link/brave
155948
Can't find what you're looking for?
Get subtitles in any language from opensubtitles.com, and translate them here.