TUK to show Brauner films
TUK to show Brauner films
In collaboration with the German Cultural Center Goethe-
Institute, Teater Utan Kayu (TUK) plans to hold a three-day
screening of films produced by Artur Brauner, arguably the most
influential postwar German film producer.
The screening, which runs from Friday to Sunday, will feature
films produced by Brauner, some of which became his own
favorites.
On the first day, viewers will have a chance to appreciate two
films: Morituri and The Plot to Assassinate Hitler, produced in
1947 and 1950 respectively.
On Saturday, three films, Witness out of Hell, After Your
Decrees and A Love in Germany will be played, followed by
Hanussen, The Rose Garden and Europa Europa on Sunday.
A public discussion will be held on Sunday in between
screenings of the two films.
Born in Lodz, Poland, in 1918, Brauner founded the "Central
Cinema Company" (CCC Filmkunst) in Berlin in 1946 and established
himself as the producer of Schlagerfilme (musical romantic
comedies), Heimatfilme (idyllic post-World War II "homeland"
films), and Krimis (mysteries)
In the course of a lengthy career in the film industry,
Brauner produced 250 feature films, a feat that established him
as one of the most successful movie producers in post-war
Germany.
He also has produced many films that depict the plight of
Jewish people under the Nazi totalitarian regime.
The penchant was driven by an atrocity he suffered under Nazi
rule. Nazi troops killed 49 of his relatives when they invaded
his hometown.
Brauner first film, Morituri, deals with Germany in the grip
of the Nazi years. But the film was a flop as the German public
was not yet ready for such introspection.
Discouraged by the failure, Brauner shifted his priority to
producing light-hearted films.
He returned to producing politically and socially conscious
films in the 1960s after the public had become more receptive to
his works. -- JP
Screenings are from May 27 through May 29 at Teater Utan Kayu
(TUK), Jl. Utan Kayu 68H, East Jakarta. All films are in German
with English subtitles.