Margarethe von Trotta: a life in front and behind the camera
The award-winning filmmaker Margarethe von Trotta has been referred to as a "leading force" of the New German Cinema movement. As she turns 75, here are the main stations of her career.
Launching a solo career
As the wife and collaborator of director Volker Schlöndorff, her producer wasn't enthused when she tried to start directing her own films: "Why don't you continue co-writing with your husband and acting? You had such a nice arrangement," was the reaction. Margarethe von Trotta still managed to direct her first film, "The Second Awakening of Christa Klages" in 1978 - but with a different producer.
40 years and 24 films later
"There wasn't enough confidence in women at the time," Margarethe von Trotta later said. Things have changed since, she feels: "I believe that nowadays we don't have to fear that women are being underrated. The old conflicts, arbitrary acts of paternalism, still continue, but in private."
Strong women
Her favorite actresses, like Barbara Sukowa or Hanna Schygulla (left on picture, with von Trotta) were women with strong personalities. The filmmaker became good friends with many of them, including with the journalist Christiane Ensslin, who she met while working on "Marianne and Juliane," a film which depicts a fictionalized account of RAF terrorist Gudrun Ensslin and her sister Christiane.
Successful team: von Trotta und Brokemper
New actresses employed by Margarethe von Trotta include German stars Katja Riemann and Maria Schrader. For her 2013 film, "Hannah Arendt," von Trotta worked together with film producer Bettina Brokemper (photo). A successful collaboration: the film obtained several awards.
Strong-willed women
Margarethe von Trotta's films often depict history's strong and unfaltering women, such as Gudrun Ensslin, Rosa Luxemburg (picture from her 1986 film), Hildegard von Bingen and Hannah Arendt. However, she claims the selection of those characters wasn't planned: "Originally, Fassbinder was to direct 'Rosa Luxemburg.' The characters come to me - not the other way around," she once said.
A great love: Volker Schöndorff
During her 20-year marriage to Volker Schlöndorff, Margarethe von Trotta worked with him as an actress, co-director and screenwriter. Together they shot "A Free Woman" (1972), one of Germany's first feminist films. "We shared a passion for the French language, for film and politics, we were meant for each other," - that's how Schlöndorff described the time they spent together on his website.
Still friends today
They separated in 1991, but the two great filmmakers Volker Schlöndorff and Margarethe von Trotta remained friends to this day. They are pictured here meeting at the Berlinale in 2014.
Enge Bindung an langjährige Weggefährten
Filmmaker Rainer Werner Fassbinder discovered the stage actress Barbara Sukowa and recruited her for his film "Berlin Alexanderplatz" (1980). Afterwards, she starred in several films by von Trotta, including her award-winning performance in "Marianne and Juliane" (photo). Sukowa's depiction of Rosa Luxemburg also earned her the award for best actress at the Cannes Film Festival in 1986.
Seven films together since
Both women have left Germany. Barbara Sukowa has been living in the US since 1992, and Margarethe von Trotta lives in Paris. But living on separate continents hasn't affected their friendship. Most lately, Barbara Sukowa played the main role opposite Katja Riemann in von Trotta's latest and highly personal film, "The Misplaced World" (2015).
New projects in the making
Margarethe von Trotta is now preparing her next film and working on a documentary on scriptwriter and director Ingmar Bergman, whose films had also inspired von Trotta to become a filmmaker, back when she was 18 years old.