Erwin Anders

East German adaptation of Grimm‘s fairy tale "Rumpelstiltskin". A boastful miller pretends that his daughter Marie can spin straw into gold, and so she is locked into a room full of straw and ordered to spin it into gold by the next morning. A little man appears and offers his help in exchange for Marie's necklace. The greedy treasurer makes Marie spin twice more until the only thing she has left to give the little man is the promise of her first-born child…

DEFA crime film about the smuggling of PVC across the (still open) border from East to West Berlin.

This unusual day was preceded by little Maja's laziness. She didn't feel like doing any schoolwork. When she came to school the next day, the teacher didn't feel like teaching her. Everyone else she wants something from is not in the mood either. Maja begins to wonder whether this strange behavior could have something to do with her "listlessness" yesterday. And she comes to the conclusion that it is not right not to do your homework, as everyone has a duty to fulfill in their place.

Deocumentary reports on the old Frankfurter Allee, renamed "Stalinallee" in a festive ceremony on December 21, 1949 to mark the 70th anniversary of Stalin's birth. The moving history of the street and the people who lived there from the 16th century to the unification of the KPD and SPD to form the SED in 1946 are shown. In November 1951, the Central Committee of the SED proposed a national reconstruction program for Berlin, which included above all the expansion of Stalinallee with new housing complexes based on the Russian model for the working class. More than 45,000 volunteers came forward to help with the demolition after their daily work in order to drive the construction forward. After a record construction period, the first residents were able to move into their comparatively luxurious apartments on Stalinallee on January 7, 1953. The comments chosen reflect the zeitgeist of the Cold War, with criticism of West Berlin's politics and way of life being voiced above all.

Post-war Germany: Like so many other women, Gerda Krause has lost her husband during the war and has to fend for herself and her two children. She finds work as a seamstress but refuses the offering of her department chief Zimmermann to upgrade her qualifications. One day she meets Uschi, an old friend of hers, whom she has helped with schoolwork before the war and subsequently lost track of. The reunion reminds Gerda of her childhood dream: to become a teacher. Thus, she decides to enroll at university to make her dream come true.

Film about the third 'Weltfestspiele der Jugend und Studenten für den Frieden' in East Berlin, 1951. West Germany is represented as a degenerate country which has been occupied by the Americans and is still inclined to fascism. We see the construction of the stadium, the departure and arrival of the delegations, the opening and closing by Enrico Berlinguer, a sports event, the parade of the delegations, a visit to Potsdam, folk dancing, and police violence against youngsters from West Berlin who want to visit East Germany because of the games. The film is interlaced with shots from the Korean War and a parade by NATO-troops in West Germany. Featuring Robert Montgomery, Konrad Adenauer, Wilhelm Pieck, Dwight Eisenhower, Robert Leer and Erich Honecker. The crew comprised no less than 24 cameramen. This project was the first great colour film Ivens co-operated in.

A film about Dresden - before, during, and after the war.

Hated by her jealous and bloodthirsty stepmother, Snow White flees a murder attempt and seeks shelter in the woods with seven kindly dwarfs. Feeling she is safe from harm, Snow White welcomes the disguised queen into her home...with fatal consequences.