Leni Riefenstahl

Biography

Helene Bertha Amalie "Leni" Riefenstahl was born on August 22, 1902, in Berlin, the daughter of a seamstress and a craftsman. Growing up in the vibrant city, she developed a passion for the arts at an early age. She received piano lessons, and after completing her secondary education, she briefly attended classes in painting and drawing at the State School of Arts and Crafts in Berlin. Riefenstahl was also deeply enthusiastic about sports, engaging in gymnastics, roller skating, rowing, tennis, and sailing. At just 15, with her mother's support but without her father's knowledge, she began taking dance lessons at the Grimm-Reiter School under the tutelage of Anita Berber. Following a performance where she represented Berber, her father sent her to a boarding school in the Harz Mountains for a year. However, even there, she continued her dance lessons and participated in theater productions.  

From 1920 to 1923, while learning bookkeeping and shorthand in her father's business, Riefenstahl pursued classical dance lessons from the Russian ballerina and educator Eugenia Eduardowa, and she studied expressive dance at the Jutta-Klamt School. She even dabbled in boxing. In 1923, she made her debut as a solo dancer in Munich, which was followed by a six-month tour of Germany and Europe, financed by film producer Harry R. Sokal, whom she met during a vacation at the Baltic Sea with her then-fiancé, tennis professional Otto Froitzheim. She garnered attention from Austrian theater and film director Max Reinhardt, who engaged her for two solo performances at the German Theater in Berlin. However, a knee injury in the summer of 1924 in Prague abruptly ended her career as an expressive dancer.  

Versatile and determined, Riefenstahl quickly redirected her career, inspired by Arnold Fanck's groundbreaking mountain film, "Der Berg des Schicksals"("The Mountain of Destiny", 1924). She transitioned to acting and, in 1925, took the initiative to meet Fanck, who cast her in his next film, "Der heilige Berg"("The Holy Mountain"). This film, featuring a dancer named Diotima who captivates two mountain climbers (Luis Trenker and Ernst Petersen) with her performances, was tailored for Riefenstahl. She even adapted excerpts from her own dance cycle for the choreography of the dance scenes. Upon its release, "Der heilige Berg" achieved great success both in Germany and internationally, making Riefenstahl a star despite mixed reviews of her acting performance. She went on to star in five more of Fanck's films: "Der große Sprung" ("The Great Leap", 1927), "Die weiße Hölle vom Piz Palü" ("The White Hell of Pitz Palu", 1929), Fanck's first sound film "Stürme über dem Mont Blanc" ("Storm over Mont Blanc", 1930), "Der weiße Rausch" ("The White Ecstasy", 1931), and "SOS Eisberg" ("SOS Iceberg"), filmed in Greenland in 1933 during a scientifically supported expedition involving notable mountaineers and the later aviation general Ernst Udet. These films also garnered international acclaim, with particularly positive reviews for "Die weiße Hölle vom Piz Palü." 

In her private life during this period, Riefenstahl had brief relationships with Luis Trenker and later with cameraman Hans Schneeberger. Despite her talent, her efforts to establish herself in artistic productions outside the mountain film genre—such as auditioning for Murnau's "Faust - Eine deutsche Volkssage" ("Faust") in 1926—proved unsuccessful. 

Throughout her collaborations with Fanck, Riefenstahl immersed herself in the various facets of filmmaking, including camera work, film development, and editing. This knowledge would come to fruition in her first directorial work in 1932, for which she co-wrote the screenplay with the Jewish film theorist Béla Balázs, who later received support from Carl Mayer. Her film, "Das Blaue Licht" ("The Blue Light"), a mountain-themed story centered around a mysterious light that lures people to their deaths, showcased her innovative vision. The film's fairy tale material, expressionist content, and stylistic execution were unique for its time. Riefenstahl's longtime supporter, producer Harry R. Sokal, also backed this project. Unfortunately, Balázs was forced to leave the production after being invited to Moscow, where he remained due to the political climate. When he sought deferred payment for his work on the screenplay after the Nazi rise to power, Riefenstahl, with assistance from Julius Streicher, editor of the German tabloid-format Nazi newspaper "Der Stürmer," dismissed Balázs' claims, and his name was omitted from later versions of the film credits. Consequently, directing, writing, and cinematography were long erroneously attributed solely to Riefenstahl.  

The reception of "Das Blaue Licht" was mixed in Germany but enjoyed significant success abroad. Film critic Hanno Loewy noted in his 1999 essay "Das Menschenbild des fanatischen Fatalisten oder: Leni Riefenstahl, Béla Balázs und 'Das blaue Licht'": "The reception has also placed "Das blaue Licht" in the context of National Socialism due to its negative stance towards modernity and the cultivation of myths. Defenses of the film, however, emphasize its feminist subtext and the portrayal of a dream world resisting a materially anchored reality." This duality may have contributed to Hitler's interest in the film, ultimately leading to their first meeting. 

After the Nazis came to power, Riefenstahl directed three films documenting the Reich Party Congresses of the NSDAP in Nuremberg in 1933, 1934, and 1935, including the iconic propaganda film "Triumph des Willens" ("Triumph of the Will"), which premiered in March 1935. This film captured the 6th Reich Party Congress of the NSDAP and was met with great acclaim, receiving several honors, including the Gold Medal at the Venice Film Festival. Its outstanding formal representation of mass events and the cult of the leader made "Triumph des Willens" not only a paradigm of Nazi self-presentation but also a lasting influence in film criticism today, regarded as one of the most effective propaganda films due to its rhythmic imagery, innovative camera angles, and emphasis on Nazi symbolism.  

A similar impact was achieved with her two-part documentary of the 1936 Berlin Olympics, which showcased her skills as an innovator. Riefenstahl and her team sifted through approximately 400,000 meters of filmed material over ten months, producing "Fest der Völker" ("Olympia Part One: Festival of the Nations ") and "Fest der Schönheit" ("Olympia Part Two: Festival of Beauty"). These films set new standards in the representation of sporting events and had a profound influence on sports reporting in subsequent decades. By employing innovative techniques such as slow-motion shots, unusual camera perspectives, and striking image compositions, Riefenstahl crafted a visual language that elevated sport to an art form, portraying athletes as idealized hero figures. While her stylistic achievements are undeniable, critics argued that the aesthetic representation of athletes and the emphasis on strength and beauty glorified Nazi superiority ideals and racism.  

On April 20, 1938—Hitler's 49th birthday—both films premiered at the Ufa Palace in Berlin, receiving enthusiastic acclaim from the audience. The German film press, which had suppressed independent artistic criticism since 1936, reacted positively to the films. For international distribution, Riefenstahl produced English, French, and Italian versions of "Olympia," traveling across Europe to promote them. Some versions included scenes with Hitler, while others were cut for international audiences.  

As a producer, Leni Riefenstahl was involved with the Olympia-Film GmbH, which she established for the production of the "Olympia" films. This endeavor was supported by the Reich Ministry for Popular Enlightenment and Propaganda, led by Joseph Goebbels. Between 1938 and 1940, she participated in a series of other propagandistic documentaries, some of which showcased athletic endeavors (e.g., in 1939's "Kraft und Schwung. Die Grundelemente des Turnens") while others were set against mountainous backdrops (such as the 1940 films "Hochalm" and "Bergbauern").  

From 1940 to 1944, Riefenstahl, under the aegis of National Socialist film policy, directed her final feature film: "Tiefland"("Lowlands"). This drama, situated on the fringes of the Spanish Pyrenees, revolves around a feared landowner and his mistress. Her assistant for this project was Harald Reinl, while G.W. Pabst initially served as a directing advisor but departed due to creative differences. When the war ended in 1945, the French occupying forces confiscated the footage, holding it until 1953. This delay postponed the world premiere of "Tiefland" until February 11, 1954, in Stuttgart, following its approval by the rating organization FSK (Self-Regulatory Body of the Movie Industry) at the end of 1953. The recruitment of approximately 100 Sinti and Roma from concentration camps for the film—who were not compensated and were later murdered in Auschwitz—sparked ongoing discussions and legal disputes that continued even on the occasion of Riefenstahl’s 100th birthday.  

Riefenstahl frequently found herself under fire from the media, often responding with lawsuits and legal actions. Throughout her life, she employed a mix of half-truths, excuses, and naive defenses in an attempt to downplay her involvement during the National Socialist era. As a result of her controversial legacy and entanglement with NS politics, she struggled to reconnect with her earlier (pre-)war successes, particularly in her film career.  

After unsuccessful attempts to secure funding for two films set in Africa, Riefenstahl shifted her focus once again, turning to photography. She dedicated herself primarily to capturing life in Africa, particularly among the Nuba people of Sudan. In this endeavor, she maintained her signature aesthetic focus on the portrayal of athletic bodies while also documenting the everyday activities of the Nuba, such as harvesting, body painting, and ritualized male combat. 

Starting in 1964, her photographs began appearing in various international magazines, including the American "Life" Magazine. In 1969, "Stern" published the cover story "Riefenstahl fotografierte die Nuba - Bilder, die noch keiner sah," featuring 20 of her striking images. By 1972, she had become an accredited photographer for the Sunday Times during the Olympic Games in Munich. That same year, at the age of 70, Riefenstahl completed a diving course and embarked on several diving trips to tropical seas with her partner, Horst Kettner, whom she trained as a cameraman.  

In 1973, she published her first photo book, "The Last of the Nuba," which propelled her to prominence as a photographer and earned her honorary Sudanese citizenship from President Jaafar al-Nimeiri. Among her other photographic endeavors outside Sudan is a series for the Sunday Times featuring Mick and Bianca Jagger, shot in 1974. A year later, her second book, "The Nuba People of Kau," was released, capturing portraits and images of ceremonies involving dancing women. Like its predecessor, it garnered significant acclaim for its outstanding and expressive photographs. However, it also received criticism, e.g. from American writer and philosopher Susan Sontag who strongly criticized them in The New York Review of Books, asserting that they demonstrated Riefenstahl's ongoing commitment to "fascist aesthetics." Riefenstahl concluded her series of African photo books in 1982 with "Leni Riefenstahl's Africa." As a trained diver, she then focused on underwater photography, producing the photo books "Coral Gardens" (1978) and "Wonders Under Water" (1990). 

In 2024, researchers from Germany and Sudan began a two-year project to explore Riefenstahl's photographic legacy, focusing on around 10,000 images of the Nuba people. They emphasized the importance of viewing this material through a colonial and racist lens, as the Nuba often saw Riefenstahl as a benign figure, unaware of her intentions. Sudanese researcher Guma Kunda Komey noted that these documents enrich current Nuba generations by connecting them to their history. However, as awareness of Riefenstahl's true impact grew, many Nuba individuals felt exploited and are now seeking compensation, claiming ownership of the photos. 

In 1982, Riefenstahl began working on her memoirs, which were published in 1987. The book was translated into nine languages and became a bestseller, particularly abroad. In Germany, however, its release sparked controversy, as critics accused her of glossing over the problematic aspects of her career. In 1992, the three-hour documentary "Die Macht der Bilder" ("The Wonderful, Horrible Life of Leni Riefenstahl," directed by: Ray Mueller) was released, meticulously tracing the milestones of her life and work through extensive interviews with the filmmaker. In this documentary, as in previous statements, Riefenstahl insisted that she never viewed her films as propaganda, claiming her approach was entirely "unpolitical." She asserted that she had never grasped the full extent of the Nazi regime's annihilation efforts and maintained that her work was driven solely by aesthetic considerations. To reinforce her claims of ignorance and innocence, she noted, as she had before, that she was never a member of the Nazi party, NSDAP.  

While Riefenstahl's work has often been scrutinized in the context of art versus political servitude after World War II, her accomplishments as a director remain largely uncontroversial among film critics. Her innovative camera work, unique perspectives, and groundbreaking editing techniques influenced a number of notable post-war directors, including Jean-Luc Godard, Claude Lanzmann, and Andrei Tarkovsky. These directors admired her artistic contributions but distanced themselves from her political views and the ethical implications of her work. Hollywood director George Lucas famously referred to Riefenstahl as "the most modern filmmaker ever."  

In 2002, just a week after her 100th birthday, her documentary "Impressionen unter Wasser" premiered in Berlin and was broadcast the next day on ARTE. This film, released 48 years after her last directorial project, "Tiefland," represented the culmination of three decades of underwater filming and marked her final contribution to cinema.  

Leni Riefenstahl, who had lived in a self-designed villa in Pöcking by Lake Starnberg since 1979 and was one of the most controversial figures of the 20th century, passed away on September 8, 2003, at the age of 101.  

Over the decades, her film and photographic works have been the focus of numerous exhibitions and retrospectives, including a notable showing at the Berlinale in 2003, a posthumous exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in New York in 2008, and another at the Centre Pompidou in Paris in 2013. Numerous documentaries have also been made about her, such as "Zeit des Schweigens und der Dunkelheit" (Directed by: Nina Gladitz) in 1982, "Die Maßlosigkeit, die in mir ist - Sandra Maischberger trifft Leni Riefenstahl" in 2002, and "Leni Riefenstahl - Das Ende eines Mythos" on ARTE in 2020, all of which critically examine her legacy. At the end of August 2024, Andres Veiel's documentary "Riefenstahl," produced by journalist Sandra Maischberger, premiered out of competition at the Venice Film Festival. This film, which allowed for a comprehensive examination of Riefenstahl's archives for the first time, sheds new light on her persistent claims of apoliticism, challenging them through the documents uncovered. Personal film footage, photographs, phone conversations, letters, and other materials contextualize her biography within a broader historical and contemporary framework.