Franz Antel was born in Vienna in 1913 and began in the film industry as a camera assistant and assistant director before working from 1936 as production manager for Tobis and Terra in Berlin. After the war, he made his directorial debut with the musical revue film "Das singende Haus" (1947).

He has directed over 70 films since 1951, including "Die lustigen vier von der Tankstelle" (1972), "Ab morgen sind wir reich und ehrlich" (1975), "Casanova & Co" (1976), "Johann Strauss - Der König ohne Krone" (1986), as well as TV series like "Licht der Gerechten" and "Almrausch und Pulverschnee".

He directed the "Wiener Eisrevue" and "Holiday On Ice" from 1970-1972 and received an Oscar® nomination in 1981 for "Der Bockerer". His latest films are: "Mein Freund, der Lipizzaner" (1994), "Der Bockerer II" (1996), "Der Bockerer III - Die Brücke von Andau" (2000) and "Der Bockerer IV - Prager Frühling" (2003).

Franz Antel died August 11, 2007 in Vienna.

Source: German films Service & Marketing GmbH