Spur der Steine

DDR 1965/1966 Spielfilm

Trace of Stones

Bad planning and shortages prevail on an East German construction site. Foreman Hannes Balla uses unconventional methods to overcome the problems. New Socialist Unity Party secretary Werner Horrath is charged with bringing the rough-and-ready builder crew into line. The task seems doomed to fail as the two men compete for the affections of young engineer Kati Klee. But when she gets pregnant by married man Horrath, he is in danger of being expelled from the party, and Balla takes his side …

Anarchy strikes a planned economy. Borrowing from John Sturges’ western "The Magnificient Seven" (1960), the film uses the arresting wide-screen Totalvision process to illustrate how the joint "(re)construction" efforts of two morally dubious outsiders evade the party apparatus. In 1966, Hans Helmut Prinzler said, "no DEFA film has ever shown the workings of the Party, with all its contradictions, quite so critically". The movie was received positively at the 1966 Workers’ Festival in East Germany, but its theatrical premiere shortly thereafter fell victim to a staged scandal and, after further directed "protests", it was banned for "anti-socialist tendencies" and not shown again until November 1989.

Source: 66. Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin (Catalogue)

 

Credits

Director

Screenplay

Director of photography

Editing

Music

Cast

Production company

Alle Credits

Director

Assistant director

Screenplay

Scenario

based on

Script editor

Director of photography

Assistant camera

Still photography

Lighting design

Production design

Set construction

Prop master

Make-up artist

Costume design

Editing

Sound

Music

Music consultant

Cast

Dubbing

Production company

Unit production manager

Location manager

Original distributor

Subsequent distributor

Shoot

    • Mai 1965 - Juli 1965: Halle/Saale (Leuna II), Coswig
Duration:
3795 m, 139 min
Format:
35mm, 1:2,35 (Totalvision)
Video/Audio:
s/w, Mono
Screening:

Uraufführung (DD): 15.06.1966, Potsdam-Babelsberg, Arbeiterfestspiele, Thalia;
Kinostart (DD): 01.07.1966, Berlin/DDR, International

Titles

Additional titles
  • Originaltitel (DD) Spur der Steine

Versions

Original

Duration:
3795 m, 139 min
Format:
35mm, 1:2,35 (Totalvision)
Video/Audio:
s/w, Mono
Screening:

Uraufführung (DD): 15.06.1966, Potsdam-Babelsberg, Arbeiterfestspiele, Thalia;
Kinostart (DD): 01.07.1966, Berlin/DDR, International

Prüffassung

Duration:
3681 m, 134 min
Format:
35mm, 1:2,35 (Totalvision)
Video/Audio:
s/w, Mono
Censorship/Age rating:

FSK-Prüfung (DE): 18.04.1990, 63859, ab 6 Jahre / feiertagsfrei

Screening:

Kinostart (DD): 23.11.1989, Berlin/DDR, International;
Kinostart (DE): 10.05.1990;
TV-Erstsendung (DD): 09.09.1990, DFF 1