DEFA: Directors

The DEFA studio had numerous employees, writers and scenographers, cameramen and technicians as well as its own ensemble of actors, but above all directors, many of whom combined the high standard of craftsmanship with their remarkable art of directing - even if their artistic freedom and courage to take risks always remained limited. At all times, it was difficult to become a director without following a strictly prescribed path, which included attending the film academy in Babelsberg. Women in the director's chair tended to lead a shadowy existence in public perception. Yet between 1946 and 1992, more than 60 female directors were active at DEFA, shooting feature films and documentaries, working in popular science and advertising films, in the animation studio and in the newsreel "The Eyewitness". Only in retrospect did it become apparent what a central part of DEFA film history the works of these women directors are.