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Frequently Asked Questions

What does "Das Blaue Licht" mean ?

 "The Blue Light"

This is the title of  Leni Riefenstahl's first film as a director. The film, through her vision, epitomizes the persistent striving for beauty that I believe is an important and common thread throughout Riefenstahl's work. 

Why do a site about Nazis ?

Leni Riefenstahl was never a member of the NSDAP or Nazi Party. She never engaged in NSDAP political activity.

Didn't Leni Riefenstahl work for the Nazis ?

Yes, like many other German artists she chose to stay in her native land and work under what was considered by them (and the world )to be the legitimate government of the day.

Did she not make movies that promoted Nazism, Hitler and fascism ?

Riefenstahl was employed on several occasions by the NSDAP to produce 3 documentaries (the actual involvement of the Propaganda Ministry in the financing of the IOC sponsored Olympia remains in question). These projects were of Reich Party Rallies in Nuremberg.

Riefenstahl's films, specifically Triumph des Willens were exploited by the Propaganda Ministry to promote Hitler's political base. The film  was not shot  as propaganda however, and it remains a seminal documentary despite its notoriety.

Is this a pro Nazi site ?

No. Any NSDAP imagery or iconography that is present is shown strictly within a historical context. There are no pro Nazi statements , images. Nor is it the intent of this site to support Nazi or NeoNazi agendas.

Historian Ken Burns utilized a standard regarding the recent controversy on the Confederate flag. He stated that  "if it dates from the Civil War through the Reconstruction, then it is historical. If it dates from the time of Segregation of the early/mid 1900's then it reflects intolerance and hate."

These parameters are essentially utilized in the formation of Das Blaue Licht. Net.

 I have chosen photographs or images, which might contain NSDAP icons or figures, from the historical time of the Third Reich. 

No offense is meant to be conveyed, nor any contemporary tolerance for NeoNazi agendas.

Why a site on Riefenstahl ? Even if she is not a Nazi, she is very controversial.

My reasons

1. Within cinema history, Leni Riefenstahl is without a doubt its premiere female filmmaker. No other woman has so artistically articulated their vision within the medium of film and photography. 

 " I want to see, that's all. This is my life. I want to see."   

Leni Riefenstahl 1992

 "How could I not admire you, for you are the genius of film and have raised it to heights seldom achieved."  

Jean Cocteu in a letter to Leni Riefenstahl

 "All televised sport is indebted to Olympia. In a way, Triumph [des Willens] and Olympia are more impressive than those [of] fiction directors. They had a script; she had only miles of footage to be scanned and scissored into art. "   

Time article by Richard Corliss, 1993

 "One of the dozen or so creative geniuses who have ever worked in the film medium."  

Pauline Kael

 "We commissioned Leni Riefenstahl to photograph the Olympic Games of 1972 for us, because she is the best photographer in the world  in this area." 

The Times of London

 "Her phenomenal ability has been part of her undoing... Riefenstahl is one of the most imaginative and daring individuals to ever have held a movie camera."   

Sunday New York Times , Just What Did Leni Riefenstahl's Lens See ?

 "Leni Riefenstahl is one of the greatest filmmakers in the world and certainly the greatest female filmmaker in history."   

John Grierson, BBC television

 "I was sitting in the theatre thinking, 'I've seen these scenes somewhere before'. Isn't that the hallmark of a truly influential artist, that her work survives and influences, even detached from her name ?"

Robert von Dassanowsky , Film Historian commenting in Time on Riefenstahl's influence on the recent mega-blockbuster Titanic.

 "Her talent was phenomenal. She had the potential to become the greatest woman in movies of all time." 

actress/director Jodi Foster , 2000

2.  That an artist of such magnitude has been effectively blocked from filming any new work since World War II is an intriguing story by any measure.

A systematic refusal to consider her work due to the association with Nazi Germany is unique in its intensity and singular focus.

  "They killed me. I am a ghost,"   

 Leni Riefenstahl recalling at age 83 the media's unrelenting identification of her with the Nazis.

 "In condemning Leni Riefenstahl, insufficient weight has been given to what society may have lost by hobbling her talent."  

Audrey Saulkeld, A Portrait of Leni Riefenstahl

 "Leni Riefenstahl has been ... checked by the German courts of law and declared free of any guilt... we sympathize with your feelings, but do not believe that they have any logical basis." 

 The Times of London defending their right to publish the photography of Leni Riefenstahl

 "Unfortunately I was pressured by Bonn to forgo [our] collaboration."  

  David Wolper  to Leni Riefenstahl on how he was advised to not hire her for the film of the 1972 Olympics due to her history with the Third Reich.

 "Why ? Is she waiving a Nazi flag ? I thought Hitler was dead !"  

Actress Gloria Swanson when asked if the controversy surrounding Leni Riefenstahl's presence as a guest of honor at the Telluride Film Festival was warranted.

 " What is Leni Riefenstahl's sin ? That Hitler admired her ?"  

 Kevin Bronlow, British film historian an author 

 "Many people did not want this project. They called me 'Nazi Muller' ."  

 Ray Muller on the reaction of those around him when he announced his intent to film The Power of Images (aka the Wonderful, Horrible Life of Leni Riefenstahl)

 "How is it possible after fifty years the fear of dealing with [Riefenstahl] is still so great that just the refusal to see [ her films] is the correct attitude for German intellectuals, "  

 German filmmaker feminist, Helma Sander-Brahms 1992 

 " The reaction is almost more interesting than the show...it has little to do with art, it's more about politics." 

 Anrdreas Schleuter, gallery owner where Leni Riefenstahl's photography and films had their first German exhibition 1998 

3. No exhaustive retrospective of Riefenstahl's work and life  has been organized on the Internet. What exists is often not a fair or even handed examination of her work.

 "If the photographs are examined carefully ... it becomes clear that they are continuous with her Nazi work..." 

 Susan Sontag's oft quoted and influential article, Fascinating Fascism regarding Riefenstahl's photographic triptych on African natives 

 "If you believe her she's one kind of monster, if you don't she's another."  

 The New Yorker on Riefenstahl's stated and singular artistic motivation in her work 

 "The old lady won't live to see that kind of attention in Germany. " 

 Berliner Morgenpost on the "aura of this unperson" as Riefenstahl began to gain popular artistic attention in Italy, France and the United States in the late 1990's 

 "What they were doing was part of a worldwide campaign, not only to clean up Leni Riefenstahl's so called good name, but part of a bigger campaign to white-wash the entire Nazi era."   

 Jewish community reaction to Cinecon's tribute in 1997 for Riefenstahl in Los Angeles, LA Times Online 

 "It is the crowning irony of the 90's that Nazi apologists and Hiterlites are well protected." 

  Civilization magazine article Leni Riefenstahl Sees No Evil, noting the release of Riefenstahl's autobiography and Ray Muller's documentary, The Power Of Images. 

 "Unquestionable contribution to building support for the Nazi party...[and] ethnic hatred.."  

 Jewish Bulletin online, in an open appeal to Jodi Foster decrying Foster's announcement to film Leni Riefenstahl's life 

(  further discussion on this matter can be found on the Editorial page of this site  )

Why does your site not have links to "holocaust" sites or carry visible disclaimers ?

Mrs. Riefenstahl was acquitted of any wrong doing by the Allied tribunals who heard her case almost sixty years ago. Likewise, she has been successful in winning judgments in over fifty court cases. 

Riefenstahl  has been forced  to repeatedly defend herself against accusations and distortions regarding her "Nazi past," even though that connection is clearly not of such a level to warrant banishment from the filmmaking community.

This site firmly believes that no such disclaimers are necessary once the full story of her experience is understood.

(  further discussion on this matter can be found on the Editorial page of this site )

Why do you use the foreign titles when you list her movies ?

It seems appropriate that the titles be referred to in the language in which they were released. English translations are scattered throughout as guide posts.

What about legal ownership of the images on this site ?

1. The material shared on this site is for the education of any film student or individual who seeks to obtain an initial glimpse of Riefenstahl and her aesthetic.

  Not for profit.

2. Most images are done at a resolution that would make reproduction fruitless. Anyone attempting to do so would be in for very poor results which could in no way be mistaken for an original piece.

3. This site makes no money off the material shared. 

Textual references and images are shared only as information.

4. Most of the imagery was secured from original source material who's copy write had no doubt long since run out. Video samples and downloads are from copies that are in the public domain. Recent transfers, which may well be more securely protected (or formally owned by Mrs. Riefenstahl) have been avoided, except where Leni Riefenstahl has given her permission.

5. Recent material from books, photography from Africa and her underwater work are only briefly sampled here to avoid contemporary copy write issues (note: these sections will be enhanced soon given that the author has received permission from Mrs. Riefenstahl to utilize her newer material).

6. This site recommends that the best source of insight for readers are the original films themselves, the published books by Mrs. Riefenstahl and her memoirs. In that way, we clearly state that we have no intention to usurp or replicate those invaluable resources.

7. Last and not the least, Leni Riefenstahl is aware of this site, its content and my desire to publish it on the Web. 

Her comments have only been supportive and complimentary.

"Thanks for your letter of November 20th (2000) and the enclosures. Mrs. Riefenstahl was very surprised and impressed with your work. Of course Mrs. Riefenstahl would be very interested in seeing your Web Site as soon as possible.

 Wishing you all the best  we remain sincerely yours,

Ulrike Thomann-Japes, Leni Riefenstahl-Produktion"

The author meets Leni Riefenstahl at her home in Germany . There she expressed her admiration of my web site. December 2001.

Who are you and what is your background ?

My name is Patrick Zarate. I live in the United States and have been a student of film for the last 30 years. I have been particularly interested in the great European directors such as Fellini, Godard, Bertolucci, Antonioni, and the German cinema of the last 100 years.

I collect film material and have listed the Riefenstahl items in my archive on the "resource" page of this site.

I have had the work of Leni Riefenstahl on my mind since the 1970's when I first saw Triumph des Willens in high school and a couple of years later at a University of California film class, where it was artistically appreciated and analyzed.

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EDITOR'S NOTE

THE INTELLECTUAL AND ETHICAL OWNER OF ALL MATERIAL PRODUCED, FILMED OR PHOTOGRAPHED BY LENI RIEFENSTAHL, SHOULD BE LENI RIEFENSTAHL.

THIS SITE IS FOR THE PRIVATE INFORMATIONAL USE THE  READER.

PUBLIC DOMAIN MATERIAL UTILIZED. PERMISSION HAS BEEN SOUGHT AS APPROPRIATE.

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©DASBLAUELICHT.NET

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