DAS BLAUE LICHT NEWS WIRE

December 2002

Bonn's Leni Riefenstahl exhibit opened under a cloud of protest, according to various German news sources. The unprecedented historical exhibit held at  the Haus der Geschicte, which had hoped to provide Riefenstahl with  "honor where honor is due" was the site of " violent protests."  Reportedly various artists, writers and gypsy activists sent a letter to the provincial minister of culture, condemning the exhibit. According to the news reports, "the critics of the exhibition [also] criticized the invitation of the president of the Goethe Institute, Hilmar Hofmann... Hofmann praised Riefenstahl in his opening remarks at the exhibit as a 'cinematic genius'."    ''

In response to the protesters, the cultural minister reminded them that because of the museum's "principles of scientific objectivity" it was therefore "the correct place for this argument" ,sorting out "the myth of Leni Riefenstahl". In it's press release, Haus der Geschitcte relates that the central goal of the exhibit is to provide attendees with an examination of "this area of conflict between artistic achievement and political entwinement with the national socialism..."  Over 300 items will be on display including many never before seen advertising and personal items related to Riefenstahl's dance career. 

In the meantime, apparently charges of "anti-constitutional" icons (swatstika) are being considered due to the large exhibition poster, which was at the front of the museum. Apparently the image, of Riefenstahl at work on Triumph des Willens contains an eagle with the nazi symbol on it. Reportedly, Leni Riefenstahl, who is scheduled to go scuba diving later this month in the Maldives, did not attend a planned tribute at Haus der Geschicte on December 5th. 

Early German press reviews are critical of the exhibit for replicating the Potsdam exhibit ads (see poster above), having no catalogue or English translations on descriptions in the hall. They have weighed in calling the show "musty" and "flat" and as well as product driven (reference to books in museum shop) The Bonn exhibit is scheduled to run from December 13, 2002 through March 2, 2003.\\

BBC News nominated Leni Riefenstahl for "newsmaker of the year," in the cultural arts news of 2002. Readers of the online news agency are asked to cast their votes.

A triad of German language biographies are on the shelf as the Riefenstahl Centennial year draws to a close. All clearly attempt to push forward an agenda to "set the record straight." This is by reasserting that Riefenstahl's acceptance of commission and funding from the Third Reich is proof that she was complicit in their agenda. The Tiefland use of gypsy extras and the notes by Riefenstahl on her dispute with co-writer Bela Balasz are utilized to further "implicate" her. By now these arguments have been long ago decided in various court cases and are strictly historical, not revelatory. Only the Rainer Rother effort has been published in English. dasblauelicht.net is mentioned (and linked) in a review of Lutz Kinkel's book at literaturkritik.de

November 2002

DPA and DE.Web report from Stuttgart/Munich that a short film of a Nazi farm day rally in 1934 is not the work of Leni Riefenstahl. In the "opinion of specialists" the seven minute long color "film" which is entitled  "German Harvest Thanks Celebration"  was in fact produced in 1934 by the German studio group, Ufa and is the work of Kurt Waschnek. Documentary film producer Maurice Philip Remy, apparently  agrees with the "new realization," recanting his prior allegation that this fragment of film was further proof of Riefenstahl's inability to be forthcoming as to the extent of her work with the Nazi political scene.  As communicated by the experts of documentary film at the DPA, the colored fragment, which lies in a federal file archive in Berlin, had been dated as coming from an event in 1937. However according to opinions of Remy and the Stuttgart film expert, this was rather the depiction of a Nazi "farmer day" at Goslar in 1934. The film shows the first meeting of Erwin Rommel with Adolph Hitler. Apparently a contemporary news article had announced that Riefenstahl would be part of the newsreel team. However, the fact that the 1934 Nuremberg Party Congress Rally (later to become Triumph des Willens) was a mere three weeks away and that the Goslar footage was in color (not black and white, which Riefenstahl preferred) the claim made by Remy earlier this month was immediately called in to question. In addition the analysis reveals the film does not "stylistically fit"  with a Riefenstahl work. The Bild am Sonntag news agency had announced this as a "new" Riefenstahl film and noted in their press releases that it would be seen in Remy's work, which premiered on European public broadcast station, ARD on November 11th.

Adante.com reported that the recent departure of Vienna's city opera director, Dominique Mentha has led to the cancellation of a controversial production based on the life of Leni Riefenstahl in the 2002/2003 season. The opera was scheduled for its world premiere in 2003 in Austria, as written  by the 46 year old German composer Detlef Heusinger. It was reported that Menta was "forced out" as he simultaneously asked to be "let out" of the remaining year of his contract. It is unclear if the opera was completed at the time of this news (November 21, 2002) or if it had anything to do with Mentha's departure, though the existence of the work is confirmed by I-Classics. com.

December 13 will see the opening of a comprehensive exhibit of historical proportions on Leni Riefenstahl. Over 300 exhibits are to be on display for three months, in Bonn at the Haus der Geschicte. According to museum curator Andrea Mork, the context of the exhibits are to provide the German people with an opportunity to "clarify the conflict" between Riefenstahl's "achievement and her entwinement" with the Third Reich. As noted in a prior dasblauelicht.net article (see below) Leni Riefenstahl reportedly has donated many of the displays from her own archive.

According to the German news agency, DPA, the Romaní Union of Andalusia has promoted a protest against the presence of Leni Riefenstahl in Spain. This was done in order to disrupt Riefenstahl's attendance to a major retrospective and tribute in Seville due to her purported  "support and glorification" of the Nazi regime. According to the press account the protest was of such intensity that Riefenstahl was held back from attending, unable to get out of her car at  the screening of Das blaue Licht at the festival. One unconfirmed report stated that a vehicle in her entourage was turned over by the mob. "Protest drives Leni Riefenstahl out" was the headline, as organizers would not allow her to attend due to the predicted intensity of the gypsy protest. An important Spanish left-wing political party asked for withdrawal of subsidies from the Cinema and Sports Festival in the southern city of Seville because it had staged the tribute to Riefenstahl. The German film director's presence was to be one of the major attractions of this festival, that had also organized individual exhibitions on Riefenstahl's life and work as a photographer in the Sudan. It remains unclear if Riefenstahl will be attending further events or returning to Germany. (source: DPA)

La Vanguardia online, reports that Leni Riefenstahl was interviewed while on her recent visit to Seville, Spain. "Impeccably dressed ,a  smiling and courteous Riefenstahl only lets others take her the arm when she must descend the stairs. Later, she energetically rejects the aid and walks, slowly but with seriousness, towards the armchair where she will talk with journalists." Asked about the reported Jodie Foster production of her life Riefenstahl states "Jodie Foster is a good actress and the film will do well. I had liked to be able to collaborate on the script, since this is going to be the one on my life, but this has not been possible." Asked about the view on her own life after 100 years, Riefenstahl responds that "the negative aspects are not those that weigh more in my memory. I had unjust critics and  they said lies about me, but I believe that the balance inclines more toward  the praise and success. I had many friends, also enemies and critics [though] they never have affected me too much. It [the negativity] is logical: I was in the center of attention." As to the idea that she would carry any regrets for her work, especially under the Third Reich, Riefenstahl states quite clearly that " I do not have anything that was a regret to me. How I can regret having directed Olympia, considered one of the best films on the Olympic Games? Triumph of the Will was a documentary one on the congress of a political party. What happens is that this is mine, by chance of history, a portrayal of  the congress in Nuremberg and the Nazi party."

A personal visit to the FICTS (Federation Internationale of Cinema and Televised Sports) awards 2002 ceremony by Leni Riefenstahl occurred in Milan, Italy on November 5th. Mrs. Riefenstahl received the "Guirlande d'Honneur" which is awarded annually to those personalities of Sport, TV, Cinema and Journalism who "have significantly operated in favor of sport by promoting the sports image and its cultural and ethical values." The award was given to Riefenstahl, who the Italian press described as "the mythical German director", for her work on the film Olympia Parts I and II as well the resulting photography of the 1936 Berlin summer games (Editor's Note: thanks to Horst Kettner for the photo and article).

A Munich press story of the DPA claims that film footage, reportedly shot by Leni Riefenstahl of a Reich Farmer Day rally in 1934 has been discovered. The length of the footage is reportedly "unknown" but shows Adolph Hitler in attendance at the Party event held in Goslar. Filmmaker Maurice Philip Remy reportedly found the footage while researching a new film he is producing on Field Marshall Erwin Rommel as he browsed through nazi era film clips at the Federal Archive. Remy is termed by some as the "most influential" documentary film director in Europe today and has already produced works on Hitler and other aspects of  World War II. Remy  apparently believes that the discovered film strip is Riefenstahl's work and alludes to a German newspaper clip dating from 1934 as his proof. Remy and his producers are quick to point to the fact that the "film" (which would imply more work with the Nazi regime than previously thought) is not mentioned in Leni Riefenstahl's memoirs. So far, no independent corroboration has been presented on the conclusions drawn by Remy (see above where this claim is refuted and Remy recants). 

The Last of the Nuba exhibition arrived as planned in Sevilla, Espana (Spain). A personal visit to an opening and press conference by Leni Riefenstahl was held on October 31. Riefenstahl stated her open love of Spain and that she was last in the country in 1943, where the towns of Avila, Salamanca, Segovia and Granada were utilized in the shots Riefenstahl was able to secure during the production of her last feature Tiefland.  An exhibition on her life's work will run in Seville. (Source Spettacolo )

ANSA photo

Taschen's monumental oeuvre to Riefenstahl's photographic work in Africa is now available for order. There is a signed limited worldwide edition of 2,500 with a price that will go to $1,750 after January 1 2003. Africa: Leni Riefenstahl is unique in that many unpublished images, well beyond the contact that is known regarding the Nuba are included in the huge boxed package. Angelika Taschen, who oversaw the highly successful Five Lives release, worked very closely with the artist on this work as well, which she presented to Leni Riefenstahl at her 100th birthday party in August 2002.

October 2002

Spain will entertain Leni Riefenstahl, who providing she is in good health at the time, will attend several retrospective tributes to her in both Seville and Madrid. Apparently a Nuba photographic exhibit, screening of Das blaue Licht and her recent underwater documentary will be some of the key aspects of the tributes which are scheduled to run from the end of October thru mid November. The events will be coordinated between a standing film festival in Spain and its Sports Museum. (source, El Pais)

BBC news report that the investigation and charges against Leni Riefenstahl for "race hatred" and "denying the Holocaust" have been dropped. Investigators apparently decided against any further action due to "lack of evidence." Riefenstahl had come under repeated attack by the gypsy activist group, Rom, for her use of gypsies from internment and labor camps near Salzburg in order to complete her wartime drama Tiefland. Riefenstahl had apparently seen many of her gypsy "friends" after the war and felt that they had all pretty much survived their internment. Having made a comment last year that "nothing had happened to them" in an interview last year, Riefenstahl was issued with a court injunction to admit the fate of some of her extras (many of whom were moved to concentration camps and or succumbed to disease or worse). Apparently given Mrs. Riefenstahl's apology for that off handed remark and her subsequent public statement in which she said that "she deplored the treatment of the gypsies under the Nazi regime" the German courts have now decided that they have "little interest" in pursuing a case against her. Perhaps unnecessarily, the Frankfurt prosecutor's office added that their decision was in part due to concern for "her advanced age."

The New York Times reports that CBS television executives continue their search for a production company to take on the controversial miniseries based on Ian Kershaw's acclaimed biography of Adolf Hitler. Hitler, 1889-1936 will provide the basis for the 4 hour film which has many upset in that they fear it will "create a sense of sympathy" for "a monster." According to the current script being circulated in Hollywood, the dramatic film will end in a sequence where Hitler is being given a private screening of Triumph des Willens by filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl. Hitler's sense of himself and his rise to power being enshrined in "the spellbinding propaganda film." 

A rather belated birthday article comes in from Salon.com, one of the nets most successful independent news magazines, entitled Happy Birthday Leni Riefenstahl. Apparently the author spent some time trying to gain access to Riefenstahl despite the world press easily acquiring this. When she was granted interview time, Salon states "the interview was more revealing for what the filmmaker would not say." Wanting to apparently only focus on her artistic work, Riefenstahl advised Salon that "I met Hitler in 1932 and I cannot blame or be angry at people for wanting to know more. It is not unfair to be interested. That is all." The article goes over the release in English of Rainer Rother's biography, the reviews of the new underwater documentary (noted to have received a "lukewarm" reception by some, or thought to be "just plain weird" by others) , and of course the ongoing court struggles involving the Gypsy activist groups around Tiefland. Returning to the association with Germany in its darkest times, Riefenstahl concludes "I will always be asked to defend Triumph of the Will, forever. The circumstances of its production will linger forever." 

September 2002

Dutch film director, Paul Verhoeven spoke with Patrick Zarate, editor of dasblauelicht.net, briefly at the Motion Picture Academy of Arts and Sciences (MPAA) regarding the proposed film of Leni Riefenstahl's memoirs. Verhoeven's classic Soldier of Orange was being honored in a screening that kicked off Los Angeles' first Dutch film festival. Asked if he would direct the authorized Riefenstahl film (as opposed to that project which is associated with Jodie Foster), Verhoeven smiled and said he would like to , but "controversy has a way of gathering around such things". No stranger to controversy, the director of such edgy films as Robocop, Basic Instinct, Starship Troopers and the infamous Show Girls relented that the Riefenstahl biopic was still a prospective project, "all I can say is that it is still possible."

The Los Angeles Times article on Fahey / Klein's Leni Riefenstahl exhibit, the Last of Nuba, was favorable. Writer David Pagel notes that "every square inch of every photograph is calibrated to heighten its dramatic impact." The thirty colour photographs are offset by huge mural enlargements of no fewer than 5 of the images. Pagel appears able to appreciate the work in its right, away from the controversy that dogs Riefenstahl and her work. "It's important to remember that Riefenstahl is neither anthropologist nor a tourist, but an artist..." 

Associated Press reports that a major exhibition on Leni Riefenstahl will open in Bonn, Germany for three months this winter. The exhibit will "trace her influence on later film styles, including advertising" while considering the historical context of her legacy. According to the exhibit coordinator, Andrea Mork, the show will open December 6 (updated opening date is 12-13-02) at Haus der Geschicte. Assurance are given that material (much to be loaned from Riefenstahl's own extensive collection of letters, photos and other material) will be displayed in a "factual, informative manner [with] visitors [able] to make up their own mind" regarding Riefenstahl and the allegations which have followed her. (source Yahoo news line). 

Fahey / Klein Gallery, Los Angeles. Ken Devlin and artist David Fahey gave Patrick Zarate, editor of dasblauelicht.net a personal tour of the Last of the Nuba exhibit in their gallery. On view were the most amazing Riefenstahl photographs, not at all well represented in any book by comparison. The texture and color of the actual dye transfer prints, pulled by Riefenstahl are highly impactful in person. Riefenstahl titled, signed and numbered each of the thirty prints (which has a series of fifteen copies). The beautiful exhibit catalogue (including copies signed by Leni Riefenstahl) are available during the course of this run, until October 19, as well. CLICK HERE FOR OUR REVIEW OF SHOW

Newsweek. David Gates filed a small review of the upcoming Nuba book by Taschen in Newseek magazine. In addition to their commentary about the huge boxed book( "an imposing collection of the still photos she's taken in Africa since the 1960's") they reference their difficulty in approaching her Nuba and other artistic work. What they term Riefenstahl's "troublesome legacy".  The article concludes the work is noteworthy yet,  "maybe in another hundred years we'll have enough distance to look at them clearly."

The most significant artistic event this year, save the premiere of Leni Riefenstahl's new under water documentary, has now opened at the Fahey/Klein Gallery in Los Angeles. Riefenstahl's NUBA photography will be on exhibit (and for sale) from September 12 - October 19, 2002. This is the      only exhibit of her NUBA work in the United States.  http://faheykleingallery.com/home.htm

Winners were announced in the DAS BLAUE LICHT.NET Centennial Contest. Winners were notified on September 1. Prizes include three personally autographed photos of Leni Riefenstahl and an Olympia film program. Winners were chosen from over 150 entries which were submitted between July 22 and August 22. The winning entries came from Paris, Rome the UK and Germany. 

A former Los Angeles TV film critic has launched a campaign against Fahey Klein Gallery intent to show Leni Riefenstahl's NUBA photography in September. dasblauelicht.net  has received assurances that the "show will go on" as planned and should be one of the most significant exhibits in the gallery's history. The gallery had exhibited Riefenstahl's photography for Olympia two years ago. A show that they report as one of their best attended and financially successful. 

Richard Corliss concludes his two part series in TIME magazine on Leni Riefenstahl. Asking the question "Am I the only film critic to have kissed Leni Riefenstahl ?",  Corliss recounts his own encounter with Riefenstahl in 1998 at a New York City gala for the people who were featured on Time's prestigious cover. Leni Riefenstahl having been a cover feature in 1936 just prior to her taking on the summer Olympics in Berlin as her next film subject. After noting the injury to her body, career and artistic efforts over the years (in no small part due to those who would "pin the blame" on her as the "last one standing" of the Nazi era) it is clear that he appreciates her as a woman who will not recant on her own experience under the Third Reich to satisfy the collective guilt of the world. To which Corliss in noting this defiance, boldly states "I absolve Riefenstahl from seeking absolution." http://www.time.com/time/sampler/article/0,8599,347458,00.html

The Guardian quotes Leni Riefenstahl in an interview on her new film  "Impressionen unter Wasser"  The film she states "certainly isn't a 'comeback'. I was always active and continue to be so. My film shows the beauty of the underwater world. I hope it will touch the viewer's conscience as it illustrates just what the world will lose when nothing is done to stop the destruction of our oceans. I once said that I am fascinated by the beautiful and the living. I seek harmony and, under water, I have found it."

James C. Farris has logged an embittered article about Leni Riefenstahl, post centenary celebration. In his piece, he criticizes Riefenstahl's acceptance in the world of photography and amongst the anthropological world. "Her...photography on land, especially in Sudan [the Nuba], is a mixture of grotesque close-ups, the voyeurism of the long lens, and people arranged in settings and in colors Riefenstahl found more photogenic. She brought lots of beads and money and oil, and chased off elders and others with clothing, requiring only the naked and painted." Apparently Farris felt entitled to write such a piece in that his own academic text from the early 1960's may have assisted Riefenstahl on her initial search for the Nuba. In asking why such acceptance of Riefenstahl's oeuvre exists, he rhetorically ponders "Is it our conditioning from an atavistic anthropology, our uncritical acceptance of the fictions of photography and truth, or simply the lack of a morality?" Farris' statements, that she manipulated and distorted the tribes in their habitat stands in direct contradiction to the Memoirs of Leni Riefenstahl and certainly the relationship she has had with the various individual tribal members which has remained, when possible, warm and affectionate. [source, Counter-Punch. com ]

Both the LA Weekly and LA Times reference the Fahey Klein "Leni Riefenstahl's NUBA" show this week of September 9th. The Weekly also features a large spread on publisher Benedikt Taschen (Leni Riefenstahl: Five Lives) now that he has relocated the American headquarters of Taschen publishing to Los Angeles. There are two color prints of Riefenstahl's NUBA work present in the published article, but there is no mention of the upcoming gallery exhibit or the huge Riefenstahl Afrika book which Taschen will be distributing in October. 

August 23-31 2002

"I would have liked Jodie Foster to film my memoirs, but she doesn't want to do the memoirs. She wants to do the rumors." Leni Riefenstahl from the International Tribune Online, August 31, 2002.

Das Fimmuseum im Munchner ran a series of Leni Riefenstahl films and artistic lectures in late August. In addition to Das blaue Licht and Olympia, a rare screening of the recently discovered Das Schicksal derer von Habsburg (1928, 76 minutes - see below for details on this long thought to be lost film, early in the Riefenstahl legacy and one of the few roles where she was not a mountain girl or a plucky heroine).

Australian online news page SMH.com quotes Leni Riefenstahl as stating that she wants to make a film on Vincent Van Gogh (one of her previous unfulfilled projects from decades ago). "At 100 a person really ought not to take on too much, but if I am able, I'd like to make a film about Vincent Van Gogh. He was a man who stylized things to the 'nth degree, who dedicated himself to the pursuit of beauty and was totally committed, just as I am," she said. Interestingly, the article goes on to relate Riefenstahl's love of the work by neo-realist Italian filmmaker Vittorio de Sica and as well as Federico Fellini, but she remains in touch with today's popular culture too. "I've read all the Harry Potter books and have seen the movie, which I enjoyed immensely." As to her "political" motivations, Riefenstahl states, "I was never a member of the Nazi Party. The only organization I belong to is Greenpeace."

German press announced some details on the 100th birthday of Leni Riefenstahl. In fact, she arrived somewhat late, smoked fish was on the menu, there were at least 160 close friends and admirers. Letters of admiration arrived from Michael Jackson and Jodie Foster; a variety of German celebrities including Siegrfried and Roy, Leo Kirch, Reinhold Messner and Hans William Mueller were in attendance. In a formal high-slit dress Riefenstahl arrived at the hotel in Starnberger See, Feldafing. There was a table filled with gifts and an arrangement of 100 red roses. 

August 22,2002

Master German filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl on her 100th birthday. The party was held at a luxury hotel in the Bavarian town of Feldafing, Germany on August 22, 2002. (ap photo)

THE  MESSAGE BELOW COMES TO YOU COURTESY OF THE OFFICIAL RIEFENSTAHL WEB SITE

August 2002

Time magazine's premiere film critic and historian, Richard Corliss issued an article that is the first major press story which is balanced and views Leni Riefenstahl's birth day as a cause for some celebration. In the article, Leni's Triumph, Corliss makes mention of the fact that despite "all manner of hexes and accidents", she is vibrant and working. "No question, Frau R. is indomitable." Further, Corliss reports that "for Triumph [des Willens] and Olympia, Riefenstahl deserves to be classed with Eisenstein, DW Griffith and Orson Welles... she did more than make epic movies; she created whole genres." (Editor's note: Finally...)

Reuters news service reports Leni Riefenstahl has plans to continue working. Regarding her African photography," I still have plans and further projects. Especially to utilize my material of the Nuba," Riefenstahl said. Directly after 8-22-02 however, CNN.de reports that Riefenstahl has promised herself "several days off" from her work, which is now primarily directed towards major photographic exhibitions around the world (see below).

What a difference a day makes; the web page DAS BLAUE LICHT.NET goes over the 100,000 hit mark in the 72 hours around Leni Riefenstahl's birthday.

The Associated Press weighs in with an article on Leni Riefenstahl's 100th birthday. " 'I always see more of the good and the beautiful than the ugly and sick', Riefenstahl said. Through my optimism I naturally prefer and capture the beauty in life.' " Of her long time companion, Horst Kettner she said, "He is the second Leni Riefenstahl...he is with me 100 percent in everything..." As the article concludes, it states "dogged to the end by her earliest work, Riefenstahl still hopes that when people today think of her, they will know "the truth - that I am an industrious woman who has worked very hard her whole life and has received much acknowledgement." 

The Guardian Unlimited reports that long time Riefenstahl companion Horst Kettner, "hit back" at the legal difficulty she may be facing regarding her casting of the Gypsies she used in the film Tiefland. The story notes that Kettner believes that "the lawsuit was simply an attempt to ruin her centenary celebrations..." Kettner went on to say that Riefenstahl was "deeply wounded by these accusations. It seems her enemies are just using the Gypsies to get back at her and spoil her birthday."

"Controversy Mars Leni Riefenstahl's 100th Birthday" is the title on one of  two articles  from Reuters, and the  BBC which summarize the infamy of the press stories (especially from Germany) coming on Leni Riefenstahl's 100th birth day, August 22, 2002. Apparently, as has been noted on this page, some are intent to hit Leni Riefenstahl hard, both in the press and in court on her day of celebration. "She is not going to be paid the homage [that] she has been waiting for for so long" wrote one German journalist. Another describes her as "inhuman, callous, heartless, and fascist." Finally, taking a blow to her recent film release, Impressionen unter Wasser, a press review described it as "trivial."  The Reuter's report went on to state that "an investigation" has begun and that "state prosecutors" in Frankfurt were "launching" a probe to seek charges that Riefenstahl committed "racial incitement" and "disparaged the deceased." 

Film director Paul Verhoeven issued forth words of support for Leni Riefenstahl the day after her birthday, 8-23-02 in an article published in the Hollywood Reporter.com Verhoeven stated that he has been very impressed by Riefenstahl's filmic ability, "...so innovative and intelligent..." Likewise the article reports that Verhoeven said Riefenstahl should be given the same second chance given other artists with close ties to the Nazi regime. CNN reported that Verhoeven who has communicated directly with Riefenstahl through letters, has seen the contract necessary to obtain her support in any filmed version of her life. It apparently stipulates "that any affair between her and Hitler or her and Goebbels would be prohibited onscreen." From a brief article in Spiegel Online, the Dutch director used other prominent contemporaries who worked under the Nazi regime,as examples of why she should receive a second chance. They  who have not been treated as Riefenstahl. These person- ages being no less than the acclaimed conductor Herbert von Karajan, the renowned psycho- therapist Carl Jung, and Martin Heidegger. Verhoeven states that  "Riefenstahl is the scapegoat because she is a woman. In Judean Christian thinking it does lend itself for a woman to publicly raise themselves or their voice." 

BBC's radio show, The World featured a spot on Leni Riefenstahl's centennial. On hand as a consultant was author Rainer Rother, who described his "she must have known" re-hash and in essence seemed to support the current legal efforts, by  German prosecutors to charge Leni Riefenstahl with "denying the Holocaust." 

"Riefenstahl is a singular figure in German history — for a list of reasons as long and complex as her life. Her drive and talents have earned her respect and admiration. Her decision to put her genius for filmmaking in the service of the Third Reich in the 1930s and her staunch refusal to acknowledge her films as propaganda have earned her hatred and ostracism. Her unapologetic self-regard even in the face of international contempt have prompted some in the German press to label her 'diva non grata.' The influence of Riefenstahl's pioneering techniques on modern filmmaking remains profound." (source, Germany Info. org)

Berliner Illustrirte Zeitung reported that Leni Riefenstahl "is one of the most important film directors in the world. She had privileges and authority like no other filmmaker has. Over the decades her work has affected many other artists. In film history, only two of her works are mentioned. Leni Riefenstahl, is still famous for her Olympics films and the notorious Party Congress film Triumph des Willens. Born in Berlin on 22 of August 1902, Helene Bertha Riefenstahl, she first came to fame as a dancer, then as an actress and finally within her film career as a director. Her world fame appears to have been secured primarily for her two documentaries. But, this she had to pay for. Many had more involvement in the Third Reich and done much worse, yet continued to work after the war. But Riefenstahl became caught up in a whirlwind of questions, national guilt and accusations for responsibility - which she persistently refused to admit to any guilt or knowledge."  (editor's note: please excuse the rough translation)

Die Welt news page offers an article by the unauthorized Leni Riefenstahl biographer, Rainer Rother  in the August 19, 2002 issue. Calling Riefenstahl an art figure who represents more of an "annoyance" in the "persistence" that she is a "legend", Rother uses his academic acumen to trivialize her merit as an artist and reiterates his belief that she has been seduced by her own public statements.

Journalist Jane Sumner of the Dallas Morning News, offered her findings on the upcoming centennial of Leni Riefenstahl in what has to be the most even handed reporting seen on the event. Relating that "the famed German filmmaker still stirs an enigmatic cocktail of emotions," she gives equal time to those who find Riefenstahl tough to deal with and those who view her as a great artist. One source states, "if a man had made Triumph of the Will or Olympia, he would be the single-most famous filmmaker we have next to D.W. Griffith." The piece concludes with another film expert stating "...the Leni Riefenstahl problem... its an issue that people [struggle] with and as a result, its just easier to pretend she's not there." 

Time magazine's Euro Edition weighs in on the Leni Riefenstahl centennial with an article by Jeff Chu entitled "In Her Own Image". Asked to identify the factors that characterize her work, she told Time "the aesthetics." The article goes on to note Riefenstahl's influence on film, noting with special interest the work of director Paul Verhoeven (Starship Troopers) and James Cameron (see Robert von Dassanowsky 's excellent comparative article on Tiefland and Titanic). Although the article mentions the forever stalled Jodie Foster project, a reference to Paul Verhoeven's work on a German production, based on Riefenstahl's memoirs is noted. Riefenstahl is reported to have said "Jodie's not beautiful enough to play me," suggesting Sharon Stone as an alternative. Other sources insist however, that this German production has collapsed due to lack of funding.

Variety magazine (through Reuters online) offers an article issued on August 16 by old time studio front man Army Archerd on Riefenstahl. "Riefenstahl is garnering new space for a whitewashing as she approaches her 100th birthday. " he states. He argues that Jodie Foster is presently at odds with Riefenstahl because Foster won't be intimidated in to making a movie that has been "sanitized" of "the truth." 

Berlin Morgenpost reports that a court decision has now occurred which will prohibit Leni Riefenstahl from making specific statements about the Gypsy extras utilized in the filming of Tiefland. Apparently a legal battle will continue as the group, Rome e.v. seeks some form of damages for those persons who were assigned to participate in the film. According to the complaint,  when taken from an internment camp outside Salzburg to play as extras in Tiefland, the imprisoned Gypsy people were not paid. Additionally, a claim is made that several/many later were moved to concentration camps and died/were killed. Riefenstahl, according the claimants, had repeatedly stated in public and interviews that she saw "all" of the Gypsy people after the war and that no harm had come to them via the Third Reich. 

"Triumph of Aversion" was the title of an article run August 17 2002 by the German media giant Der Spiegel. Stating that Leni Riefenstahl "is famous throughout the world and yet scarcely recognized in Germany" they ask "what is it that the Germans cannot forgive her for ?"  The article relates that although cinematically [Riefenstahl] was a master innovator, her subject matter "deprived that art form of its innocence". Der Spiegel also ran a larger article on the recent court ruling regarding statements by Riefenstahl on the Gypsy tribes utilized in the filming of Tiefland during the Second World War.

The BBC online news page weighed in on August 16 with an article on Leni Riefenstahl and her upcoming premiere / birthday. In the article, Riefenstahl summed up her intention in directing Triumph des Willens by saying "I was only interested in how I could make a film that was not stupid like a crude propagandist newsreel, but more interesting", she told BBC News Online. "It reflects the truth as it was then, in 1934. It is a documentary, not propaganda."

On August 15th, The Los Angeles Times ran a column one, page one color photo spread article on Leni Riefenstahl. The author had recently visited Riefenstahl at her home outside of Munich, Germany. The article may only be topped in the amount of space given its subject by this month's German issue of Vogue magazine which has run an 18 page spread noting Leni Riefenstahl's 100th birth day. 

"It's as if a pop artist on LSD painted it," ( Tagesspiegel Daily on Impressionen unter Wasser).

The German-French Public Television station, Arte TV will premiere Impressionen unter Wasser in a televised broadcast, one week prior to Leni Riefenstahl's 100th birth date. On August 15, 2002 the station, known for its artistic and serious cinematic content, will give the public a  first look at Riefenstahl's first film in fifty years. A cinema one night release will occur earlier in the month.    Along with the under water documentary, Art TV will televise a recent interview with Riefenstahl and show her classic directorial debut, Das Blaue Licht.

In a German newspaper interview dated August 13th, Leni Riefenstahl, on the eve of her 100th birthday, again called in to doubts about the Jodie Foster biopic project on her life. It is almost three years since both Foster and Riefenstahl announced intentions to (separately) bring Riefenstahl's story to the cinema. "Two weeks ago a spokeswoman for Berlin's famed Bablesburg studios announced that shooting would begin next year..."                                                                            Somehow, Riefenstahl remains involved in the Foster project, as evidenced by her comments "I won't sign a contract until I am satisfied that the film will be faithful to my memoirs. Distortions creep into...film, as is so often the case with Hollywood productions. Should the Americans go ahead on their own, they run the risk of incurring my wrath...I won't hesitate to take them to court."

The Times online from the UK, issues an article on 08-10-02 that notes the Impression unter Wasser release and Leni Riefenstahl's 100th birth date. Unfortunately the article is marred with the usual litany of oft cited innuendo with Third Reich. "For art can never be divorced from life and politics, and to pretend otherwise is to distort both. Perhaps that moral, more than any amount of cinematic virtuosity, is Riefenstahl's inadvertent legacy."

In a random search of the online campus web pages, it appears that various universities and cinema Books -  Worth noting that there is a rush to get various books out on the shelves by years end, in time for Leni Riefenstahl's centennial. Some of the titles of merit include Rainer Rother's controversial biography, which is due out in November. Also, Graham C Cooper's re-issue of Leni Riefenstahl and the Olympics is currently on the shelf. Taschen continues it's tribute follow up to Five Lives, with a huge compendium Leni Riefenstahl: Africa and the first re-issue of Riefenstahl's Olympia photo essay since the 1980's (release date of 2002). 

July 2002 

Leni Riefenstahl Produktion advises dasblauelicht.net that it remains unclear in what media the new Impressionen unter Wasser  film will be released, even at this late date, due to licensing and other considerations still not resolved. 

ABC News online issued a report on Leni Riefenstahl's intention to screen her new documentary and celebrate her 100th birth day. In the interview, Riefenstahl states that she has "big health problems" but "I am fighting my illness and I am working nonetheless." 

June 2002

National Public Radio's hour long talk show, Fresh Air interviewed Jodie Foster on the release of her recent film efforts. The subject of the Leni Riefenstahl project did not come up and when asked what her next project would be, Ms. Foster was non committal though (again) she alluded to wanting most to get back to work on Flora Plum. 

May 2002

According to MSNBC.com Jodie Foster's planned production on the life of Leni Riefenstahl has now officially cut ties with the Riefenstahl Produktion group. "Leni wanted to be able to control what would have been said in the film. Jodie refused, putting an end to their collaboration," affirmed journalist Jeanette Walls.

In an interview published by the Frankfurter Rundschau, Leni Riefenstahl affirmed the rumors that both Madonna and Steven Spielberg have shown interest in taking on a biopic of her life. According to the translated text Riefenstahl said "not only Jodie Foster, also Madonna and Spielberg are interested in my biography. I couldn't ask for more. As far as Jodie is concerned, no contract as I would have liked has been made. The Americans don't agree to make a film on which I could have an impact...i.e. they don't want me to assure that they depict the truth. Thus, they can do my biography however they want. For instance, they could say I had an affair with Hitler and I could not take any action against that . That's how things are in America. I have to accept that." The article goes on to confirm that "Foster is indeed shooting her version of the film director's life this summer at the Ufa studios in Berlin."

La Cineteca del Friuli has revealed that they will be screening a lost Leni Riefenstahl film at their silent film festival in October 2002. Apparently Italian film restoration artists  have located Das Schicksal Derer Von Habsburg (1928) .The film, which stars Riefenstahl in her first non "berg" film role,  tells of  the glory and decadence of the house of Hapsburg. Restorers began with a nitrate print of the Italian version in extreme decay, and some fragments of the original German version. A transition to  video, with the surviving material, was necessary given the very poor condition of the Italian print. The process was begun when the film material was located in 1999.

Riefenstahl who related that her role in the film was greatly diminished due to an unrelenting illness, stated of Habsburg, "it was decided to reduce my part... my role became marginal. Finally the last six days of shooting arrived and, despite my high temperature, I managed to act. I never saw this film, which in any event was very quickly taken out of the cinemas: I could not reconcile myself to the misfortune which had dogged me at such a propitious moment for my career."

 It is hoped that the film will eventually find its way to the general video release market. A 4 minute clip of never before seen Das Schicksal  Derer Von Habsburg footage can be found at this link at KataWeb Cinema web page from Italy. http://www.kwcinema.kataweb.it/templates/kwc_template_3col/0,5271,2121-2,00.html

April 2002

The Fahey/Klein Gallery in Los Angeles has posted a preview of the Leni Riefenstahl's Nuba photography. There will be a gallery showing of the works in the late summer of 2002 to coincide with Riefenstahl's 100 birthday. Although it was stated some time ago that Mrs. Riefenstahl would attend the opening of this show, it is unclear if that will happen given her new film project commitments and reported poor health.

Online news magazine, The Scotsman.com, reports an interview in Britain with Jodie Foster regarding the upcoming UK release of "Panic Room."  In that article Foster confirms that she has now closed her Egg Pictures production company. Additionally, it is reported that because of other conflicts she won't be able to jump right in to her next film project, Flora Plum. Rather, she reported to them that she is busy at work to now get the Leni Riefenstahl Project produced. In response to questions regarding her choice of Riefenstahl as a subject, Foster stated "I hope people will trust that I’m strong enough morally to know how to take on something and guide it meticulously where it has something to say. I’m not going to do a Revlon ad about Leni". Foster goes on to say "If I was going to make a movie about Hitler or Mussolini would they all be happier because it’s a guy?"

Die Welt gives a review this week on yet another book which claims that Riefenstahl has, because of her own "narcissism" continued to perpetuate a "myth" about her motivations and actions under the Nazi regime. The book apparently states  that "she now believes"  her own version of the  "facts", which they purport to expose as false. What author Lutz Kinkel in Die Scheinwerferin. Leni Riefenstahl und das Dritte Reich fails to give any credit to is that on all these "facts",  which his book "exposes", Mrs. Riefenstahl has been legally tried and cleared, over and over and over again...

German online magazine Die Welt, reports that Leni Riefenstahl has again stated her split with Jodie Foster on her planned film. Interestingly the article alludes to a project that might involve Steven Spielberg and Madonna. Riefenstahl's listed reason for the decision to not be part of Foster's biopic on her is that she will not have any veto power on the Hollywood based script.(April 27,2002)

March 2002

Opening of the film "The Panic Room" with Jodie Foster; Foster denies that any filming has begun on the Leni Riefenstahl project. This confirms more recent reports that the film is not slated for release until 2003.

Amazon.com continues to list Synapse's release of Riefenstahl's  Triumph des Willens in its top 5 best sellers for Foreign DVD releases.

January 2002

The German newspaper, Die Welt, reports that Leni Riefenstahl's first film in almost five decades is scheduled for release in August 2002. The release, is set to coincide with the director's 100th birthday.  Impressionen unter Wasser is a documentary culled together from the innumerable dives that Riefenstahl (and her cameraman, Horst Kettner) have made since the mid 1970's through the year 2000.   Go To>>> Impressionen unter Wasser 

As a side note, the same Die Welt article alludes to the Jodie Foster bio-pic, reportedly in production with a scheduled 2003 release. The French production trade site Mr. W,  notes in it's 2002 New Year's update that the Foster  film remains "untitled" , though in production, with "a set release [date] of late 2003". As of January 22, there is no mention of the film on the official Babelsberg Studio web page where at least a dozen other films "in production" are listed.

December 2001

Author of Das Blaue Licht. Net, Patrick Zarate accepted a generous invitation from Leni Riefenstahl and her long time companion Horst Kettner, to visit them at their home outside Munich, Germany. 

Amongst the topics during this unique visit,  is discussion ( and a sneak preview ) of Riefenstahl's new film, Impressionen unter Wasser.  Zarate states, "the film is amazing. It has a beautiful purity in its color and  motion. Most importantly, Leni Riefenstahl told me  that she is very happy with the film."

( SEE Visit to Germany FOR MORE ON ZARATE'S 2001 GERMANY EXCURSION )

2003   MAIN   2001

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