The economic fail in 1929 in Germany was due to the Weimar Republic. German Expressionism became over exaggerated acting used in silent films. German expressionist films became linked to the Weimar Republic. Towards the end of the Weimar Republics period of reign German expressionism was classed as a movement more than an art. Many of the expressionist didn’t like the concept or name of the “movement” created over the art.
‘Unable to afford large casts or sets, directors looked for different cinematic and production techniques to render style, character and emotion.
Expressionist film-makers like F. W. Murnau and Fritz Lang were also concerned with darker storylines and themes, including horror and crime.
Expressionist directors developed innovative techniques, such as new uses for light, contrast, camera angles and movement.
hese directors and their innovations came to influence the wealthier and more prolific film studios in Hollywood.’
(source – https://alphahistory.com/weimarrepublic/weimar-cinema/#:~:text=1.,render%20style%2C%20character%20and%20emotion.)
UFA was established in 1917 when the German government consolidated most of the nation’s leading studios. Its purpose was to promote German culture and, in the years following World War I, to enhance Germany’s international image.
At first, UFA produced mostly historical and costume dramas, including Die Augen der Mumie Ma (1918; The Eyes of the Mummy) and Carmen (1918), both directed by Ernst Lubitsch and starring Pola Negri.
The company soon acquired several theatres throughout Germany and inaugurated Berlin’s lavish Film Palast am Zoo with the premiere of Lubitsch’s Madame Dubarry (1919; also released as Passion), an international hit that did much to open the door for German films in countries where they had been banned since the war.
Ufa’s films now are typically used for German TV, producing what they believe the audience wants to see, feature films about German history as UFA started to cater to people’s interest in recent history.
Expressionism is a movement that arose in northern Europe during the 20th century and involves using distorted and exaggerated art styles to invoke emotion and mood.
Examples of Expressionist art:
The film production company was created with the goal of exercising political influence. It was expected to make money without being a pure propaganda institution, but rather a company that reaches the audiences with its films.
In the 1950s, UFA was newly founded with the backing of the German government. Then, too, Germany was interested in having a major German film production company. That said, the years after Bertelsmann took control in 1964 are really the first time there was no state influence at all.
These films now are typical for German TV, and what they believe the audience want to see, feature films about German history as UFA started to cater to people’s interest in recent history.
Expressionism is a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Northern Europe around the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it radically for emotional effect in order to evoke moods or ideas.
The economic disruption of the Weimar period produced an expressionist style in German film-making, with films often having unrealistic sets and featuring exaggerated acting techniques. Expressionist film-makers favoured darker storylines and themes, including horror and crime. The shortage of funding gave rise to the Kammerspielfilm movement, with atmospheric films made on small sets with low budgets, providing easier access for more people to go to the cinema as it was cheaper.
