by Elizabeth Ward
In: German Stars edited by Chris Homewood and Jaimey Fisher
2023
This chapter considers the significance and the legacy of the star in the GDR through the example of the character actor, Jutta Wachowiak. Taking the case studies of Die Verlobte (The Fiancée, Günter Reisch and Günther Rücker, 1980) and Käthe Kollwitz – Bilder eines Lebens (Käthe Kollwitz – Images of a Life, Ralf Kirsten, 1987), I consider two of Wachowiak’s key roles in the 1980s at a point when DEFA was seeking to promote star-led ‘Darsteller-Filme’ (‘actor films’). On first viewing, Die Verlobte appears to mark a continuation of DEFA’s antifascist tradition through the film’s female protagonist, Hella, who is imprisoned because of her resistance activities. Similarly, Käthe Kollwitz – Bilder eines Lebens can be positioned within the tradition of DEFA’s Künstlerfilme (‘artist films’), and it is certainly no coincidence that the film’s release coincided with the 120th anniversary of Kollwitz’s birth and the 750th anniversary of the founding of Berlin and. Consequently, in this chapter I seek to reveal not only the significance of these presentations of Wachowiak for the development of her film career, but also the ways in which Wachowiak’s performances come to challenge two traditionally male dominated genres by giving voice and visibility to new configurations of who was deemed worthy of a star performance.
Elizabeth Ward 