Directed by Lotte Reiniger • 1934 • Germany
Based on a fable by Ernst Keienburg, this short drama exhibits an entrancing sense of space. Its story about a monstrous man who steals a town’s musical instruments has led scholars to make the case that THE STOLEN HEART is an anti-Nazi allegory. When the musical instruments come to life, Lotte Reiniger’s playful silhouette animation celebrates the power of music as joy overcomes evil.
Up Next in Early Women Filmmakers: An International Anthology
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Papageno
Directed by Lotte Reiniger • 1935 • Germany
An example of Lotte Reiniger’s animated music films based on opera, PAPAGENO is filled with impeccable attention to detail. Papageno, a bird catcher from Mozart’s “The Magic Flute,” idles away the time with his avian companions, fights an undulating sn...
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Day of Freedom
Directed by Leni Riefenstahl • 1935 • Germany
Taking its title from the Nuremberg Rally of 1935, this short documentary presents the armed forces of the Third Reich as an efficient system of bodies and machines in motion. The film is a dangerous celebration—through dynamic visuals and careful ed...
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Parabola
Directed by Mary Ellen Bute and Ted Nemeth • 1937 • United States
Produced by Mary Ellen Bute’s company, Expanding Cinema, and made in collaboration with Ted Nemeth and sculptor Rutherford Boyd, PARABOLA is a celebration of film’s ability to create new ways of seeing the forms around us. Creatin...
