

A Life for Movies: Lotte Eisner
2021-02-24 · 55 min · ★ 8.5
Born in Berlin in 1896, Lotte Eisner became famous for her passionate involvement in the world of both German and French cinema. In 1936, together with Henri Langlois, she founded the Cinémathèque Française with the goal of saving from destruction films, costumes, sets, posters, and other treasures of the 7th Art. A Jew exiled in Paris, she became a pillar of the capital's cultural scene, where she promoted German cinema.
Trailers are previews, not full movies.
No authorized playback source configured. Use the legal watch options below.
Production details
- Directors
- Timon Koulmasis
- Production companies
- ZDF, ARTE, Acqua alta, Ilona Grundmann Filmproduction
- Countries
- France, Germany
- Status
- Released
Top Cast
Werner HerzogSelf
Volker SchlöndorffSelf
Wim WendersSelfTitle information and images are supplied by TMDb. Explore our discovery guide for advice on comparing metadata and legal viewing options.
Where to watch
Availability provided by JustWatch via TMDb. Offers can change. Provider links are listed on TMDb; full playback requires a separately authorized source.
Availability not listed for this country.
Seasons & episodes
Recommendations

Robert Altman's life and career contained multitudes. This father of American independent cinema left an indelible mark, not merely on the evolution of his art form, but also on the western zeitgeist. With its use of rare interviews, representative film clips, archival images, and musings from his family and most recognizable collaborators, Altman is a dynamic and heartfelt mediation on an artist whose expression, passion and appetite knew few bounds.

Told through performances, TV interviews, home movies, family photographs, private letters and unpublished memoirs, the film reveals the essence of an extraordinary woman who rose from humble beginnings in New York City to become a glamorous international superstar and one of the greatest artists of all time.

A chronicle of the long career of American filmmaker Roger Corman, the most tenacious and ingenious low-budget producer and director in the US film industry, a pioneer of independent filmmaking and discoverer of new talent.

The history of cinematic sound, told by legendary sound designers and visionary filmmakers.

A documentary on the life and career of one of the most influential film directors of all time, Steven Spielberg.

Celebrate the legacy of Stan Lee as the co-creator of such legendary characters as Fantastic Four, Iron Man, the X-Men, The Avengers, and hundreds more.

Cameramen and women discuss the craft and art of cinematography and of the "DP" (the director of photography), illustrating their points with clips from 100 films, from Birth of a Nation to Do the Right Thing. Themes: the DP tells people where to look; changes in movies (the arrival of sound, color, and wide screens) required creative responses from DPs; and, these artisans constantly invent new equipment and try new things, with wonderful results. The narration takes us through the identifiable studio styles of the 30s, the emergence of noir, the New York look, and the impact of Europeans. Citizen Kane, The Conformist, and Gordon Willis get special attention.

Daniel Craig candidly reflects on his 15 year adventure as James Bond. Including never-before-seen archival footage from Casino Royale to the upcoming 25th film No Time To Die, Craig shares his personal memories in conversation with 007 producers, Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli.

A compilation of over 30 years of private home movie footage shot by Lithuanian-American avant-garde director Jonas Mekas, assembled by Mekas "purely by chance", without concern for chronological order.

From teen comedian to Hollywood legend, Eddie Murphy revisits his extraordinary showbiz ride with raw honesty and humor.

In 2001 Jack Cardiff (1914-2009) became the first director of photography in the history of the Academy Awards to win an Honorary Oscar. But the first time he clasped the famous statuette in his hand was a half-century earlier when his Technicolor camerawork was awarded for Powell and Pressburger's Black Narcissus. Beyond John Huston's The African Queen and King Vidor's War and Peace, the films of the British-Hungarian creative duo (The Red Shoes and A Matter of Life and Death too) guaranteed immortality for the renowned cameraman whose career spanned seventy years.

For over 40 years Val Kilmer, one of Hollywood's most mercurial and/or misunderstood actors, has been documenting his own life and craft through film and video. He has amassed thousands of hours of footage, from 16mm home movies made with his brothers, to time spent in iconic roles for blockbuster movies like Top Gun, The Doors, Tombstone, and Batman Forever. This raw, wildly original and unflinching documentary reveals a life lived to extremes and a heart-filled, sometimes hilarious look at what it means to be an artist and a complex man.

As a visually radical memoir, CAMERAPERSON draws on the remarkable footage that filmmaker Kirsten Johnson has shot and reframes it in ways that illuminate moments and situations that have personally affected her. What emerges is an elegant meditation on the relationship between truth and the camera frame, as Johnson transforms scenes that have been presented on Festival screens as one kind of truth into another kind of story—one about personal journey, craft, and direct human connection.

This revealing documentary honors the legendary Sidney Poitier—iconic actor, filmmaker, and civil rights activist. Featuring interviews with Denzel Washington, Spike Lee, Halle Berry, and more.

When Allied forces liberated the Nazi concentration camps in 1944-45, their terrible discoveries were recorded by army and newsreel cameramen, revealing for the first time the full horror of what had happened. Making use of British, Soviet and American footage, the Ministry of Information’s Sidney Bernstein (later founder of Granada Television) aimed to create a documentary that would provide lasting, undeniable evidence of the Nazis’ unspeakable crimes. He commissioned a wealth of British talent, including editor Stewart McAllister, writer and future cabinet minister Richard Crossman – and, as treatment advisor, his friend Alfred Hitchcock. Yet, despite initial support from the British and US Governments, the film was shelved, and only now, 70 years on, has it been restored and completed by Imperial War Museums under its original title "German Concentration Camps Factual Survey".

The life story of ‘Zen Anarchist’ filmmaker John Milius, one of the most influential storytellers of his generation.

An introspective insight into the life and artistic journey of William Friedkin, an extraordinary and offbeat director of cult films such as The French Connection, The Exorcist, Sorcerer, Cruising, To Live and Die in L.A. and Killer Joe. For the first time Friedkin opens up, guiding the audience on a fascinating journey through the themes and the stories that have influenced his life and his artistic career.

From a prolific career in film and television, Anton Yelchin left an indelible legacy as an actor. Through his journals and other writings, his photography, the original music he wrote, and interviews with his family, friends, and colleagues, this film looks not just at Anton's impressive career, but at a broader portrait of the man.

The authorized documentary celebrating the film that redefined Hollywood, 50 years after its premiere. Featuring rare archival footage and interviews with acclaimed Hollywood directors alongside Steven Spielberg, top shark scientists, and conservationists, the film uncovers the behind-the-scenes chaos and how the film launched the summer blockbuster, inspired a new wave of filmmakers, and paved the way for shark conservation that continues today.

This documentary explores the mystery surrounding the death of movie icon Marilyn Monroe through previously unheard interviews with her inner circle.
Similar titles

HECKLER is a comedic feature documentary exploring the increasingly critical world we live in. After starring in a film that was critically bashed, Jamie Kennedy takes on hecklers and critics and ask some interesting questions of people such as George Lucas, Bill Maher, Mike Ditka, Rob Zombie, Howie Mandel and many more. This fast moving, hilarious documentary pulls no punches as you see an uncensored look at just how nasty and mean the fight is between those in the spotlight and those in the dark.

Follows the life and career of Arthur Ashe.

Franco-American film pioneer Maurice Tourneur is a forgotten name in cinema history. This film traces the incredible journey of this crucial innovator from Paris to Hollywood. He inspired many of his peers and was also a mentor to some great filmmakers, including his son Jacques. Using previously unseen home movies, this film reveals the private man as well as the inspired artist whose career spanned four decades and two world wars.

Carne Ross was a government highflyer. A career diplomat who believed Western Democracy could save us all. But working inside the system he came to see its failures, deceits and ulterior motives. He felt at first hand the corruption of power. After the Iraq war Carne became disillusioned, quit his job and started searching for answers.
Two friends, one a French photograph rand filmmaker, the other a famous Estonian thinker and poet. Two people from two generations, but a great friendship. For several weeks, Raphael Gianelli-Meriano filmed Jaan Kaplinski's every day life at his house in the countryside, in his domestic context.

The Academy Award® nominee Cosmic Voyage combines live action with state-of-the-art computer-generated imagery to pinpoint where humans fit in our ever-expanding universe. Highlighting this journey is a "cosmic zoom" based on the powers of 10, extending from the Earth to the largest observable structures in the universe, and then back to the subnuclear realm.

On October 10, 2005, Angela Merkel becomes German Chancellor. After 16 years, she now wants to clear the field. We take a look back at the many different faces of our Chancellor. In addition to Wolfgang Bosbach, Gregor Gysi and Kai Diekmann, extreme mountaineer Reinhold Messner, presenter Nina Eichinger, comedian Wigald Boning, former minister Annette Schavan, former President of the Bundestag Nobert Lammert, actress Uschi Glas and entrepreneur Gloria von Thurn und Taxis share their very personal views.

BBC documentary about the rise of the New German Cinema and several of its most important figures.

"Woodstock - Mais Que Uma Loja" tells the story of the Woodstock Discos store, a stronghold considered ground zero for heavy metal in São Paulo and one of the pioneers of the style in Brazil.

Short biographical documentary about the life of Alfred Florstedt and his life as a progressive communist from the Weimar Republic to his death in 1985.

Profile of actress Greta Garbo, narrated by Glenn Close
Feature documentary that explores the career of Anne Claire Poirier, a pioneer of Quebec cinema, which takes stock of a unique journey full of humor and depth. Familiar voices who have collaborated with Anne Claire Poirier throughout her career give their impressions and anecdotes to enrich this tribute.

A deliciously scandalous portrait of unsung Hollywood legend Scotty Bowers, whose bestselling memoir chronicled his decades spent as sexual procurer to the stars.

It explores Rita Lee's personal life and her creative process, revealing her musical talent and her ability to transform on stage. Rita herself guides the narrative through past interviews she gave throughout her career and current testimonies.

From humble beginnings, complex family dynamics and tragic, life-changing events, to her unlikely rise to success in two very different worlds: fashion modeling and professional skiing. “How Did I Get Here” is a coming-of-age story, full of adventure, exploration, heartbreak, growth and inspiration.

The documentary Migliaccio - O Brasileiro em Cena follows the path of those who take risks for the art, either as directors, as writers, as scenographers and even as costume designers. The Oscarito trophy received by Flávio Migliaccio in 2014 Gramado Film Festival crowns a career enmeshed by many threads. Since Migliaccio has performed in different fields of art - from cinema and theater to literature and drawing -, the documentary creates varied visual interventions to enchain the narrative, in addition to the interviews and archive pictures, such as a shadow play to represent his humble childhood, and to the cartoons the artist drew to portray his existential questions in his ranch in Rio Bonito (State of Rio de Janeiro). Images and stories that aim to show a professional and personal life pervaded by possibilities and attitudes, both artistic and political.
"Lord of the Brush" details the artist John Howe's history and passion for J.R.R. Tolkien's works. John's story is brought to life with over 100 of his beautiful illustrations, which have had a major impact on the fans and readers of the world about how J.R.R. Tolkien's work is envisioned in images.