DAS STAHLTIER
Deutschland 1935 – Director: Willy Zielke – Original language: German – Length: 74 min.
In 1935 the German Reich office of train transportation contracted young filmmaker Willi Zielke to produce a film celebrating the centenary of German railroads. But rather than complying with his employers' idea of an easily consumable propaganda piece, Zielke made an avant-garde movie, full of technical and aesthetic innovations.
Shortly before its release, the movie was banned on grounds of alleged "Harm to German reputation": The movie, the party-leaders claimed, did not sufficiently emphasize Germany's involvement in the invention of the locomotive and furthermore, would, with its rapid cuts and zooms, have the wrong effect on any viewer: people would be too scared of trains to ride them...
Writer: Willy Zielke. Camera: Willy Zielke. Sound: n/a. Editing: n/a. Music: n/a. Production: Deutsche Reichsbahn. Producer: n/a.
