Photo-Slideshow

Berlin 1936: The Americans are threatening to boycott the Olympic Games if no Jewish athletes are on the German Olympic team. For this reason, the Jewish high jumper, Gretel Bergmann (Karoline Herfurth), one of the best at the time, is invited to participate in the German training camp. In the eyes of the Nazis, however, she absolutely must not win: so the Sports Director for the German Reich provides a competitor for Gretel, an unknown “female athlete” named Marie Ketteler (Sebastian Urzendowsky) who is to beat Gretel in the Olympic qualifiers. But the National Socialists did not take into consideration that after some initial issues, the two outsiders and putative competitors might become friends. In the end, it remains to be seen if the two will join forces to usurp the Nazi’s intrigues, or if athletic ambitions win out…

Directed by: Kaspar Heidelbach
Screenplay: Lothar Kurzawa
Premiere: September, 10 2009
Produced by: Gemini Film GmbH
Co-produced by: NDR, Degeto Film

Supported by:
Nordmedia Fonds
Filmstiftung NRW
Filmförderung Hamburg Schleswig-Holstein
Deutscher Filmförderfonds / FFA

Distributed by:
X Verleih AG

BERLIN '36 is based on the true story of the Jewish high jumper Gretel Bergmann, who was considered to be a top contender for the gold medal at the Summer Olympic Games in Berlin in 1936. In order to hinder Bergmann from potentially winning, the National Socialists provided her with competition in the form of Marie Ketteler ¹, who in reality was a man. Directed by Kaspar Heidelbach (“Das Wunder von Lengende”, “Der Untergang der Pamir”), the resulting film is a moving drama based on this true story about Gretel Bergmann, which tells the story of friendship between two who started out as opponents and held together despite the reprisals of the NSDAP.

The main roles are successfully filled by Karoline Herfurth (IM WINTER EIN JAHR, DAS PARFÜM, DER VORLESER) as Gretel Bergmann and Sebastian Urzendowsky (PINGPONG, DER FELSEN, PAUL IS DEAD, DIE FÄLSCHER, LICHTER) as Marie Ketteler. Axel Prahl (WILLENBROCK, MONDKALB, DU BIST NICHT ALLEIN) plays trainer Hans Waldmann and August Zirner (HOMO FABER, STADTGESPRÄCH, DIE APOTHEKERIN, DIE FÄLSCHER) plays Gretel’s father.

¹ Name changed due to personality rights.

Cast

• Gretel Bergmann Karoline Herfurth
• Marie Ketteler Sebastian Urzendowsky
• Hans Waldmann Axel Prahl
• Edwin Bergmann August Zirner
• Paula Bergmann Maria Happel
• Rudolph Bergmann Franz Dinda
• Walter Bergmann Leon Seidel
• Hans von Tschammer und Osten Thomas Thieme
• Karl Ritter von Halt Johann von Bülow
• Elisabeth „Lilly“ Vogt Julie Engelbrecht
• Thea Walden Klara Manzel
• Sigfrid Kulmbach Robert Gallinowski
• Frau Vogel Elena Uhlig
• Leo Löwenstein Otto Tausig
• Avery Brundage John Keogh
• Ärztin im Gesundheitsamt Angelika Bartsch
• and many more