Historical Background of German Expressionism

   Expressionism first started as an artistic movement in 1905 as a form of fine arts that stresses on the portrayal of inner emotions and experiences rather than the conventional presentation of reality. At that stage, “Expressionism” was still a style guided only by key words like “expression” and “emotions” viewed purely as an art and literature form to celebrate nature and spirituality. It was until after the World War I that it evolved into a movement with defined notions and eventually became a political statement that puts to center stage the negative energies surrounding the German society at that time.

   Expressionism dealt with the psychology of the defeated nation, with feelings of humiliation, betrayal and anger. The economy, political and social chaos drove the old values of art in social classes, cold logic and unattainable beauty into the revolutionary raw, dark and violent aesthetics, reflecting the nation’s then state of mind (Hudson, 2005).

Figure 1.01 Synagogue, Max Beckmann, 1919.

Figure 1.02 The City, George Grosz, 1916/1917

   Their arts (Figure 1.01 and Figure 1.02) were anti-bourgeois and modernist as an expression of revolt.

Soon, the movement was translated into motion pictures for expression. According to Thompson & Bordwell in ‘Film History: An Introduction (Third Edition)’, 2010, page 87-102, German Expressionism became a most notable film movement from 1919 – 1926.

   Post-war situation in Germany contributed to the movement as the development of German film industry began with the isolation of the nation from foreign film industries as a result of the government’s ban on foreign films in 1916. German government supported the local film industry as they wanted to create propagandizing films and to compete with foreign films.

   The government, the Deutsche Bank, and large industries combined several small film companies under the big company Universum Film Aktiengesellschaft (UFA) to promote pro-war films in the late 1917. UFA with its huge financial backing was able to gather a good number of technicians and build the best-equipped studios in Europe to control the German and post-war international market.

   All of these well-equipped studios had attracted foreign filmmakers and made Germany a main co-producer of films with companies from other countries. In 1914, there were 47 foreign film companies dominating the German market with 25 local firms struggling to survive. But by 1918, the number of foreign firms shrunk to 10 while the German companies numbered up to 130.
Unfortunately, despite the success in Germany’s film-making industry, the nation did not recover from the difficulties caused by the war.

   In the late 1918 to 1921, the citizens wanted to put an end to the monarchy and war, the radical and liberal parties struggled to control and the nation continued with its internal strife and the situation intensified when Great Britain and France blamed Germany for being the sole cause of the conflict. Germany was then expected to pay for all wartime damage to civilian properties in the form of money and goods.

Hyperinflation came about all over the country. The consumer goods and food became extremely expensive and people had to carry a basket of paper money to purchase a loaf of bread. The citizens then wanted to spend their money while they were still of worth and they began to frequent theatres and cinemas for arts and films.  

   The national dilemma brought about encouragement to export and suppression to import. Germany was desperately in need of more films to be broadcasted at their own cinema or theatre because if films from America and France were not imported, they would have too few for their own market. Hence, filmmakers benefited from producing many films for international export and local airing.

   German Expressionism was then, also a movement initiated to differentiate their films from America and France as these countries were the two that had banned German films from their cinema after World War I. The German filmmakers had found a distinctive way to make their films different to other countries but relevant to art and society by employing Expressionism.

   The German film industry concentrated on 3 genres. The first was the popular adventure serial, featuring spy rings, clever detectives, and exotic settings. The second was of the brief sex exploitation cycle which included homosexuality and prostitution while the third was a copy of Italian historical epics of pre-war period.

   German Expressionism was considered an avant-garde movement as they proved to express modern art by stylizing it and bringing the new form of art to the mass and also elite. Germany’s ambition to compete with foreign films ensured a completely different approach as compared to the Hollywood films. Their studios came with special sets and the Germans excelled in artistic stylization to counter Hollywood’s realistic setting of film. The German film-makers extensively experimented in artistic films that serve to promote awkwardness and disunity over unity.

   German Expressionist films were positively received abroad, with Lubitsch’s Madame Dubarry being shown in major European cities in 1920 despite the prejudices and anti-German sentiments due to the war. In 1922, The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari was opened in a regular Parisian cinema and Expressionist works were played in France over the next 5 years.

   The German film industry however, experienced major changes towards late 1920s as prominent Expressionist film-makers fled Nazi Germany to a more promising environment in Hollywood. The foreign technologies, market and stylistic conventions made considerable influence on their works. At the same time, a new trend known as the “New Objectivity” emerged to replace Expressionism in the German film industry.

German Expressionism as a film movement however, was a great influence to the American Film Noir, following the shift of German directors to Hollywood as film techniques and lighting styles were borrowed and incorporated with the realistic ideals of American film industry to create the moody crime thrillers (Thompson, 2012). Production of German Expressionist films ceased by 1929.

    

Timeline of German Expressionist Cinema

1920	February: Decla company release The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, directed by Robert Wiene. It starts the Expressionist movement. Algol, directed by Hans Werckmeister The Golem, directed by Paul Wegener and Carl Boese Genuine, directed by Robert Wiene From Morn to Midnight, directed by Karl Heinz Martin Torgus, directed by Hans Kobe
1921	November: UFA absorbs Decla-Bioscop, which remains a separate production unit under Pommer’s supervision. “The Weary Death” aka Destiny, directed by Fritz Lang “The House on the Moon”, directed by Karl Heinz Martin
1922	Dr. Mabuse, the Gambler, directed by Fritz Lang Nosferatu, directed by F. W. Murnau
1923	Schatten (Warning Shadows), directed by Artur Robison “The Treasure”, directed by G. W. Pabst Raskolnikow, directed by Robert Wiene Earth Spirit, directed by Leopold Jessner The Stone Rider, directed by Fritz Wendhausen
1924	Autumn: Hyperinflation ends. Waxworks, directed by Paul Leni Die Nibelungen, in 2 parts: Siegfried and Kriemhild’s Revenge, directed by Fritz Lang The Hands of Orlac, directed by Robert Wiene
1925	December: UFA is rescued from bankruptcy by loans from Paramount and MGM. Tartuffe, directed by F. W. Murnau The Chronicle of the Grey House, directed by Arthur von Gerlach
1926	February: Erich Pommer is forced to resign as head of UFA. September: Faust, directed by F. W. Murnau
1927	January: Metropolis, directed by Fritz Lang

 Source: Thompson & Bordwell, 2010, p90

References

Hudson, D. (2005). GreenCine. Retrieved March 3, 2012, from

   German Expressionism:

   http://www.greencine.com/static/primers/expressionism1.jsp

Thompson, C. (2012, February 17). Noir Movie. Retrieved March 1, 2012, from

   German Expressionism and It's Influence on Noir:

   http://noirmovie.com/news/german-expressionism

(2010). German Expressionism. In K. Thompson, & D. Bordwell, Film History: An

   Introduction, Third Edition (pp. 87-102). New York: McGraw Hill.