Kurt Maetzig

German film director

Kurt Maetzig (25 January 1911 – 8 August 2012) was a German film director who had a significant effect on the film industry in East Germany. He was one of the most respected filmmakers of the GDR. After his retirement he lived in Wildkuhl, Mecklenburg, and had three children.

Kurt Maetzig was the son of Robert Maetzig and Marie Maetzig (née Lyon). He was born and grew up in the Charlottenburg borough of Berlin. His mother came from a wealthy family of tea merchants. He gained an insight into the film industry from an early age as his father was the proprietor of a factory that produced film copies there. In the late 1920s, Maetzig worked at his father's factory during the holidays, gaining experience in all areas of film production. He began shooting his own films in 1932, and three years later he ran his own cartoon workshop, where he also worked on titles and opening credits for short films. the Ernst Thälmann films (1954–55), and the science fiction film Der schweigende Stern (1960). Some of Maetzig's work has been described as East German propaganda particularly his two part series on Ernst Thalman (Ernst Thälmann Sohn seiner Klasse, Ernst Thälmann Führer seiner Klasse), though nearly all his films in production from 1965–66 were banned by East German authorities. He retired as a film director in 1976.

From 1954 to 1964, Maetzig was the first president of the German University of Cinema in Potsdam Babelsberg, where he also held the post of Professor of Stage Direction. From 1967 to 1988 he was an executive member of the Verband der Film und Fernsehschaffenden der DDR (GDR Federation of Film and Television Producers). He then became the vice president of the Fédération Internationale des Ciné Clubs (International Federation of Cinema Clubs) (FICC) in 1974. In 1979 he was a member of the jury at the 11th Moscow International Film Festival. In 1983 he was a member of the jury at the 33rd Berlin International Film Festival.