Friedrich Zelnik
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Friedrich Zelnik (* May 17, 1895 - † November 29, 1950) was one of the most important producers-directors of the German silent cinema. He also appeared on screen as an actor.
Friedrich Zelnik was born in a Jewish family in Czernowitz, today in Ukraine (Ukrainian: Chernivtsi), at the time the capital of the Duchy of Bukovina in the Austrian part of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy. Czernowitz has been then largely populated by Jews. After the studies in Vienna, Zelnik worked as an actor in theaters in Nürnberg, Aachen, Worms, Prague and finally Berlin - in theaters Theater an der Königsgrätzer Straße, Berliner Theater, Komödienhaus.
Since 1914 Friedrich Zelnik started to act in films, and after 1915 to produce and direct movies, still acting in other directors films. In 1918 he married a young Polish ballet dancer turned film actress Lya Mara and promoted her to stardom, by producing and directing movies for her. In 1920 he established a film production firm Zelnik-Mara-Film GmbH.
Popular, operetta style costume films like "An der schönen blauen Donau", "Die Försterchristel", "Das Tanzende Wien", "Heut' tanzt Mariett" brought Lya Mara and Zelnik enormous success in Germany and beyond. Several of his collaborators as cameraman Frederik Fuglsang and production designer André Andrejew are perceived today as important artists of the German silent cinema.
Upon the introduction of sound cinema, Friedrich Zelnik becomes the first director in Europe who decides to postsynchronize a movie - "Der rote Kreis" in 1929, while as a rule, very imperfect direct sound has been used to record dialogue. In 1930 Zelnik travels to Hollywood, and upon his return directs his first film with sound, a new version of his silent success "Die Försterchristel".
After Hitler took power in 1933, Zelnik and Lya Mara leave Germany for London. In years to follow Friedrich Zelnik continued to direct and produce movies in Great Britain and The Netherlands. He also changed his name to Frederic Zelnik and took the British citizenship.
Friederich Zelnik died in 1950, in London.
