born May 31, 1946, Bad Wörishofen, W.Ger.
died June 10, 1982, Munich
German film director.
He was involved in the avant-garde theatre movement in Munich and helped form the Antitheatre (1967). His first full-length film (1969) was followed by 40 others, produced in a short period, including The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant (1972), Effi Briest (1974), The Marriage of Maria Braun (1979), the 15-hour Berlin Alexanderplatz (1980), Lola (1981), and Veronika Voss (1982). Regarded as a leader of the German New Wave, he helped revitalize German cinema in the 1970s and '80s. His socially and politically conscious films often explore themes of oppression and despair.