Sascha-Film, in full Sascha-Filmindustrie AG and from 1933 Tobis-Sascha-Filmindustrie AG, was the largest

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

n film production company of the

silent film A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, w ...

and early

sound film A sound film is a motion picture with synchronization, synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, but decad ...

period.

History

The business was established in 1910 by Alexander Joseph "Sascha", Count Kolowrat-Krakowsky as the ''Sascha-Filmfabrik'' ("Sascha Film Factory") in Pfraumberg in

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...

, and relocated in 1912 to

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

. On 10 September 1918, after the merger with the

film distributor A film distributor is responsible for the marketing of a film. The distribution company may be the same with, or different from, the production company. Distribution deals are an important part of financing a film. The distributor may set the ...

s Philipp & Pressburger, the business became the ''Sascha-Filmindustrie AG''. With

epic film Epic films are a style of filmmaking with large-scale, sweeping scope, and spectacle. The usage of the term has shifted over time, sometimes designating a film genre and at other times simply synonymous with big-budget filmmaking. Like epics in ...

s such as

Alexander Korda Sir Alexander Korda (; born Sándor László Kellner; hu, Korda Sándor; 16 September 1893 – 23 January 1956)Prinz und Bettelknabe ''The Prince and the Pauper'' (German: ''Prinz und Bettelknabe'') is a 1920 Austrian silent adventure film directed by Alexander Korda and starring Tibor Lubinszky, Albert Schreiber, and Adolf Weisse. It is based on Mark Twain's 1881 novel ''Th ...

'' ("Prince and Beggar") (1920) and

Michael Curtiz Michael Curtiz ( ; born Manó Kaminer; since 1905 Mihály Kertész; hu, Kertész Mihály; December 24, 1886 April 10, 1962) was a Hungarian-American film director, recognized as one of the most prolific directors in history. He directed cla ...

's ''

Sodom und Gomorrha ''Sodom und Gomorrha: Die Legende von Sünde und Strafe'' ("Sodom and Gomorrah: The Legend of Sin and Punishment"; released in English as ''Sodom and Gomorrah'' or ''Queen of Sin and the Spectacle of Sodom and Gomorrha'') is an Austrian silent ...

'' (1922) as well as ''

Die Sklavenkönigin ''The Moon of Israel'' (german: Die Sklavenkönigin, or "The Queen of the Slaves") is a 1924 Austrian epic film. It was directed by Mihaly Kertész (later Michael Curtiz). The script was written by Ladislaus Vajda, based on H. Rider Haggard's ...

'' ("The Slave Queen") (1924), the company rose to be one of the most successful European film producers. In 1933 the German enterprise Tobis-Tonbild-Syndikat was amalgamated with the company, known formally from then on as the Tobis-Sascha-Filmindustrie AG. In 1938, in the context of the

Anschluss The (, or , ), also known as the (, en, Annexation of Austria), was the annexation of the Federal State of Austria into the German Reich on 13 March 1938. The idea of an (a united Austria and Germany that would form a " Greater Germa ...

, by which Austria was annexed to the

Third Reich Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

, the concern passed into the ownership of the

National Socialist Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...

government and was re-founded as Wien-Film GmbH. Its best-known director of the period to the end of the war was Gustav Ucicky. After the end of the

war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

the name Sascha-Film was re-established for a couple of decades, and in the 1950s and 1960s produced light entertainment films.

Selected films

* 1912: Die Gewinnung des Erzes am steirischen Erzberg in Eisenerz ("The extraction of ore on the Styrian ore mountain in Eisenerz"; documentary, c. 6 min; direction by

Sascha Kolowrat-Krakowsky Count Alexander " Sascha" Joseph von Kolowrat-Krakowsky (29 January 1886 – 4 December 1927) was an Austrian film producer of Bohemian-Czech descent from the House of Kolowrat. A pioneer of Austrian cinema, he founded the first major film stud ...

) * 1912: Kaiser Joseph II. * 1913: Der Millionenonkel (c. 60 min; direction by Hubert Marischka) * 1915: Das andere Ich (direction by

Fritz Freisler Fritz Freisler (1881–1955) was an Austrian screenwriter and film director of the silent era.von Dassanowsky p.72 Selected filmography * '' The Other I'' (1918) * ''Love Story Love Story or A Love Story may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and ...

) * 1916: Wien im Krieg (direction by

Heinz Hanus Heinz Hanus (24 May 1882 – 16 March 1972) was an Austrian actor and film director. He directed 21 films between 1908 and 1929. His younger brother was actor and film director Emmerich Hanus Emmerich Hanus (24 August 1884 – 20 No ...

* 1917: Heldenkampf in Schnee und Eis * 1918:

Der Mandarin Der or DER may refer to: Places * Darkənd, Azerbaijan * Dearborn (Amtrak station) (station code), in Michigan, US * Der (Sumer), an ancient city located in modern-day Iraq * d'Entrecasteaux Ridge, an oceanic ridge in the south-west Pacific Ocea ...

(61 min; direction by

Paul Frank Paul Frank (full name Paul Frank Sunich, born August 29, 1967 in Huntington Beach, California) is an American cartoonist, artist and fashion designer. He is the creator of all the characters from Paul Frank Industries, including Julius the monke ...

, Fritz Freisler) * 1922:

(direction by

) * 1922: Harun al Rashid (direction by Michael Curtiz) * 1923: Der junge Medardus (direction by Michael Curtiz) * 1924:

(70 min; direction by Michael Curtiz) * 1925:

Das Spielzeug von Paris ''Das Spielzeug von Paris'' (English title ''Red Heels'') is an Austrian silent film released in 1925 and directed by Michael Curtiz. It was the first film to feature French actress Lili Damita in the leading role. Plot A young British bohemi ...

(direction by

) * 1927:

Café Elektric ''Café Elektric'' (1927) is an Austrian film directed by Gustav Ucicky. Plot Erni (Marlene Dietrich), the daughter of a wealthy industrialist Göttlinger (Fritz Alberti) falls for a pickpocket Fredl (Willi Forst), but Fredl prefers Hansi (N ...

(direction by Gustav Ucicky) * 1927:

Die Pratermizzi Die Pratermizzi (literally, "Mizzi of the Prater") is an Austrian silent drama film directed by Gustav Ucicky in 1926, released in January 1927, and starring Anny Ondra, Igo Sym and Nita Naldi. The film was long believed lost until its rediscov ...

* 1929: '' Bright Eyes'' ( co-production with

British International Pictures Associated British Picture Corporation (ABPC), originally British International Pictures (BIP), was a British film production, distribution and exhibition company active from 1927 until 1970 when it was absorbed into EMI. ABPC also owned appr ...

) * 1930: Geld auf der Straße (direction by Georg Jacoby) * 1934:

Maskerade ''Maskerade'' is a fantasy novel by British writer Terry Pratchett, the eighteenth book in the ''Discworld'' series. The witches Granny Weatherwax and Nanny Ogg visit the Ankh-Morpork Opera House to find Agnes Nitt, a girl from Lancre, and g ...

(direction by

Willi Forst Willi Forst, born Wilhelm Anton Frohs (7 April 1903 – 11 August 1980) was an Austrian actor, screenwriter, film director, film producer and singer. As a debonair actor he was a darling of the German-speaking film audiences, as a director, one ...

) * 1934: Hohe Schule (direction by

Erich Engel Erich Gustav Otto Engel (14 February 1891 – 10 May 1966) was a German film and theatre director.He is often confused with another German film director called Erich Engels, who specialised in comedy, and crime films. Biography Engel was b ...

)

References

* Herbert Polak, 1948. ''30 Jahre Sascha-Film: Festschrift der Sascha-Film Verein- und Vertriebs- Ges. m.b.H. Wien''. Vienna.

External links

*
Vienna Cinema and Theatre Topography Project
*
History of Vienna website
*

{{Authority control Mass media companies established in 1910 Film production companies of Austria Austrian film studios Neubau Culture in Vienna 1910 establishments in Austria

History

Selected films

See also

References

External links