Axel Corti (born ''Axel Fuhrmanns''; 7 May 1933 – 29 December 1993) was an

Austrian Austrian may refer to: * Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent ** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen * Austrian German dialect * Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ** Austria-Hungary ** Austria ...

screenwriter, film director and radio host.

Life

He was born in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. His father was a businessman of

and

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

descent, his mother was from

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

. From German-occupied France, he and his mother were brought to safety in

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

by his father, a member of the Resistance who died in 1945. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he moved to

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

, where he took on the surname Corti, and finally began to study

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

and

Romance philology Romance studies or Romance philology (; ; ; ; ; ; ) is an academic discipline that covers the study of the languages, literatures, and cultures of areas that speak Romance languages. Romance studies departments usually include the study of Spa ...

at the

University of Innsbruck The University of Innsbruck (; ) is a public research university in Innsbruck, the capital of the Austrian federal state of Tyrol (state), Tyrol, founded on October 15, 1669. It is the largest education facility in the Austrian States of Austria, ...

. Corti worked at public Radio Innsbruck from 1953 onwards, from 1956 to 1960 as head of the literature and radio drama department of the Tyrolean

ORF ORF or Orf may refer to: * Norfolk International Airport, IATA airport code ORF * Observer Research Foundation, an Indian research institute * One Race Films, a film production company founded by Vin Diesel * Open reading frame, a portion of the g ...

regional radio. He then turned to a career as an assistant director at the Vienna

Burgtheater The Burgtheater (; literally: "Castle Theater" but alternatively translated as "(Imperial) Court Theater", originally known as '' K.K. Theater an der Burg'', then until 1918 as the ''K.K. Hofburgtheater'', is the national theater of Austria in ...

and worked as a director at

Theater Oberhausen Theater Oberhausen is a theatre in Oberhausen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. External links

* 1920 establishments in Germany Buildings and structures in Oberhausen Music venues completed in 1920 Theatres completed in 1920 Theatres i ...

and

Theater Ulm Theater Ulm is the municipal theater in the Baden-Württemberg city of Ulm in Germany. Founded in 1641, it is the oldest municipal theater in Germany. Today, it operates distinct ensembles for opera/operetta, acting, and ballet. Until 2006, i ...

as well as with

Peter Brook Peter Stephen Paul Brook (21 March 1925 – 2 July 2022) was an English theatre and film director. He worked first in England, from 1945 at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre, from 1947 at the Royal Opera House, and from 1962 for the Royal Shak ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. Called up to return to public broadcasting upon a major restructuring of the ORF radio programmes, he made Austrian radio history with the conception of his weekly ''Der Schalldämpfer'' broadcasts, which he presented as radio host for more than 24 years from 1969 until 1993. Initially aired by the ORF Ö3 entertainment radio station, Corti's commentaries in a

feuilleton A ''feuilleton'' (; a diminutive of , the leaf of a book) was originally a kind of supplement attached to the political portion of French newspapers, consisting chiefly of non-political news and gossip, literature and art criticism, a chronicle ...

style and his sounding voice stood out of a mainly light music programme. The last ''Schalldämpfer'' was broadcast three days before his death, featuring the life and work of Rabbi

Hillel the Elder Hillel ( ''Hīllēl''; variously called Hillel the Elder or Hillel the Babylonian; died c. 10 CE) was a Jewish religious leader, Sage (philosophy), sage and scholar associated with the development of the Mishnah and the Talmud and the founder of ...

. In 1969 Corti worked as an actor in an ORF television play directed by

Wolfgang Glück Wolfgang Glück (29 September 1929 – 13 December 2023) was an Austrian film director and screenwriter. His film 38 – Vienna Before the Fall'' (1987) was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film at the 59th Academy Awar ...

. The next year he adapted Milhaud's/Cocteau's '' Le pauvre matelot'' (''The Poor Sailor'') and ''Angelique'' by

Jacques Ibert Jacques François Antoine Marie Ibert (15 August 1890 – 5 February 1962) was a French composer of 20th-century classical music, classical music. Having studied music from an early age, he studied at the Conservatoire de Paris, Paris Conservatoir ...

(starring

Mimi Coertse Maria Sophia (Mimi) Coertse, DMS (born 12 June 1932) is a South African soprano. On 26 January 2020, Mimi was also inaugurated as a living legend in the South African Legends Museum. She was one of only 20 South African legends of whom a bus ...

) for an enactment by the

Vienna State Opera The Vienna State Opera (, ) is a historic opera house and opera company based in Vienna, Austria. The 1,709-seat Renaissance Revival venue was the first major building on the Vienna Ring Road. It was built from 1861 to 1869 following plans by ...

ensemble at

Hofburg Palace The Hofburg () is the former principal imperial palace of the Habsburg dynasty in Austria. Located in the center of Vienna, it was built in the 13th century by Ottokar II of Bohemia and expanded several times afterwards. It also served as the im ...

, conducted by

Hans Swarowsky Hans Swarowsky (September 16, 1899September 10, 1975) was an Austrian conductor of Hungarian birth. Swarowsky was born in Budapest, Hungary. He studied the art of conducting under Felix Weingartner and Richard Strauss. Jiří Vysloužil ...

. Corti also worked as a

film director A film director or filmmaker is a person who controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfillment of that Goal, vision. The director has a key role ...

and was appointed a professor at the

Filmacademy Vienna The Film Academy Vienna (Filmakademie Wien) is the Institute for Film and Television at the University of Music and Performing Arts, Vienna. Curriculum The offered programs (Bachelor/Master's degree) are: *Directing *Screenwriting *Cinemat ...

in 1972. His 1975 film ''

The Condemned ''The Condemned'' is a 2007 action film written and directed by Scott Wiper. The film stars Steve Austin, Vinnie Jones, Robert Mammone, Tory Mussett, Madeleine West and Rick Hoffman. The film centers on ten convicts who are forced to fight each ...

'' was entered into the

9th Moscow International Film Festival The 9th Moscow International Film Festival was held from 10 to 23 July 1975. The Golden Prizes were awarded to the Polish film '' The Promised Land'' directed by Andrzej Wajda, the Soviet-Japanese film '' Dersu Uzala'' directed by Akira Kurosawa ...

. Corti married in 1964 and was the father of three sons and one daughter. He died of

leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia; pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and produce high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or '' ...

in Oberndorf,

Salzburg Salzburg is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020 its population was 156,852. The city lies on the Salzach, Salzach River, near the border with Germany and at the foot of the Austrian Alps, Alps moun ...

and is buried in the Arnsdorf cemetery of nearby

Lamprechtshausen Lamprechtshausen (Central Bavarian: ‘’Låmbéhausen’’) is a municipality in the district of Salzburg-Umgebung in the state of Salzburg (state), Salzburg in Austria. Geography Lamprechtshausen lies in the north of the district of Salzburg-U ...

Awards

Silver Shell for Best Director The Silver Shell for Best Director (; ) is one of the main awards presented at the San Sebastián Film Festival to the director of a competing film. Winners See also * Golden Shell for Best Film * Silver Shell for Best Leading Performance ...

, 1986

San Sebastián International Film Festival The San Sebastián International Film Festival ( SSIFF; , ) is an annual FIAPF A category film festival held in the Spain, Spanish city of Donostia, Donostia-San Sebastián in September, in the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Countr ...

* Best Director, 1986

Goldene Kamera The Goldene Kamera ("Golden Camera") is an annual German film and television award, awarded by the Funke Mediengruppe. The award show was usually held in early February in Hamburg, but also took place in Berlin on occasion. It has been paused ...

Grimme-Preis The Grimme-Preis (Grimme Award), formerly known as the Adolf-Grimme-Preis, is one of the most prestigious German television awards. It is named after the first general director of Nordwestdeutscher Rundfunk, Adolf Grimme. The Grimme Institute ...

, posthumously 1994 Since 1997 an annual ''Axel-Corti-Preis'' for outstanding TV productions is awarded by several Austrian

adult education Adult education, distinct from child education, is a practice in which adults engage in systematic and sustained educating activities in order to gain new knowledge, skills, attitudes, or values. Merriam, Sharan B. & Brockett, Ralph G. ''The Pr ...

associations.

Filmography

* ''The Marquis of Keith'', 1962, play by

Frank Wedekind Benjamin Franklin Wedekind (July 24, 1864 – March 9, 1918) was a German playwright. His work, which often criticizes bourgeois attitudes (particularly towards sex), is considered to anticipate expressionism and was influential in the developme ...

* '' Kaiser Joseph und die Bahnwärterstochter'', 1963, drama adaptation starring Hans Moser and

Hans Holt Hans Holt (22 November 1909 – 3 August 2001) was an Austrian film actor. He appeared in more than 100 films between 1935 and 1990. Selected filmography * '' Hannerl and Her Lovers'' (1936) * '' Catherine the Last'' (1936) * '' Florentine' ...

* ', 1972, biography of the

conscientious objector A conscientious objector is an "individual who has claimed the right to refuse to perform military service" on the grounds of freedom of conscience or religion. The term has also been extended to objecting to working for the military–indu ...

Franz Jägerstätter Franz Jägerstätter, (also spelled Jaegerstaetter in English; born Franz Huber, 20 May 1907 – 9 August 1943) was an Austrians, Austrian farmer and conscientious objector during World War II. Jägerstätter was sentenced to death and executed ...

* ', 1973, biographical sketches on

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...

* ''

'' (''Totstellen''), 1975 * ', 1975, adaptation of a

Peter Rosegger Peter Rosegger (original ''Roßegger'') (31 July 1843 – 26 June 1918) was an Austrian writer and poet from Krieglach in the province of Styria. He was a son of a mountain farmer and grew up in the woodlands and mountains of Alpl. Rosegger (o ...

novel * ''

Tatort ("Crime Scene") is a German-language police procedural television series that has been running continuously since 1970 with 30 feature-length episodes per year, making it the longest-running German TV drama. Developed by the German public-se ...

'' (TV series) – ''Wohnheim Westendstraße'', 1976 * ''Young Dr. Freud'', 1976, film about

Sigmund Freud Sigmund Freud ( ; ; born Sigismund Schlomo Freud; 6 May 1856 – 23 September 1939) was an Austrian neurologist and the founder of psychoanalysis, a clinical method for evaluating and treating psychopathology, pathologies seen as originating fro ...

* ''Die beiden Freundinnen und ihr Giftmord'', 1978, adaptation of an

Alfred Döblin Bruno Alfred Döblin (; 10 August 1878 – 26 June 1957) was a German novelist, essayist, and doctor, best known for his novel '' Berlin Alexanderplatz'' (1929). A prolific writer whose œuvre spans more than half a century and a wide variety of ...

novella * ''Das eine Glück und das andere'', 1980 * ', 1981, ORF television play on

Maria Theresa Maria Theresa (Maria Theresia Walburga Amalia Christina; 13 May 1717 – 29 November 1780) was the ruler of the Habsburg monarchy from 1740 until her death in 1780, and the only woman to hold the position suo jure, in her own right. She was the ...

's first year in power * ''Where to and Back 1: '', 1982 * ''Herrenjahre'', 1983, film adaptation * ' (''Pale Blue Ink in a Lady's Hand''), 1984, ORF/

RAI (), commercially styled as since 2000 and known until 1954 as (RAI), is the national public broadcasting company of Italy, owned by the Ministry of Economy and Finance. RAI operates many terrestrial and subscription television channels a ...

co-production starring

Gabriel Barylli Gabriel Barylli (born 31 May 1957) is an Austrian actor and film director. He has appeared in more than 40 films and television shows since 1981. He won the Silver St. George award for Best Actor for his role in ''A French Woman'' at the 19th Mo ...

and

Otto Schenk Otto Schenk (12 June 1930 – 9 January 2025) was an Austrian actor, stage director for plays and opera, and theatre director. He worked internationally at major houses such as the Vienna State Opera and the Metropolitan Opera in New York Cit ...

, adaptation of the novel by

Franz Werfel Franz Viktor Werfel (; 10 September 1890 – 26 August 1945) was an Austrian-Bohemian novelist, playwright, and poet whose career spanned World War I, the Interwar period, and World War II. He is primarily known as the author of '' The Forty ...

* ''Where to and Back 2: '', 1986 * ''Where to and Back 3: Welcome in Vienna'', 1986, Austrian submission for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1987 * ''

The King's Whore ''The King's Whore'' (, ) is a 1990 drama film directed by Axel Corti, starring Timothy Dalton and Valeria Golino. It was entered into the 1990 Cannes Film Festival. Plot Set in the 17th century, an Italian nobleman weds an impoverished coun ...

'', 1990, starring

Timothy Dalton Timothy Leonard Dalton Leggett (; born 21 March 1946) is a British actor. He gained international prominence as the fourth actor to portray fictional secret agent James Bond in the Eon Productions film series, starring in '' The Living Dayli ...

* ', 1994, TV miniseries, based on Joseph Roth's ''

Radetzky March The "Radetzky March", Op. 228, (; ) is a march composed by Johann Strauss (Senior) which was first performed on 31 August 1848 in Vienna to celebrate the victory of the Austrian Empire under Field Marshal Joseph Radetzky von Radetz (the piec ...

'' novel, starring

Max von Sydow Max von Sydow (; born Carl Adolf von Sydow; 10 April 1929 – 8 March 2020) was a Swedish and French actor. He had a 70-year career in European and American cinema, television, and theatre, appearing in more than 150 films and several television ...

Charlotte Rampling Tessa Charlotte Rampling (born 5 February 1946) is an English actress. An icon of the Swinging London, Swinging Sixties, she began her career as a model. She was cast in the role of Meredith in the 1966 film ''Georgy Girl'', which starred Lynn ...

Karlheinz Hackl Karlheinz Hackl (16 May 1949 – 1 June 2014) was an Austrian actor and theater director whose varied career included theater, television, film and cabaret performances as well as musical performances (singing). Biography Hackl was born and was ...

Fritz Muliar Fritz Muliar, born as Friedrich Ludwig Stand (December 12, 1919 – May 4, 2009), was an Austrian actor who, due to his huge popularity, is often referred to by his countrymen as ''Volksschauspieler''. Biography Born in Neubau, Vienna as the s ...

, and Franz Tscherne, directing completed by

Gernot Roll Gernot Roll (9 April 193912 November 2020) was a German cinematographer, film director and script writer. He collaborated on several films with directors Edgar Reitz and Sönke Wortmann. He was regarded as an expert on literary adaptations and ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Corti, Axel 1933 births 1993 deaths Austrian film directors Austrian male writers Austrian people of German descent Austrian people of Italian descent Austrian television directors