Erna Baumbauer (8 January 1919 – 30 January 2010) was a German

casting agent A talent agent, or booking agent, is a person who finds work for actors, authors, broadcast journalists, film directors, musicians, models, professional athletes, screenwriters, writers, dancers, and other professionals in various entertainment ...

. She has been called the "grand dame of German casting agents" by ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...

'' for her long career in the German

film industry The film industry or motion picture industry comprises the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking, i.e., film production company, production companies, film studios, cinematography, animation, film production, screenwriting, pre- ...

, which spanned decades. She was nicknamed "the Queen of

Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...

" by one of her clients, actor

Ulrich Mühe Friedrich Hans Ulrich Mühe (; 20 June 1953 – 22 July 2007) was a German film, television and theatre actor. He played the role of Hauptmann (Captain) Gerd Wiesler in the Academy Awards, Oscar-winning film ''Das Leben der Anderen'' (''The Live ...

Life

Bambauer was born in

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

in 1919, and stood 5'1" tall during her life. She began her career by working as a bookdealer and

journalist A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called journalism. Roles Journalists can work in broadcast, print, advertis ...

. She founded her eponymous Munich-based

talent agency A talent agency is a company that represents actors, authors, musicians, model (person), models, professional athlete, athletes, writers, dancers, and other professionals in various industries. Talent agencies specialize, either by creating dep ...

, Erna Baunbauer Management, following the end of

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 ...

, where she worked until her death in 2010. ''The Hollywood Reporter'' described her as knowing everyone with the German film industry. In one instance, film director

Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck Florian Maria Georg Christian Graf Henckel von Donnersmarck (; born 2 May 1973) is a German-Austrian film director. He is best known for writing and directing the 2006 dramatic thriller ''Das Leben der Anderen (The Lives of Others)'', which won ...

sent Baumbauer a script for his 2006 film, ''

The Lives of Others ''The Lives of Others'' (, ) is a 2006 German drama film written and directed by Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck marking his feature film directorial debut. The plot is about the monitoring of East Berlin residents by agents of the Stasi, Ea ...

'', for her to cast directly. Baumbauer directly chose three actors from her agency to become the male leads for the film - Ulrich Muehe,

Sebastian Koch Sebastian Koch is a German television and film actor. He is known for roles in the 2007 Academy Award-winning film '' The Lives of Others'', in Steven Spielberg's '' Bridge of Spies'', and as Otto Düring in the fifth season of the Showtime s ...

und

Ulrich Tukur Ulrich Tukur (born Ulrich Gerhard Scheurlen; 29 July 1957) is a German actor and musician. He is known for his roles in Michael Haneke, Michael Haneke's ''The White Ribbon'', Steven Soderbergh, Steven Soderbergh's ''Solaris (2002 film), Solaris' ...

. Bambauer's client included

Maximilian Schell Maximilian Schell (8 December 1930 – 1 February 2014) was a Swiss actor. Born in First Austrian Republic, Austria, his parents were involved in the arts and he grew up surrounded by performance and literature. While he was still a child, his fa ...

Katja Riemann Katja Hannchen Leni Riemann (, born 1 November 1963) is a German actress. The daughter of two teachers, Riemann grew up in Weyhe, near Bremen. After high school she went to Hamburg to study music and theater. She is the mother of actress Paula ...

Susanne Lothar Susanne Lothar (15 November 1960 – 21 July 2012) was a German film, television and stage actress. Her work included collaborations with Austrian filmmaker Michael Haneke. She was married to fellow actor Ulrich Mühe, with whom she frequently ...

and

Bruno Ganz Bruno Ganz (; 22 March 1941 – 16 February 2019) was a Swiss actor whose career in German stage, television and film productions spanned nearly 60 years. He was known for his collaborations with the directors Werner Herzog, Éric Rohmer, Franc ...

. The German Film Academy awarded Baumbauer the

lifetime achievement award Lifetime achievement awards are awarded by various organizations, to recognize contributions over the whole of a career, rather than or in addition to single contributions. Such awards, and organizations presenting them, include: A * A.C. ...

in 2006. This marked the first time in the academy's history that a woman who was not 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 ...

actress An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

by profession had received the honor.

Death

Erna Baumbauer died on 31 January 2010, aged 91. She was survived by her daughter, Patricia, a talent agent, her granddaughters, Antonia and Francesca, and son,

Frank Baumbauer Frank Baumbauer (born 2 September 1945 in Munich, Germany) is a German theater director and artistic director active in the German theater community. He is the son of German casting agent Erna Baumbauer. Baumbauer was from 2001 to 2009 the d ...

, a

theater director A theatre director or stage director is a professional in the theatre field who oversees and orchestrates the mounting of a theatre production such as a play, opera, dance, drama, musical theatre performance, etc. by unifying various endeavors a ...

References

External links

Erna Baunbauer Management
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Baumbauer, Erna 1919 births 2010 deaths German talent agents Film people from Munich Officers Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany