''Leap Into Life'' (german: Der Sprung ins Leben) is a 1924 German silent

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super ...

directed by

Johannes Guter Johannes Guter (born Jānis Gūters; 25 April 1882 – 18 March 1962) was a Latvian-born German filmmaker, screenwriter, and occasional film producer. Although most of his work is now lost, he is considered a pioneer of German silent cinema and e ...

and starring Xenia Desni,

Walter Rilla Walter Rilla (22 August 1894 – 21 November 1980) was a German film actor of Jewish descent.Siegbert Salomon Prawer, ''Between Two Worlds: The Jewish Presence in German and Austrian Film, 1910-1933'', Berghahn Books (2007), pg. 213 He appea ...

and

Paul Heidemann Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) * Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity *Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chri ...

. It features one the earliest film appearances of the future star

Marlene Dietrich Marie Magdalene "Marlene" DietrichBorn as Maria Magdalena, not Marie Magdalene, according to Dietrich's biography by her daughter, Maria Riva ; however Dietrich's biography by Charlotte Chandler cites "Marie Magdalene" as her birth name . (, ; ...

.Chandler p. 45 It was partly shot at the

Johannisthal Studios The Johannisthal Studios were film studios located in the Berlin area of Johannisthal. Founded in 1920 on the site of a former airfield, they were a centre of production during the Weimar and Nazi eras. Nearly four hundred films were made at Joh ...

Berlin Berlin is Capital of Germany, the capital and largest city of Germany, both by area and List of cities in Germany by population, by population. Its more than 3.85 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European U ...

as well as on location around Rugen. The film's sets were designed by

Rudi Feld Rudi Feld (1896–1994) was a German art director and set designer who worked for many years in the United States. Germany Feld was born Rudi Feilchenfeld in Berlin, the elder brother of the actor Fritz Feld. He served in the German army durin ...

Synopsis

A young

intellectual An intellectual is a person who engages in critical thinking, research, and reflection about the reality of society, and who proposes solutions for the normative problems of society. Coming from the world of culture, either as a creator o ...

falls in love with a

circus A circus is a company of performers who put on diverse entertainment shows that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, dancers, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, magicians, ventriloquists, and uni ...

performer and decides to cultivate her into a lady and marry her. Eventually however she decides to return to her

tightrope walker Tightrope walking, also called funambulism, is the skill of walking along a thin wire or rope. It has a long tradition in various countries and is commonly associated with the circus. Other skills similar to tightrope walking include slack rope ...

lover.

Cast

* Xenia Desni as Idea - Zirkusartistin *

as Frank - Ideas Partner *

as Dr. Rudolf Borris *

Frida Richard Frida Richard (born Friederike Raithel, 1 November 1873 – 12 September 1946) was an Austrian actress. Selected filmography * '' The Sin of Helga Arndt'' (1916) * '' The Queen's Love Letter'' (1916) * '' The Marriage of Luise Rohrbach'' (1917) ...

as Rudolfs Tante Sophie * Käthe Haack as Dr. Borris' Sekretärin * Leonhard Haskel Le as Zirkusdirektor *

Lydia Potechina Lydia Potechina (5 September 1883 – 30 April 1934) was a Russian actress. She emigrated to Germany in 1918. She was married to the Russian-German film producer Max Pfeiffer. Selected filmography *''Destiny'' (1921) * '' The Conspiracy in Geno ...

as Frau des Zirkusdirektors *

Dr. Gebbing Doctor is an Academic degree, academic title that originates from the Latin word of the same spelling and meaning. The word is originally an Agent noun, agentive noun of the Latin verb 'to teach'. It has been used as an academic title in Europ ...

as Dompteur *

Hans Brausewetter Hans Brausewetter (27 May 1899 – 29 April 1945) was a German stage and film actor of the silent era. He appeared in more than 130 films between 1922 and 1945. He appeared in the 1923 film '' The Treasure'', which was directed by Georg Wil ...

as Borris' Freund *

as Mädchen am Strand *

Hans Heinrich von Twardowski Hans Heinrich von Twardowski (5 May 1898 – 19 November 1958) was a German film actor. Career in Germany Twardowski was born in Stettin, Germany (now Szczecin in Poland). He made his first film appearance in the 1920 Robert Wiene-directed ho ...

as Geiger *

Max Gülstorff Max Walter Gülstorff (23 March 1882 – 6 February 1947) was a German actor and stage director. Biography Gülstorff was born in Tilsit, East Prussia. He first appeared in 1900 at the Rudolstadt municipal Theater and moved to Cottbus in 1908. ...

as Geiger * Erling Hanson * Max Valentin * Ernst Pröckl * Hermann Thimig

References

Bibliography

* Chandler, Charlotte. ''Marlene: Marlene Dietrich, A Personal Biography''. Simon and Schuster, 2011.

External links

* 1924 films Films of the Weimar Republic German silent feature films Films directed by Johannes Guter Circus films 1924 drama films German drama films UFA GmbH films Films shot at Johannisthal Studios German black-and-white films Silent drama films 1920s German films {{1920s-Germany-film-stub