Hanns Eisler
About
Biography
Filmography
Bibliography
Biography
Former student of Arnold Schoenberg and collaborator with Bertolt Brecht who left Germany in 1933 and worked with European filmmakers including Joris Ivens and Jacques Feyder before moving to the US in 1936. A Marxist and a modernist, Eisler worked with several noted directors including Fritz Lang and Jean Renoir before being deported in 1948 during the anti-Communist witch hunt. Settling in East Germany, he wrote the new state's national anthem, composed music for several films (including an outstanding score for Alain Resnais' "Night and Fog," 1955) and co-authored a scathing book on movie music, "Composing for the Films" (1947), with philosopher Theodor W. Adorno.
Filmography
Writer (Feature Film)
Music (Feature Film)
Life Events
1929
Feature debut music credit, also first collaboration with director Joris Ivens, "Regen"
1936
First song credit, Jean Renoir's "La Vie est a nous"
1938
First US production, the documentary, "The 400 Million"
1946
Credited as musical director on Douglas Sirk's "Thieves' Holiday"
1988
Final film project, "My Name is Bertolt Brecht - Exile in U.S.A."
Videos
Trailer
