Happy 80th Birthday, Michael Gwisdek!

14 January

Michael Gwisdek was one of the best-known German film actors. He grew up in the GDR and began his creative career as an actor at the Volksbühne in Berlin. Following his first film role in Spur des Falken (The Falcon’s Trail) in 1968, his breakthrough came with his role as a gay barkeeper in Heiner Carow’s feature film Coming Out. In 1988, Michael Gwisdek made his highly-regarded debut as a director with Treffen in Travers (Rendevous in Travers). After that, he continued to work both behind and in front of the camera.

He was one of the few GDR actors permitted to also work in West German productions. After the fall of the Berlin Wall, he was able to establish himself as a character actor and was a popular favourite in both West and East Germany. He worked on more than 70 films and received many awards. His greatest success was in the role of a businessman who takes in a homeless boy, in Andreas Dresen’s Nachtgestalten (Nightshapes); this performance was honoured with the Ernst Lubitsch Prize and the Silver Bear as Best Actor at the Berlinale. In 2013, he received a Lola as Best Supporting Actor for his role in Oh Boy. His comedic talent was on display in roles such as that of school director Klapprath in the surprise hit Good Bye, Lenin!

Gwisdek was married to actress Corinna Harfouch for many years. He died in September 2020.

Good Bye, Lenin (2003)

Berlin (East) in autumn 1989: Alex Kerner's mother is in a coma after a heart attack and misses the fall of the Berlin Wall. She awakes in summer 1990. Her doctor declares that excitement of any kind could be fatal. Alex must conceal the fall of the SED regime from her. He and his friends pretend to the sick woman that the GDR still exists; the illusion remains perfect until one day the truth can no longer be concealed. The clever comedy was the most successful film of the year in 2003.

Image © Bavaria Film International