Heintje Peter
Exciting stories for eternity
The past plays a particularly important role for this director and film-maker. Heintje Peter has travelled around the globe to shoot footage – but Plauen is now his home town and the focal point of his life again. He works on his historical film documentaries from here – and has received international awards for them in the meantime.
Heintje Peter looks for the special historical locations where drama and tension clash with each other. After the 47-year-old native of Plauen extensively dealt with the years of war and upheaval in the Vogtland region in his last films, his latest work is all about a small village in the Oderbruch area near the Polish border: his war documentary entitled “Lost in Klessin” has established a memorial for the town in Brandenburg, which achieved tragic fame at the end of the Second World War.
Hitler ordered the German troops to halt the advance of the Russian army here in Klessin.
“There are few comparable places on this planet. Death and decay reached new heights in the village and a huge number of dramas became intermingled,” says Heintje Peter. As in his last films, he has been the source of ideas, the script writer, the director, the camera operator and a great deal more this time too – Peter can point to 300 actors, elaborate backdrops, re-enacted war manoeuvres, tanks and other military equipment, historical uniforms and a budget of EUR 40,000 for his current work; it will have its premiere in the cinemas on 27 October 2018 and was mainly filmed in the state of Saxony-Anhalt.
“I have an archaeological background and historical themes simply interest me. If I can combine the story with the fate of different people, I’m in my element.”
Heintje Peter has already experienced some exciting working years in the past. As an excavation technician for archaeological digs, he worked at the Museum of Prehistory in Dresden, then decided to train as a camera operator at the “Fernseh Akademie Mitteldeutschland” (TV Academy in Central Germany) in Leipzig. He attracted orders from around the globe for various TV formats, including some from RLT, Pro 7 or the VOX documentary soap opera entitled “Auf und davon”.
He still does some work for these channels now. “But no longer to the same enormous degree,” says Peter. He returned to his home town of Plauen five years ago.
“I’d justify my decision by saying I feel at home here. This is where I grew up and this is where I always feel most comfortable.”
He is now somebody who is very much in demand for advertising and image films too.
His last documentary entitled “We Were Comrades – the End”, which tells the story of the Wehrmacht soldier Hellmut Böttger from Treuen in film form, has now attracted three awards. In addition to prizes at international film festivals in Cyprus and India, he also won the “European Cinematography Award 2018” at the Warsaw Film Festival in the “Best European Film” category.
Peter has made a name for himself across Europe as a film-maker of war documentaries.
“I receive offers from many people who want to lend me historical clothing or items.”
And there is no shortage or extras or actors for his films either.
Following the documentaries entitled “The End of the War in the Vogtland Region,” “Plauen under the Swastika” and “Plauen 1945 - 1946 – Awakening from the Ruins,” he has already planned his next project.
“I want to focus on Plauen and the Vogtland region in East German days.”
Heintje Peter is always looking for historical film materials, old film reels, documents, photos and recordings on historical themes.
“People are getting older and I want to preserve their stories.”
He has created an archive for living witnesses for this purpose. Older people report on their experiences in the war in front of the camera.
You can gain an impression of Heintje Peter’s work by following this link: http://www.peter-filmproduktion.de/