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The Passing of Heinz Hölscher - MCS 70 Pioneer
09.10.1925 - 07.05.2021 |
Read more at in70mm.com The 70mm Newsletter
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Written by: Jürgen A. Brückner, Kinemathek Coburg, Germany |
Date:
30.05.2021 |
Heinz
Hölscher with 8mm home movie camera, and next to one of the MCS 70 cameras.
In Memory of Heinz Hölscher – A Pioneer in MCS 70 film production
On May 07, 2021 Heinz Hölscher passed away in Munich Germany. The German film
economy lost one of its most renowned and busiest cinematographers, honorary
member of the BVK (German Society of Cinematogaphers) and Federal Film Award
winner for his work on "ONKEL TOMS HÜTTE".
Born in 1925 as the son of a manufacturer of special photographic equipment in
Munich, he started his career as an assistant to the experienced cinematographer
Franz Weymayr. When the latter fell ill during the shooting of "Zwei Menschen",
he had to finish filming this movie. He first became known in 1954 through his
work on "08/15" by director Paul May. His knowledge for the use of light
was praised early on. The correct use of light, was particularly important in
black-and-white films.
In the course of his 50 years of creative work, important actors stood in front
of his camera, such as: Heinz Rühmann, Lilli Palmer, Curt Jürgens, Gerd Fröbe,
Joachim Fuchsberger, Karin Dor, O.W. Fischer, Uschi Glas, Mario Adorf, Götz
George, Pierre Brice, Terence Hill, Stewart Granger and Lex Barker.
The list of directors he had the pleasure of working for is long one and
included: Paul & Michael Verhoeven, Jürgen Roland, Alfred Weidenmann, Harald
Reinl, F.J. Gottlieb, Harald Philipp, Geza von Radvanyi, Franz Antel, H. Ashley
and Wolfgang Petersen.
My first encounter with Heinz Hölscher was in 1971, when I helped re-release the
film "Flying Clipper -
Traumreise Unter Weissen Segeln" into the movie theaters. He was one of
the four cameramen for the first German 70mm movie - a journey on a sailing
schooling ship through the Mediterranean sea. I acquired the copyrights for the
film from the actress Hannelore Bollmann, whose husband was Rudolf Travnicek,
who brought the Cinerama spectacle
“Windjammer” to German movie screens in 1958. This 3-strip film could
only be shown in a few cinemas due to its special technology. In the meantime,
the 70mm format film brought the same image effect to the giant curved screens.
For the next movie in this genre "FLYING CLIPPER", Travnicek commissioned
the Norwegian designer
Jan W. Jacobsen (1916-1998) in 1961 to build a 65mm camera, since the
cameras available on the market could only be rented with difficulty.
Heinz Hölscher was one of the first cameramen to work with 70mm cameras in the
1960s. With the first 4 of a total of 6 MCS-70mm field cameras built, he filmed
the movie "FLYING CLIPPER", he shot all the aerial shots, the sequences
in Greece, Turkey, Egypt, the Formula 1 race scenes in Monte Carlo and on the
aircraft carrier "Shangri La". The
MCS camera was very
light and handy compared to the previously available 70mm cameras and could even
be mounted under the wing of an aircraft like Do-27.
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More in 70mm reading:
The Passing of Heinz Hölscher - MCS 70 Pioneer
Flying Clipper -
Traumreise Unter Weissen Segeln
Dieter Gäbler passed
away
Dieter Gäbler verstorben
In the Movies
with Gerhard Fromm
The M.C.S.-70
Process and European Cinema of the 1960s
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Heinz
Hölscher (left) and friend Gerhard Fromm in Schauburg, Karlsruhe, 2008.
Picture: Thomas Hauerslev
With the widescreen experience gained, in 1964 the director Géza von
Radványi engaged Heinz Hölscher for the film adaptation of the novel
"ONKEL TOMS HÜTTE", for which he was assisted by cameraman
Gerhard Fromm.
He is remembered for his magnificent camera shots, such as the night
riding scene. For the same director, he then appeared once again in 1965
in "DER KONGRESS AMÜSIERT SICH" and here, wonderful ball
sequences of the amazing Viennese palaces. For the first time the two
MCS-70mm studio cameras were used.
Together with Heinz Hölscher I have also been to screenings of his
movies at the FILMMUSEUM FRANKFURT and the annual
70mm festivals at the
SCHAUBURG in Karlsruhe. His former colleagues and friends Gerhard Fromm
and
Dieter Gäbler
were also present. The latter was responsible for the technology at MCS.
In 2009, the BERLINALE presented in a 70mm RETROSPECTIVE a 70mm print of
"FLYING CLIPPER" newly copied at FOTOKEM in L.A. and invited
Hannelore Bollmann and myself as special guests.
In 2012, when one of the six built MCS-70mm field cameras was offered in
an auction house
in Cologne, I could not resist. Together with Heinz Hölscher and Gerhard
Fromm, we got it working again. Today the camera is displayed in the
foyer of my studio cinema.
Heinz Hölscher shot countless feature movies within 50 years of his
professional career, among them Karl May and Edgar Wallace films.
Visibly deprived of his livelihood in the cinemas, Hölscher was forced,
though rather late, to turn towards television productions. He was
extremely hard-working and successful, and right until the end his name
could be found in well-known German TV series such as "Das
Traumschiff", "Derrick", "Der Alte" or "Tatort".
Highly professional, his work differed from the usual routine work of
some colleagues. Few cameramen can look back on such a large and varied
life's work.
"FLYING CLIPPER" and the MCS-70mm camera will connect us forever.
Grateful and happy to have known him, he will also remain unforgotten in
the worldwide family of film and especially among the friends of the
70mm film format.
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28-07-24 |
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