Miss Universe 1929 - Lisl Goldworker. A Queen in Vienna

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Movie
Original title Miss Universe 1929 - Lisl Goldworker. A Queen in Vienna
Country of production Austria , Netherlands
original language German
Publishing year 2006
length 70 minutes
Rod
Director Péter Forgács
script Péter Forgács
production Georg Misch ,
Ralph Wieser ,
Cesar Messemaker
music László Melis
cut Péter Sass

Miss Universe 1929 - Lisl Goldworker. A Queen in Vienna is a documentary film by director Péter Forgács about Lisl Goldarbeiter , who was the only Austrian woman to be named " Miss Universe " in 1929 .

Synopsis

In 1929 the first and so far only Austrian woman was named Miss Universum : Lisl Goldarbeiter . Her rise to become a beauty queen, her life in Vienna between the wars and the fate of the family during National Socialism were documented by her cousin Marci Tenczer of the same age with his 9.5 mm camera . Both survived the chaos of war and finally found each other as a couple in 1949. Marci filmed his Lisl until she died at the age of 88.

The filmic diary of Marci Tenczer is not just a document of contemporary history; rather, it runs like a red thread through a network of unspoken, anticipated, small secrets, gestures and looks. Love can be read in it and joy of life, sometimes also doubt and sadness. The magic of this film certainly lies in the gift of the two protagonists to face the course of events into old age apparently with serenity.

Miss Universe 1929 - Lisl Goldworker. A Queen in Vienna - consists exclusively of archive material , the majority of the material comes from amateur filmmakers .

Biographical background

Lisl Goldarbeiter and Marci Tenczer were born in 1909, were cousins ​​and knew each other from an early age. The gold workers lived in Vienna and belonged to the Austrian branch of a large Jewish family in Austria-Hungary . The Tenczers lived in Szeged and formed the Hungarian branch.

Marci moved to Vienna to study in 1926 , as the first anti-Semitic law in Europe , the Hungarian Numerus clausus of 1922, prohibited Jews in Hungary from entering the university . Marci lived in the house of the gold workers and studied from 1926 to 1936 at the Technical University .

Marci adored his cousin Lisl. Shortly after his arrival, he began filming her family and Vienna. He was very poor, but saved the money for his film hobby by walking around town instead of taking the tram . A sponsor made it possible for him to buy a 9.5 mm camera. Marci made Lisl's entry into the world of beauty in 1929 , making her world famous.

Lisl married the tie manufacturer Fritz Spielmann in 1930 , who years later fled the National Socialists without Lisl. Marci remained single for the time being and survived the war as a Russian slave laborer . His family was murdered. Lisl and her mother, both Protestants , barely escaped concentration camp internment and also survived, while Lisl's father and many relatives perished in the Holocaust .

Lisl and Marci finally married in 1949, lived through the Hungarian uprising in 1956 and the consolidation of communism in Hungary. Lisl died in 1997, Marci in 2003 - shortly after he had told the filmmaker Péter Forgács everything about his life and that of “his” Miss Universum Lisl Goldarbeiter.

“ Over the past 20 years I have discovered that old amateur films are unconscious diaries of life and history. These cinematic diaries tell us about things that are no longer accessible or tangible to us, and also show us the other side of official historiography. … What interests me in amateur films is the magical element, the secret of the images. I wouldn't call her innocent, but naive. I am fascinated by the beauty of the pictures and the story behind them. "

- Péter Forgács

Festivals (selection)

Prices

  • Focal Int. Award: "Award for Best Use of Footage in Factual Productions"
  • Nomination: FIAT / IFTA Award (Int. Federation of Television Archives), Lisbon

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