Helga Fanderl

Helga Fanderl (born 1947 in Ingolstadt) is a German filmmaker.¹ She lives in Berlin and Paris.

Biography

Helga Fanderl studied German and Romance studies in Munich, Paris and Frankfurt am Main from 1967 to 1973. She taught languages and literature at grammar schools in Frankfurt am Main and, as a DAAD lecturer, at the University of Bologna.² After taking part in a film workshop run by Urs Breitenstein in the 1980s, she decided to make films with a Super 8 camera.³⁴⁵

From 1987 to 1992 she studied under Peter Kubelka at the Hochschule für bildende Künste (Städelschule), the academy of fine arts in Frankfurt am Main, where she became a Meisterschülerin (master student). This was followed by a year of study abroad under Robert Breer at the Cooper Union School of Arts in New York.⁶

Films

Since 1986, Fanderl has shot more than 1,000 short silent Super 8 films.⁷ Her works are characterised by a distinctive way of working:⁸ the camera is hand-held, and the films are created during shooting by means of in-camera editing.⁹ There is no subsequent editing.

The filmmaker says of her work: “There is no post-production in my work. Each individual film preserves and reflects the traces of its making, the sensations and feelings in the moment of filming.”¹⁰

Kasper König sees in Fanderl’s films “déjà vu experiences reminiscent of scenes from childhood or from painting and literature”.¹¹ Peter Kubelka compares her works to the poems of Emily Dickinson and describes Fanderl as a “sensitive poet who works with film”.¹²

Fanderl’s films are no more than three minutes long and often show simple objects and actions, movements and rhythms. She composes the individual films into programmes¹³ lasting between 50 and 60 minutes, which she screens herself at the projector in cinemas, galleries and exhibition spaces, but also in unconventional places such as the hold of a cargo barge. The whirring of the projector becomes part of the presentation.¹⁴¹⁵ She combines individual films, sometimes according to colours, rhythm or motifs.¹⁶ The projection thus becomes a unique event or performance and emphasises the medium itself. Since Super 8 prints are no longer produced, for some years she has also been showing her films as 16mm blow-ups.¹⁷ She also presents her works in collaboration with other artists, for example as part of William Forsythe’s dance performance “The Loss of Small Detail”,¹⁸ as part of the concert performance of Mauricio Kagel’s “Varieté” by the Gruppe für Neue Musik Baden, or as a film screening and reading with the sound poet Bruno Montels in Marseille.¹⁹²⁰

Her works are shown worldwide in film museums, cinematheques, museums and galleries (e.g. Portikus, Schirn, Deutsches Filmmuseum, Museum für Moderne Kunst, Frankfurt am Main; Sammlung Julia Stoschek, Düsseldorf; Galerie Agathe Gaillard, Centre Pompidou, Paris; Anthology Film Archives, New York; National Gallery of Art, Washington)²¹ and at festivals such as the Internationale Kurzfilmtage Oberhausen (International Short Film Festival Oberhausen), the New York Film Festival, the Toronto International Film Festival and the Media City Film Festival Windsor/Ontario.²²²³

Helga Fanderl in her studio
Photo: Ériver Hijano

Fanderl also presents her films in exhibitions and installations, such as “Marieluise Fleißers Kleider” (Marieluise Fleißer’s Clothes) at the Kunstverein Ingolstadt (2014/2015),²⁴ “Film Live” at Das Esszimmer, Bonn (2015)²⁵ or “Konstellationen” (Constellations) at the Kunsthalle Lingen (2020).²⁶

Fanderl’s films are held in the collections of the Museum für Moderne Kunst and the Kinothek Asta Nielsen in Frankfurt am Main, the Sammlung Hans Bodenmann in Basel, the Auditorium du Louvre and the Centre Pompidou in Paris, and the Archiv für den bundesdeutschen Experimental- und Avantgardefilm von Frauen (Archive of West German Experimental and Avant-Garde Film by Women) in Paderborn.²⁷ The DFF – Deutsches Filminstitut & Filmmuseum archives her originals.²⁸

In 2016, Helga Fanderl published a complete catalogue of her works on her website in collaboration with Karianne Fiorini.²⁹³⁰

Awards

Filmography (selection)

1986: See
1988: Blaues Haus
1990: An der Schutter
1991: Heftige Quellen
1992: Portrait
1993: Eisbär
1994: Apfelernte
1994: Sardinenkörbe
1995: Mädchen
1998: Roter Vorhang
2000: Brunnen
2001: Flugzeuge I
2001: Nescia und Bruno
2001: Vögel am Checkpoint Charlie
2002: Schlittschuhlaufen
2003: Tortelloni
2006: Spiegelung
2007: Wassertanz I
2008: Für M.
2009: Feuerturm
2010: Laub
2011: Gläser
2012: Abendglitzern
2012: Leopard
2013: Nachmittagslicht
2014: The Color Run
2016: Weiße Blumen
2017: Wasserpflanzen
2018: Frauenbründl (Für G.)
2019: Im Sprühnebel

Publications

Fanderl, Helga (1997): Film im Portikus. In: Kölle, Brigitte (ed.): Portikus Frankfurt am Main 1987–1997. Frankfurt/M.: Portikus, ISBN 978-3-928071-34-5.
Fanderl, Helga (2006): Fragil(e). Paris: Lowave (book + DVD).
- The DVD contains 11 Super 8 films (Eisbär, Passanten, Binsen, Brunnen, Mädchen, Riesenrad, Flugzeuge II, Wasserfall, Unter den Seerosen, Weybridge, Feuerwerk), made between 1986 and 2005. Available online at: https://vimeo.com/52141386 (accessed on 20 July 2021).
Fanderl, Helga (2010): Film Live. In: Sequence, No. 1. no.w.here, London. Available online at: http://helgafanderl.com/dev/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/FILM-LIVE-6.pdf (accessed on 20 July 2021).
Fanderl, Helga (2020/21): Constellations. In: Les Saisons, Revue de Cinéma, No. 3, Paris.
Fanderl, Helga (2023): Konstellationen Super 8. Berlin: Hatje Cantz, ISBN 978-3-7757-5495-8.

External links

Website of the filmmaker
Literature by and about Helga Fanderl in the catalogue of the Deutsche Nationalbibliothek
Helga Fanderl in the Internet Movie Database
Helga Fanderl at filmportal.de

Machine translation: This article was translated automatically from the German original.

1
Deutsche Nationalbibliothek (n.d.): Helga Fanderl. Datensatz der Deutschen Nationalbibliothek. In: Website of the Deutsche Nationalbibliothek. Available online at: https://portal.dnb.de/opac.htm?method=simpleSearch&cqlMode=true&query=nid%3D138263833 (accessed on 2 June 2021). ↩︎
2
Gramann, Karola/Schlüpmann, Heide (2014): Die Poesie des Moments. Ein Porträt der Filmemacherin Helga Fanderl. In: Grip, No. 50, pp. 10–11. Available online at: https://www.filmhaus-frankfurt.de/de/grip/grip-50/die-poesie-des-moments/ (accessed on 14 February 2021). ↩︎
3
Freerix, Michael (2020): In Bildern dichten. In: die tageszeitung, article of 30 April. Available online at: https://taz.de/!5680537/ (accessed on 1 June 2021). ↩︎
4
Hessische Kulturstiftung (n.d.): Stipendiatin Helga Fanderl. In. Website of the Hessische Kulturstiftung. Available online at: https://www.hkst.de/de/maecenas/helga-fanderl-3/ (accessed on 1 June 2021). ↩︎
5
Hessische Kulturstiftung (n.d.): Helga Fanderl. In. Website of the Hessische Kulturstiftung. Available online at: https://www.hkst.de/de/stipendiaten/helga-fanderl/ (accessed on 1 June 2021). ↩︎
6
Kunsthalle Lingen (n.d.): Im Kabinett: Helga Fanderl – Konstellationen. In: Website of the Kunsthalle Lingen. Available online at: https://www.kunsthallelingen.de/im-kabinett-helga-fanderl-konstellationen/ (accessed on 1 June 2021). ↩︎
7
Fanderl, Helga (n.d.): Biography. In: Website of Helga Fanderl. Available online at: http://helgafanderl.com/about/ (accessed on 1 June 2021). ↩︎
8
Söltner, Kai (2004): Experimentalfilme auf Super-8 im Bund der Deutschen Filmamateure. Thesis for the degree of Magister Artium in Department 10 (Neuere Philologien) of the Johann Wolfgang Goethe-Universität, Institut für Theater-, Film- und Medienwissenschaft (TFM), dated 30 June. Available online at: https://d-nb.info/1046821156/34 (accessed on 1 June 2021). ↩︎
9
Rees, A. L. (2011): A History of Experimental Film and Video. From the Canonical Avant-Garde to Contemporary British Practice. Ed. by the British Film Institute. London: Palgrave, ISBN 978-1-84457-436-0. ↩︎
10
iMAL (n.d.): HELGA FANDERL: CONSTELLATIONS. In: Website of iMAL – Art Center for Digital Cultures & Technology. Available online at: https://www.imal.org/en/events/cinema-parenthese-1 (accessed on 1 June 2021). ↩︎
11
König, Kasper (1997): Helga Fanderl. In: Uske, Bernhard (ed.): Film: Bayrle, Bott, Breitenstein, Fanderl, Kels, Krüger, Zehetner. Frankfurt/M.: Verlag Bernhard Uske, ISBN 978-3-00-002899-1, p. 89. ↩︎
12
Ausstellungsraum von Konstantin Adamopoulos (ed.) (1996): Helga Fanderl, Filme, Katalog/Leporello zur Filmreihe „Drei Kompositionen“. Frankfurt/M. ↩︎
13
Hessische Kulturstiftung (n.d.): Helga Fanderl. In. Website of the Hessische Kulturstiftung. Available online at: https://www.hkst.de/de/stipendiaten/helga-fanderl/ (accessed on 1 June 2021). ↩︎
14
Kunsthalle Lingen (n.d.): Im Kabinett: Helga Fanderl – Konstellationen. In: Website of the Kunsthalle Lingen. Available online at: https://www.kunsthallelingen.de/im-kabinett-helga-fanderl-konstellationen/ (accessed on 1 June 2021). ↩︎
15
Freerix, Michael (2020): In Bildern dichten. In: die tageszeitung, article of 30 April. Available online at: https://taz.de/!5680537/ (accessed on 1 June 2021). ↩︎
16
Cumming, Jesse (2019): Helga Fanderl. In: Berlin Art Link, article of 22 February. Available online at: https://www.berlinartlink.com/2019/02/22/helga-fanderl/ (accessed on 1 June 2021). ↩︎
17
Gramann, Karola/Schlüpmann, Heide (2014): Die Poesie des Moments. Ein Porträt der Filmemacherin Helga Fanderl. In: Grip, No. 50, pp. 10–11. Available online at: https://www.filmhaus-frankfurt.de/de/grip/grip-50/die-poesie-des-moments/ (accessed on 14 February 2021). ↩︎
18
Driver, Senta (2000): William Forsythe. In: Choreography and Dance. 5(3), ISBN 90-5755-128-4, p. 120. ↩︎
19
n.a. (n.d.): Helga Fanderl »Fragil«. In: Dresdner Schmalfilmtage. Available online at: https://schmalfilmtage.de/data/schmalfilm/archiv/fest2008/fanderl.php (accessed on 1 June 2021). ↩︎
20
Centre International de poésie Marseille (2000): Lecture de fragments de Sappho, sur une projection de films de Helga Fanderl, par Bruno Montels. In: Website of the Centre International de poésie Marseille, post of 19 May. Available online at: http://cipmarseille.fr/pop_audio.php?id=20 (accessed on 2 June 2021). ↩︎
21
National Gallery of Art (2018): Film. Autumn. Available online at: https://www.nga.gov/content/dam/ngaweb/calendar/film/pdfs/2018/2018-fall-film.pdf (accessed on 2 June 2021). ↩︎
22
Kunstverein Ingolstadt (2014): Helga Fanderl – Marieluise Fleißers Kleider. In: Archiv. Available online at: https://www.kunstverein-ingolstadt.de/archiv/2014/helga-fanderl/ (accessed on 2 June 2021). ↩︎
23
n.a. (n.d.): Helga Fanderl. In: Lowave. Available online at: https://www.lowave.com/en/artists/243-helga-fanderl-en (accessed on 2 June 2021). ↩︎
24
Kunstverein Ingolstadt (2014): Helga Fanderl – Marieluise Fleißers Kleider. In: Archiv. Available online at: https://www.kunstverein-ingolstadt.de/archiv/2014/helga-fanderl/ (accessed on 2 June 2021). ↩︎
25
n.a. (2015): Film Live. In: DAS ESSZIMMER – Space For Art+. Available online at: https://dasesszimmer.com/en/exhibition/film-live/ (accessed on 2 June 2021). ↩︎
26
Kunsthalle Lingen (n.d.): Im Kabinett: Helga Fanderl – Konstellationen. In: Website of the Kunsthalle Lingen. Available online at: https://www.kunsthallelingen.de/im-kabinett-helga-fanderl-konstellationen/ (accessed on 1 June 2021). ↩︎
27
Kunsthalle Lingen (n.d.): Im Kabinett: Helga Fanderl – Konstellationen. In: Website of the Kunsthalle Lingen. Available online at: https://www.kunsthallelingen.de/im-kabinett-helga-fanderl-konstellationen/ (accessed on 1 June 2021). ↩︎
28
Hessische Kulturstiftung (n.d.): Stipendiatin Helga Fanderl. In: Website of the Hessische Kulturstiftung. Available online at: https://www.hkst.de/de/maecenas/helga-fanderl-3/ (accessed on 1 June 2021). ↩︎
29
Fanderl, Helga/Fiorini, Karianne (n.d.): Filmtitelverzeichnis. In: Website of Helga Fanderl. Available online at: helgafanderl.com/archive/title/ (accessed on 2 June 2021). ↩︎
30
Avi – Associazione Videoteche Mediateche Italiano (n.d.): Le Pellicole In Formato Ridotto e Fotografie Amatoriali Nelle – Teche Audiovisive Valorizzazione e Riuso delle Memoria. Available online at: https://www.avimediateche.it/it/c/2pg2ynz/le_pellicole_in_formato_r.html (accessed on 2 June 2021). ↩︎
31
n.a. (n.d.): Edward Dwurnik, Helga Fanderl, Dan Graham: Coutts Contemporary Art Awards 1992. In: WorldCat. Available online at: https://www.worldcat.org/title/coutts-contemporary-art-awards-1992-edward-dwurnik-helga-fanderl-dan-graham/oclc/80248800 (accessed on 2 June 2021). ↩︎
32
Hessische Kulturstiftung (2018): Interview mit Helga Fanderl. In: maecenas, Spring. Available online at: https://www.hkst.de/de/maecenas/helga-fanderl-3/ (accessed on 2 June 2021). ↩︎
33
Hessische Kulturstiftung (n.d.): Helga Fanderl. In. Website of the Hessische Kulturstiftung. Available online at: https://www.hkst.de/de/stipendiaten/helga-fanderl/ (accessed on 1 June 2021). ↩︎
34
Staatskanzlei Hessen (n.d.): Hessischer Kulturpreis 1982–2019. In: Website of the Staatskanzlei Hessen. Available online at: https://staatskanzlei.hessen.de/Unsere-Themen/Orden-und-Ehrenzeichen/Hessischer-Kulturpreis (accessed on 2 June 2021). ↩︎

Culture, Film, Film director, Women and media

Empfohlene Zitierweise

Jessica Zeltner
: Helga Fanderl. In: Equalpedia.

Online unter:

https://www.equalpedia.org/en/helga-fanderl-2/

(Zugriff am 26. September 2026).

Erstellt am: 22. September 2026
Verfasser*in: Jessica Zeltner
Zuletzt bearbeitet am: 24. September 2026
Biographies, Culture, Film
Culture, Film, Film director, Women and media