Leni Riefenstahl - Film Biographies

Film Biographies

In 1993, she was the subject of the acclaimed German documentary film The Wonderful, Horrible Life of Leni Riefenstahl, directed by Ray Müller. Riefenstahl appeared in the film and answered several questions and detailed the production of her films. She was also the subject of Müller's 2000 documentary film Leni Riefenstahl: Her Dream of Africa, documenting her return to Sudan to visit the Nuba.

The Guardian reported in April 2007 that British screenwriter Rupert Walters was writing a movie based on Riefenstahl’s life which would star actress Jodie Foster. The project had been in the works for more than seven years under the working title The Leni Riefenstahl Project. The project is co-produced by Primary Pictures and Foster's own Egg Pictures. Foster said in 1999, "There is no other woman in the 20th century who has been so admired and vilified simultaneously". The project had not been able to capture Riefenstahl’s consent while she was alive, since Riefenstahl requested the ability to veto any scenes she did not agree with; Riefenstahl also preferred Sharon Stone as the star of the movie rather than Foster. Both Foster and Madonna had sought the rights to Riefenstahl’s autobiography since the early 1990s. Director Paul Verhoeven corresponded with Riefenstahl about a separate film biography. In 2011, the director Steven Soderbergh revealed that he had spent 6 months working on a biopic of Riefenstahl. He ultimately abandoned the project over concerns of its commercial prospects and instead pursued the pandemic thriller, Contagion.