Allegations against Til Schweiger reveal labor law deficits in German film industry

Cheap film country Germany? The allegations against Til Schweiger shed light on labor law deficits in film productions.

A healthy film industry also includes those films that are criticized but loved by large sections of the audience. They are known to feed movie theaters better than most artistic films. In countries whose film industries do not live predominantly from subsidies like the German one, they are vital, even for demanding films.

Because they feed all those trades without which you just can’t make any good films. With the money and the experience that one can acquire in Japan, South Korea or India in commercial film, film people of all disciplines can then afford engagements in productions of which they can be really proud.

Allegations against Til Schweiger: disclosure report published

A considerable part of the few really profitable German cinema films of the last two decades comes from Til Schweiger. How profitable was revealed in 2022 when the screenwriter of the two “Keinohrhasen” films sued for a reasonable fee. They brought in around 70 and 43 million euros respectively. Schweiger’s “Manta Manta – Second Part” is currently making the box office ring. Since its release on March 30, the film has grossed more than ten and a half million euros.

It’s a phenomenon: the voting on the website imdb.com with 2.7 out of 10 points does not exactly show enthusiasm. Schweiger’s audience films are also funded in the same way as artistic films and are therefore produced with almost no risk for the producers. But funding institutions also benefit: because most funding has to be repaid if a film makes a profit.

Likewise, one could previously assume that the many people who work on Schweiger’s mostly comfortably budgeted films will benefit from it. However, an investigative report by “Spiegel” last week raised reasonable doubts about this. The director and leading actor often appeared drunk on the set, he punched an employee of Constantin-Film, which produces together with Schweiger’s Barefoot Films, in the face when he tried to prevent him from entering the set.

Constantin-Film denies allegations against Til Schweiger

Constantin-Film denies that. According to the “Spiegel”, Til Schweiger conveyed a threatening atmosphere, especially when he was under the influence of alcohol. He appeared several times with newly written scenes, which mostly did not make it into the finished film, but caused further overtime pressure. An extra was persuaded to play bare-chested in front of the team. She still suffers from it to this day.

Alcohol abuse often leads to the conclusion that addictions are involved, which, in order to protect those affected, should not be made public. It belongs all the more to the abuse of power that is portrayed here. Especially since this case finally sheds some light on problematic working conditions, about which the German film industry is particularly complaining, especially in the current boom period. Filming is going on everywhere – the demand from the new streaming stations is causing a significant increase in the order situation for filmmakers. Netflix series are now also being funded in the millions, the main principle of the Film Funding Act – increasing the quality of German films – hardly plays a role in the award.

When German and American filmmakers meet, the different labor law standards become clear. A Baubühne employee quotes an expression commonly used by US colleagues, albeit with a racist tinge: “You Germans are something like ‘white Mexicans'”. In other words: paid less and employed not just eight, but up to fourteen hours a day.

No wonder filmmaking in Germany is so cheap

When the Filmstiftung Nordrhein-Westfalen started bringing large-scale international productions to the state in the 1990s, it was a win-win situation: one benefited from the know-how in building a professional infrastructure for film productions. Another major, prestigious US film will be shot in North Rhine-Westphalia this summer, David Lowery’s music drama “Mother Mary” with Anne Hathaway. Hundreds of extras are still being sought, but the casting agency warns that days of shooting could last from “early morning until late at night”.

No wonder filmmaking in Germany is so cheap. Powerful unions keep watch in Hollywood. For Lowery, whose most recent Hollywood film “Peter Pan and Wendy” just premiered on Disney Plus, it’s one of those smaller festival films that he affords between big engagements. In a statement, Claudia Roth demanded a complete clarification of the allegations made against Schweiger in the “Spiegel” article and suggested that the industry should commit itself to a “Code of Conduct”. However, voluntariness is not enough – after all, labor law regulations, for example regarding breaks, have existed for a long time – and are often ignored.

When asked by the Frankfurter Rundschau, the Filmstiftung Nordrhein-Westfalen, which also funded “Manta Manta – Zwoter Teil”, explained that it had not prepared a statement on the allegations. “However, we are happy to confirm that no such ‘incidents’ have happened to us so far and that we have no knowledge of this, including from other productions, that ‘something like this’ may even be increasing.” However, it is important to point out that with the signing of the funding agreement all recipients of funding – in the case mentioned, Constantin Film – committed themselves to complying with all legal requirements and occupational safety regulations. Here, too, clarification is required: “Against the background of inquiries, we will ask the funding recipient for a statement.”

With Til Schweiger it hits a particularly well-known and at the same time controversial personality

It is not surprising if those affected do not turn to the outside world for concern about further work with their complaints. It would be desirable if more were known about it now. Exploitation and arbitrariness are a systemic problem in the film industry. Economic hierarchies are particularly steep here, and transparency is particularly difficult to achieve. Increasingly automated rather than curated film funding favors these conditions because it encourages producers to short development and shooting times, since quality is hardly appreciated or rewarded.

One could certainly have found an example from a less prominent production that was less accessible to the public. With Til Schweiger it hits a particularly well-known and at the same time controversial personality. This may also have something to do with his problematic relationship with the press: years ago he stopped showing his films to the press, only well-meaning journalists were given access to team premieres.