Lotte Reiniger - The Fairy Tale Films in December

BFI have announced the UK Region 2 DVD release of Lotte Reiniger – The Fairy Tale Films on 1st December 2008 priced at £19.99 RRP. Lotte Reiniger was one of the twentieth century’s major animation artists, pioneering a unique and distinctive style of black and white silhouette animation in her interpretations of classic myths and fairy tales.

Reiniger began her career in Germany, making The Adventures of Prince Achmed (1926) (available on BFI DVD), one of the first and most ingenious full-length animated films in the history of cinema. She moved to Britain in the 1930s where she joined the GPO Film Unit and, together with her husband Carl Koch, produced this extensive series of famous fairy tales.

A two-disc set with additional features and a 22-page booklet of film notes and director biography, the shorts included are:

Disc 1
Cinderella (1922)
The Death Feigning Chinaman (1928)
The Golden Goose (1944)
Aladdin and his Magic Lamp (1954)
The Frog Prince (1954)
The Gallant Little Tailor (1954)
Sleeping Beauty (1954)
Snow White and Rose Red (1954)
Cinderella (1954)
Puss in Boots (1954)

Disc 2
The Magic Horse (1954)
The Grasshopper and the Ant (1954)
The Three Wishes (1954)
Thumbelina (1954)
The Caliph Stork (1954)
Hänsel and Gretel (1954)
Jack and the Beanstalk (1955)
The Little Chimney Sweep (1956)
The Frog Prince (1961)

Extras
The Art of Lotte Reiniger (John Isaacs, 1970, 16 mins)
Mike Figgis’ selection (extract from Friday Night Hijack, 2008)

The shorts are presented in full frame with optional English HOH subtitles.