Rosa von Praunheim

3 films · 1979 to 2000
Born 25 November 1942, Riga · Died 17 December 2025

Holger Bernhard Bruno Mischwitzky, known professionally as Rosa von Praunheim, was a German film director, author, producer, professor of directing and one of the most influential and famous queer activists in the German-speaking world. A pioneer of Queer Cinema and gay activist, von Praunheim was a key co-founder of the modern lesbian and gay movement in West Germany and Switzerland. He was an early advocate of AIDS awareness and safer sex. Furthermore, he was one of the most important representatives of the New German Cinema. His films centre on queer-related themes and strong female characters, are characterized by excess and employ a campy style. They have featured such personalities as Keith Haring, Larry Kramer, Diamanda Galás, William S. Burroughs, Allen Ginsberg, Judith Malina, Jeff Stryker, Jayne County, Divine, Charlotte von Mahlsdorf, and a row of Warhol superstars.

Biography adapted from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA.

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Rosa von Praunheim

Photo: Martin Kraft, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons.

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