What does the Murnau Foundation have to do with the Bavarian spa resort?

The Foundation was named after Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau (1888-1931), one of the most important German silent movie directors ( NOSFERATU, FAUST, DER LETZTE MANN). Murnau, who came from Bielefeld, initially started his career as an actor and – during a visit to the Bavarian spa resort of the same name - assumed the name because he probably believed it to be more pleasant to the ear that his real family name, Plumpe.
Of course the Murnau Foundation manages and maintains Murnau movies, but also far more from other directors and creators.

Where can I purchase the Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau Foundation films?

Not from the Foundation. Although the Murnau Foundation makes its stocks available to the public and steers the non-commercial distribution of its films, it is – as a public foundation – not entitled to distribute these commercially.
The Murnau Foundation films are available to purchase as video cassettes or DVDs, for example as Deutsche Filmklassiker releases from Black Hill, or from BMG/Universum and, above all, in the Transit Classics series from Transit Film, the Murnau Foundation’s distribution partner.

Who pays for the work carried out by the Murnau Foundation?

As a result of the distribution revenues (generated through Transit Film) from their films, the Murnau Foundation is able to finance its own work. Therefore, the Foundation is extensively independent of public grants.
Distribution revenues are generated through licensing German movie classics to German and foreign television stations, videocassette and DVD companies, but also through the sales of film excerpts and/or photos.

Why are not all Murnau Foundation films available for purchase?

Approximately 40 titles from the Murnau Foundation archives (corresponding to about approx. 4% of the Foundation’s movie stocks) are not readily available. These are movies from the period of the Third Reich, whose contents promote war, racism or genocide. These films have been banned from public screening by the Freiwillige Selbstkontrolle (FSK). For this reason, these films can only be screened at closed events, such as within the context of political education.
Here, they are introduced by competent experts and subsequently discussed with the audience.
This practice is designed to prevent abuse being conducted with the aid of this problematic part of the German film heritage.
Events with exempted films are carried out by the Kölner Institut für Kino und Filmkultur, on behalf of the Murnau Foundation.

Does the Murnau Foundation profit from so-called exempted films?

No. Any revenues resulting from the licensing of this kind of material (e.g. for historical television documentaries) go to organisations involved, for example, in anti-Semitism research ( Fritz-Bauer-Institut).
Conscious of its historical responsibilities, the Murnau Foundation has also joined the Foundation Initiative of German Industry for the Compensation for Forced Workers, who were active in the, at the time, nationalised German film industry.

Can I purchase film excerpts or photos from German movie classics?

Yes, but not as a private person. Film excerpts and/or photos are frequently requested for historical or film-historical television documentaries, publications but also advertising purposes. Queries of this natures are processed by Transit Film GmbH in Munich (Tel. +49 (0) 89-599885-0, FAX: +49 (0) 89-599885-20, http://www.transitfilm.de).