Documentary feature about film diva Asta Nielsen based in part on previously unseen material from private archives of Frede Smith.

In 1921, we follow two women - Marie and Grete - from the same poor Viennese neighborhood, as they try to better the lives of themselves and their families during the period of Austrian postwar hyperinflation.

A conversation with Poul Reumert recorded in the spring of 1968, Asta Nielsen is interviewed by actor Axel Strøbye in his home in Copenhagen . She tells him about her career as the first world star of the film up to the 1920s and about the time that followed, partly in the theater and partly in anonymous retreat in Denmark.

Magda, a piano teacher, meets Knud, a parson’s son, who invites her to spend the summer at his parents’ parsonage. When a travelling circus stops in the village, Magda leaves the meek Knud for the dashing circus rider Rudolf. But circus life with Rudolf quickly turns out to be anything but happy, and Magda comes to a tragic end. (Stumfilm.dk)

Asta Nielsen: pioneer of cinema and first European film star, tragedienne and comedienne, writer and artist. As a working-class child and single parent, she works her way up from the bottom - and consciously stages herself as the first role model for independent women and queers. We retell the story of this singular phenomenon with her own words and film clips.

Mine owner Helene has a crush on the manager. He is however, enamored with Helene's cousin Lina.

Engelein is a comedy of deliberately mistaken identity. If Jesta, a 17-year-old, can play the part of a 12-year-old, her family will gain a large inheritance from a rich uncle from Chicago. Her unruly “play-acting” for the uncle is preceded by an earlier incident in the film that results in Jesta being evicted from her girl’s school. Wearing a long, woman’s skirt, she climbs up a ladder and onto a thatched roof. She reaches over the top of the wall to kiss her boyfriend, who appears from the other side. However, Jesta is caught by the headmistress, and her forced descent is precipitous. Pulled downward, she reveals a great deal of a black-stockinged leg. She looks distinctly sexual as she falls into the matrimonly arms of the law, whose duty is to enforce the rules of female decorum.

Countess Ysabel is a young and rich woman with many suitors. An elegant and adventurous baron has managed to win her heart, but she anyway continues to play with other men’s feelings. Nemesis hits her when a young man with a broken heart kills himself, and the baron at the same time reveals a horrible secret. Ysabe'ls world seems to fall apart.

Film star Ruth Breton has a habit of falling in love. When dating Walter she meets Von Zornhorst. When Zornhorst discards her, she pines away. As a last token of his love for Ruth, Walter writes a play for her, but during the final act of "Pierrot's Death", Ruth expires.

Vanina loves rebel leader Octavio, who gets caught. He gets a pardon and marries Vanina. When he is captured again, Vanina helps him to escape prison. They are both caught, and after his execution she dies from grief.

Stella, a circus princess, has two suitors: young, handsome Count Waldberg and the greying, hidebound jeweller Hirsch. Stella’s love for Waldberg drives Hirsch mad with jealousy. He will stop at nothing to be near the woman of his dreams. When the count loses a staggering sum to the jeweller in a gambling duel, Stella embarks on a fateful mission to save her beloved’s honour. (Stumfilm.dk)

A free adaptation of Shakespeare′s drama. The Danish queen masquerades her daughter as a boy, and thus, the girl lives her life as 'Prince' Hamlet. Her father poisoned by a venomous snake placed by the treacherous Claudius, Hamlet fakes madness to investigate without suspicion.

Jenny, a cleaner, is seduced by a local playboy, Edouard. Jenny's parents reject her after she spends the night with him. She finds a job as a vaudeville dancer, but ultimately winds up in the gutter.

Gypsy girl Zidra falls in love with the lieutenant she is supposed to spy on.

Variety star Kaja falls in love with fisherman Peter. But he in a unfortunate situation kills a man and is sentenced to ten years imprisonment. Kaja promises to wait for him, but things go badly for her.

When the old, wealthy Doctor Schön takes Lulu under his wing, he has no idea that she will be his certain death. Young and beautiful, Lulu is endowed with tremendous erotic charisma that utterly enchants any man in her reach. Although Schön sees disaster approaching, he cannot let go of her. (Stumfilm.dk)

Comedy about a film crew shooting a movie about guns and robbers, when real robbers turn up. Having to go home in robbers costume, they are mistakingly accused. In the end the real robbers are brought to justice. One of the earliest films portraying bisexual characters.

Documentary on the rise and fall of the Danish silent film industry.

A deranged woman artist falls in love with a young sculptor. The impossible love ends tragically.

Nelly's mother is a suffragette and persuades her daughter to join the good cause. Placing a bomb under Lord William's chair love develops between the two.

Auguste is an aging prostitute who falls in love with Felix, a younger student. While Felix has strayed away from his parents, Auguste starts taking care of him and spends her life savings into a cake shop to move further away from prostitution, but trouble comes when another woman enters the picture.

The general's daughter spies on her fiancé to achieve information.

When Lis meets her fiancé for the first time, she is severely disappointed. Having dreamed of a dashing, mysterious Latino man, she instead finds herself stuck with the shy and inexperienced Philip. Something must be done! Lis takes Philip to Paris, where she intends to teach him to be a real man. But doing so requires her to gain access to male society herself. Disguised as a man, Lis ventures out into Paris nightlife with Philip, only to discover that life as a man is harder than expected. However, the real trouble begins when Lis’s father shows up unannounced. (stumfilm.dk)

Young Polar Explorer brings Eskimo Ivigtut to his parents in Berlin. After experiencing Western culture, she finds herself pregnant but the explorer comes to her rescue.

The ballet pupil Camilla Favier makes for a quick success and falls for the author Jean Mayol. She discovers a love letter to him from a rich married woman and is devastated. In revenge she reveals the secret love story for the cuckolded husband and his guests at a big party. Later she finds a new love message from the wayward wife and brings it to the husband, who gets furious, grabs a pistol and incites the climax of the story.

Drama about street walker Elena who marries shop keeper Albert. When her former pimp Peter shows up, her life is ruined. She shoots him and poisons herself.

Found footage film about Asta Nielsen

The proprietors of a small inn on the Italian coast suddenly have to cater for a company of conscripts on their way to a nearby port. One of the sergeants recognizes Resa as a former "camp-follower". When her husband hears of this he becomes insanely jealous and decides to join the company.

A compilation of scenes from Shakespeare adaptations made in the earliest days of cinema, including versions of King Lear, Twelfth Night, Hamlet, Richard III and The Merchant of Venice, as well as less frequently filmed plays such as Henry VIII and The Winter's Tale.

Marriage between Margit and artist Erik Lind is interrupted by her infatuation with squire *Arvid Sund. She gives up the relationship because of Erik's illness and death. Arvid's brother however, brings the two back together.

Comedy about the courting couple Sabine and Lehman. Her roving eye catches a lieutenant, and when he finds out about her winning lottery ticket, he tries to steal it. Lehman intervenes and saves the day.

Gaston finally succeeds as a dramatist and decides to leave his wife and child for another woman. When the child dies, the finger is pointed at him and he winds up as a destitute before all is revealed. This film is considered lost.

The English landowner Wolton has gone on a fishing trip in the Spreewald with his daughter May. They meet fellow Englishman Bruce, who falls head over heels in love with the beautiful May and plans to make her his wife before their holiday is over. However, there is just one problem: May has only eyes for the young boatman Max. Bruce finds an ally in Max’s girlfriend, Grete, and together they do everything in their power to stop the budding love affair. A war of love with a fatal outcome. (Stumfilm.dk)

The Devil decides to go and visit Kurfürstendamm, where all his clients seem to come from. He settles at "Pension Elvira", where everybody cheats and deceives him. He comes to the conclusion, that Hell is a much better place.

The gorgeous 40-year-old Elsie Lindtner lives in a beautiful house, and is married to a respectable university professor. And yet, there’s something that nags her. She’s about to reach “the dangerous age”, when beauty begins to fade and boredom kicks in. She falls in love with a younger man and divorces her husband, but ends up hiding away in a country house where she can age in secret. (Stumfilm.dk)

From the director of Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, this is the Passion embedded in a contemporary story. An anarchist jailed for an attempted assassination is told the Passion story by the prison chaplain.

The only surviving excerpt of a documentary on film production in Weimar Germany, featuring the different personalities of several famous directors of the era at work on the set including Fritz Lang, Robert Wiene, and E.A. Dupont.

Tamara becomes addicted to cocaine but hides from her daughter by moving in with the dealer Mangol. The father tells his daughter that her mother has died, but years later the daughter rediscovers her mother appearing on stage. Mangol pursues the daughter, but Tamara intervenes before dying amongst family members.

Jonna cheats on her husband with a chauffeur and is discovered by her husband. After the divorce, she falls into a life of theft and poverty until her daughter helps her reconcile with her ex. This film is considered lost.

A woman betrays the regiment location in which the officer she is interested in is assigned because he despises her, only to regret it when he is caught and try to free him.

A doppelganger comedy made at the height of Asta Nielsen's fame in which she plays dual roles. This film is considered lost.

Melodrama set in Spain. This film is considered lost.

The landowner Bergmann and his wife hire Annie as a maid, but when the girl gets pregnant by a relative of her master, they dismiss her. Only Johann, the coachman, tries to help her. The child grows up without his mother at the Bergmanns'. A few years later, Johann helps Annie kidnap her son. But, discovered, he is condemned and imprisoned. After serving his sentence, the coachman retaliates by burning the estate. Annie, who tries to save her son, is killed.

A sequel to 1914's Engelein, recounting the wedding of the titular protagonist. This film is considered lost.

Dancing, sports and erotic pursuits are the main ingredients in this drama about the fate of this scorned and abandoned woman, Josefine, who falls for the selfish Fennhofer. This film is considered lost.

The aging singer Clarina receives a new engagement from a cabaret called the Maison Mouche and must evade the advances of several overbearing men. This film is considered lost.

In a remote german valley, a lord falls in love with a gypsy thief. This film is considered lost.

Bank director Hardner, a cunning businessman who hides his unscrupulousness behind a mask of friendliness, tries to destroy a family. This film is considered lost.

Comedy superstar Kamma has her professional life and her relationship strained when her son Maurice becomes fatally ill. Only a small fragment of the film remains.

Silent adaptation of the famous play by Henrik Ibsen. This film is believed to be lost.

The dancer Navarro has lost her husband and son. With her daughter at her side, she returns to her homeland and comes under suspicion of spying when she gets into a relationship with a business friend of her deceased husband. This film is considered lost.

A loose adaptation of August Strindberg's Miss Julie. The daughter of a count witnesses her mother's increasing mental instability after being spurned by a lover.

Hanna is a lush and her artist friend abandons her only to reacquaint himself with when she is down and out. His motive is to paint her as a washed up women. When she realizes his intentions she ruins his painting and him.

Naive 16 year old Rosi paints butterfly pictures and day-dreams of a better world, abhorring the conducts of Else, Laura, Max and and an immoral cavalier. [16-minute segment survives.]

Bella is married to engineer Burk who meets with an accident. To provide an income she starts as a performer, but happen to meet an infatuated, intriguing composer. On the brink of marital ruin, she kills the composer.

Many suitors woo the wealthy heiress Dora, but her heart belongs to the doctor Alberto. Shortly after their engagement, it turns out that Alberto has kept a child from a previous relationship a secret, which causes Dora – in grief and defiance – to marry Reppen, a banker who is only after her fortune. Years go by in their unhappy marriage until one day the couple’s daughter has an accident – and only one doctor can help.

Drama about Auca's relationship with two highwaymen, Ruggiero and Danilo. After the loss of a child, Auca throws herself into an abyss.

Drama about a country girl who becomes a model for an artist with no morals. Disheartened, she return to her home to her old friend Christoph who accidentally kills a man. Tempted to leave again, she awaits his dismissal.

Mia Verhag loses her job as a chorus singer when she rejects the advances of the theatre director. While she is in the grips of despair, she encounters the millionaire Roswolsky, who takes her to his luxurious house and gives her a key to the garden gate, allowing her to visit the surrounding park whenever she pleases. This chance meeting sends rumours flying everywhere, and soon Mia appears on the front pages of all the newspapers as Roswolsky’s mistress. The city’s merchants and creditors compete to lend her money, and she lands the leading role in the theatre’s new production. There, she falls in love with Count Albich – but, believing the rumours, he avoids her. Mia follows him to Monte Carlo, while Roswolsky himself falls genuinely in love with her and plots to take Albich out of the running. A grand drama is set to unfold.

Growing up with mean foster parents, Lotte is employed as a kitchen maid with the von Harten family. After a dramatic interlude, including an accusation of theft, Mrs. von Harten reveals the truth about being her real mother, and the two are reunited.

Zirzi witnesses the murder of Professor Wormser.

Kind-hearted Thekla helps her frivolous brother and hides him on a remote farm.

Ernest Schiller, a wealthy merchant, has the cherished ambition to secure as his son-in-law the Count De Grechy, a member of the nobility. His ambition is about to be realized, for the Count has accepted an urgent invitation to be Schiller's guest. His arrival is hailed with delight by the merchant, who offers the freedom of his home. Bertha, Schiller's daughter, does not experience the same enthusiasm which is manifested by her father. The reason for this is that she has pledged her heart and hand to Franz Rambauld, her sweetheart. The Count's attentions, therefore, are greatly distressing to Bertha. Nevertheless, through her father's insistence, the unfortunate girl is compelled to engage herself to the Count.

Comedy about dare devil Emile who falls in love with Madeleine. The consequences are devastating.

When architect Ernstein falls for secretary Paula, his wife makes sure, that she is fired and evicted from her apartment. When she finds herself pregnant, Ernstein offers her money, but she chooses suicide.

Wanda marries a Count but falls in love with his son. When their relationship is discovered by the Dowager Countess, she locks them in the garden shed and sets fire to it.

Comedy about the lieutenant who marries poor Jesta. As a wealthy neighbor wants his own daughter to wed the officer, Jesta has to disguise herself as a man to woo her rival. She is revealed but finally gets her lieutenant.

A lost short film starring Asta Nielsen.

Drama with poor blind Marta who falls in love with sculptor Paul who prefers the high life. As she tries to bring him to the straight and narrow, he lets her down again which results in her taking both their lives.

Actress Dora marries journalist Gustav and lets down her art. She helps him in his political career but finally leaves him and commits suicide.

Wanda runs away from her Gypsy camp, trying to live as a dancer. In a dream sequence she meets Ruprecht and Curt, who both fall in love with her. Ruprecht, the jealous one, is shot by Wanda. She wakes up realizing that Jarow, her admirer from the Gypsy camp, has found her again.

Jesta’s mischievous and playful manner is driving her father and his new lady friend mad. Finally they have had enough, and Jesta is sent away to a girls’ school, bundled onto the first train available. However, a mix-up occurs at the train station. A professor in dire financial straits, who has finally gotten a young, mentally challenged sent to him for treatment, mistakenly takes Jesta home with him to his clinic – a move he will soon regret … (stumfilm.dk)

The idealistic journalist Sonja Waler is making every effort to provide financial assistance for the young doctor Albert Holm’s new invention, which is predicted to be able to save thousands of lives. She comes into contact with a cynical loan shark who ends up falling victim to Sonja’s altruistic plan.

Ester escapes an orphanage and finds employment with Dr. Hoff and later with dramatist Hugo Mayerling. After reading a play of his she succeeds on stage and marries him.

The actress Thilda Wardier is courted by the wealthy Adam de Rochord, who presents her with a large bouquet of white roses every time they see each other. When Thilda is brought on board by a prestigious theatre in Ostend and wants to look suitably refined for the occasion, she borrows an expensive piece of family jewellery from Adam. However, a criminal gang staying in the same hotel as Adam and Thilda gets wind of the jewellery, and they cleverly manage to steal it and replace the real stones with fake ones. The precious loot now proceeds to pass through many different bouquets of white roses before ending up in the right hands again.

In this film, Nielsen plays the role of a mannequin, using her body as a clotheshorse. She makes a striking entrance on a flight of stairs, which serve as a stage on which to present sumptuous gowns and precious accessories. An outdoor shot shows Nielsen wearing an extravagant hat, posing in front of a Wilhelminian building in Berlin.