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The Ziegler couple, Gremm
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Private
SPIEGEL:
Ms. Ziegler, your husband Wolf Gremm died seven years ago.
His last work was the documentary »I still love life«, in which he recorded his battle with cancer.
Did you ever watch the film again?
Ziegler:
Yes, recently, for the first time since his death.
MIRROR:
Why now?
Ziegler:
On Wednesday the film will be shown again on RBB* after a long time, and I would like to watch it there with my family.
It was important to me to let him work on me alone beforehand.
It was associated with great intensity.
SPIEGEL:
What was particularly intense?
Ziegler:
For example, the memory of an emergency situation when we were in Miami.
It was supposed to be a vacation for Wolf, instead we spent most of the time in the hospital after he suddenly couldn't breathe one night.
Wolf was in a coma, I sat by his bed for 14 days to be there when he regained consciousness.
SPIEGEL:
The film leaves nothing out.
He shows your husband at the doctor showing him the x-rays showing the metastases and balding during chemotherapy.
It must be hard for you to bear to see that again.
Ziegler:
Still, the film didn't drag me down, on the contrary.
He encourages you to find a way, even in the most difficult situations, to live on until the day when saying goodbye is imperative.
Of course we had moments where we just cried.
But we also did crazy things when Wolf was ill.
We watched Humphrey Bogart movies at night or cooked spaghetti at four in the morning.
I did everything that was important to him.
And I was allowed to experience that Wolf fell asleep in my arms.
I don't want to miss that.
Wolf and I spent 44 years together, of course there was a bang, we both had hair on our teeth.
But I have such beautiful memories of him that I often think he's still there.
When I have the fireplace on and feel the warmth of the fire
SPIEGEL
: Wolf Gremm would be 80 years old on Saturday.
How do you celebrate the birthday of someone who is no longer alive?
Ziegler:
I can tell you: in the case of Wolf with a good film.
My daughter Tanja and I have our own cinema, filmkunst 66 in Berlin-Charlottenburg.
On Wolf's birthday, his Kästner film »Fabian« will be shown there in a regular screening.
My family, our closest friends and I will watch it together.
Then we go to eat.
Wolf loved birthdays, his 70th was a big party.
By then he was so ill that no one knew how long he would live.
SPIEGEL:
Have you seen your husband's films with different eyes since his death?
Ziegler:
Some have become even more important for me as a result.
For example the melodrama "Island of Light"** with Ruth Maria Kubitschek.
There is a scene with a burial at sea.
With this, Wolf signaled to me years before his illness: That's how he would like it to be.
And that's how we did it, in front of Mallorca, where we have a house, in a bay directly on the sea.
SPIEGEL:
Secretly - or with permission?
Ziegler:
I had the blessing of the Mallorcan authorities, but initially with a caveat.
Wolf wanted to be lowered into the water on his swim course, but the officials felt it was too close to the houses, so they ordered a burial further out.
I had chartered a ship for September 4, 2015, with a German and a Spanish captain, friends and family were there.
A terrible storm raged on the island that day.
The German captain, who did not know the history of Wolf's desired location, explained to us that the ceremony could not be carried out as far out as planned due to the weather, but had to be moved to the bay.
Would I mind?
I said, well, if there is no other way - and I was happy.
When we got to the bay, the sun came out for ten minutes,
then it rained again.
A Gremmian production.
SPIEGEL:
When you met you were still married.
Ziegler:
Wolf and I clashed in an incredible way, there's no other way to put it.
I had a job as a production assistant at Sender Freies Berlin, Wolf came from the film academy and shot documentaries.
He would drop in on me a lot, loll about in my office and say, Got some coffee?
I thought: what does this guy want, I have to work.
Wolf always wanted to go out with me, I declined, I was happy in my marriage and had a four-year-old daughter, Tanja.
After a year he stood in front of me and said: No excuse, today we're going to eat together.
Alright.
He had chosen a cozy corner in a Russian restaurant.
First there was Zarenrolle, a rolling pin filled with caviar.
I was 26 then and had never eaten caviar.
We talked and talked
Eventually he came over to me, bit my earlobe and said, "I love you and I'm going to marry you." That was it.
We kissed, I went home and said to my husband, "I'm sorry, I have to break up with you." He was stunned.
SPIEGEL:
A scene like something out of a TV tidbit.
If you came to ARD with such a script, you would probably be sent away.
Ziegler:
Hmm... You give me an idea.
SPIEGEL:
You and Wolf Gremm were also a team professionally.
His first feature film was also the beginning of your career as a producer.
Ziegler:
He said: You have to become self-employed, there are only male producers in Germany, you have to be the first female producer.
So I produced his debut, »I Thought I Was Dead«.
That was the hour of birth of Ziegler Film, the company will be celebrating its 50th anniversary next year.
SPIEGEL:
The "Fabian" poster is hanging behind you.
Is this the film that was most important to your husband?
Ziegler:
One of two, I would say.
The initiation of "Fabian" was connected with a difficulty.
Erich Kästner had bequeathed half of the film rights to his wife and half to his lover.
Wolf managed to see both women on the same day and got a written okay from them.
The other film that meant a lot to him was Kamikaze 1989, starring Rainer Werner Fassbinder.
That was an intensive collaboration.
SPIEGEL:
What did Gremm and Fassbinder have in common?
Ziegler:
They liked each other simply because they liked each other's films.
I think they shared a lot more about each other than friends usually do.
Rainer even lived with us for half a year.
"Dallas" always had to be watched on Tuesdays, it was his favorite series.
If he and Wolf were out that night, I would have to arrange for the episode to be videotaped.
When Wolf started with »Fabian«, Rainer was almost a little offended because he would have liked to do that too.
At that time he was shooting »Berlin Alexanderplatz«.
Then there were football games, the “Fabian” team versus the – unfortunately much better – team “Alexanderplatz”.
SPIEGEL:
Fassbinder died at the age of 37 from a mixture of cocaine and sleeping pills.
After that, your husband hardly made any cinema films, but shifted to TV productions.
Ziegler:
We missed Rainer, of course.
As a friend, as an inspiration.
Unfortunately, we were no longer able to implement a large joint project.
I wanted to film the life of Rosa Luxemburg, with Rainer directing and Jane Fonda in the leading role, both of whom had already signed the preliminary contracts.
I went to the Cannes Film Festival with Rainer and Wolf.
While the guys were killing time, I raised the first million for funding in five days.
Jane Fonda and Rainer usually called Dallas on Tuesdays.
She answered: "Jane Fonda herself." He replied: "Rainer Werner Fassbinder himself."
SPIEGEL:
As a young producer, how did you actually manage to assert yourself in the male-dominated film world?
Ziegler:
As a stair terrier, at least in the early years.
Because I didn't know anyone at ZDF, for example, I rode the elevator up and down in Mainz for three days.
When someone came in, I said: May I introduce myself, I'm a producer, is there anything you can do for me?
I did a similar thing on ARD, and I even marched on Billy Wilder in Hollywood.
SPIEGEL:
Did he take you seriously?
Ziegler:
It went like this.
I'd only been in the business for two years, but I really wanted to do a film with him.
I managed to get an appointment with him, where I asked him what I wanted.
Wilder asked about my budget.
Well, like 6 million dollars, I said boldly.
He replied: Girl, I still had to save, my fee alone is that much.
SPIEGEL:
At the beginning of your career, did you try to copy masculine gestures of power?
Ziegler:
The danger never existed.
I don't bang on the table, I don't yell, I have my own means.
I have also never tried to imitate men, but have worn Wallawalla long robes, large and small hats and velvet coats.
I have Wolf to thank for that.
He said: If you come in somewhere, everyone has to say "Wow!"
*»I still love life«, Wed., February 23, 11 p.m., RBB
**»Island of Light«, Sat., February 26, 9 a.m., RBB
