Franz Osten

Gender: Male
Date of birth: 23 Dec 1876
Date of birth: 02 Dec 1956
Age: 79

Franz Osten (23 December 1876 – 2 December 1956) was a German filmmaker who along with Himansu Rai was among the first retainers of Bombay Talkies. Osten partnered with Rai on a number of India's earliest blockbuster films like Achhut Kanya and Jeevan Naiya. /////>>>> Early life Osten was born Franz Ostermayr in Munich on 23 December 1876. He trained to be a photographer like his father and gave acting a try. In 1907, he founded a traveling cinema called the "Original Physograph Company" with his brother Peter Ostermayr, who later established the predecessor to Bavaria Film Studios, today one of Germany's largest film studios. Amongst other films, he showed Life in India, a short documentary film about the Munich carnival. The run was not very successful: three days after the opening, the projector exploded in flames. Osten decided to make films and in 1911 directed his first feature, Erna Valeska. His career was interrupted by the start of the First World War. He worked first as a correspondent, then became a soldier. After the war Osten made peasant dramas like The War of the Oxen and Chain of Guilt for EMELKA in Munich. /////>>>> Filmography ..>>>> Franz Osten's silent films tell varieties of Indian stories. The Light of Asia (1925) dealt with the life of Buddha. Shiraz (1928) dramatises the events that led to the construction of the Taj Mahal. A Throw of Dice (1929) was based on myths and legends drawn from Indian epic Mahabharata. These movies contributed to increasing the understanding of eastern religions and offered visual splendour and escapism, featuring live elephants in festive decoration and utilising thousands of extras. Since early 2000s, there has been a revived interest in silent films in general and the trilogy of Osten are in focus. Shiraz was shown at the Castro Theatre at the San Francisco Silent Film Festival in 2002, Prem Sanyas at the same festival in 2005, and A Throw of Dice in 2008.[1] Prapancha Pash was re-released in 2006.[2] ////>>> Director (Indian Films)>>>>> Prem Sanyas (1925) / Die Leuchte Asiens (German title) / The Light of Asia (English Title) Shiraz (1928) / Das Grabmal einer großen Liebe (German title) Prapancha Pash (1929) / Schicksalswürfel (German title) / A Throw of Dice (English Title) Jawani Ki Hawa (1935) Achhut Kanya (1936) / Die Unberührbare (German title) / Untouchable Girl (English title) Janmabhoomi (1936) Jeevan Naiya (1936) Mamta and Miya Aur Biwi" (1936) Izzat (1937) Jeevan Prabhat (1937) Prem Kahani (1937) Savitri (1937) Bhabhi (1938) Nirmala (1938) Vachan (1938) Durga (1939) Kangan (1939)