Im Staub der Sterne (1976)

Director:

Gottfried Kolditz

Writer:

Gottfried Kolditz (writer)

Release Date:

1 July 1976 (East Germany)

Genre:

Sci-Fi

Plot:

After a six year journey, the Spaceship Cyrno lands on the planet TEM 4 from where they had received a call for help...

Cast

Jana Brejchová	...	Akala
Alfred Struwe	...	Suko
Ekkehard Schall	...	Chief
Milan Beli	...	Ronk
Silvia Popovici	...	Illik (as Sylvia Popovici)
Violeta Andrei	...	Rall
Leon Niemczyk	...	Thob
Regine Heintze	...	Miu
Mihai Mereuta	...	Kte
Stefan Mihailescu-Braila	...	Xik
Aurelia Dumitrescu	...	Chta
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Zephi Alsec

Directed by
Gottfried Kolditz

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Gottfried Kolditz		writer

Original Music by
Karl-Ernst Sasse

Cinematography by
Peter Süring

Film Editing by
Christa Helwig

Art Direction by
Bernhard Kalisch

Set Decoration by
Gerhard Helwig

Costume Design by
Katrin Johnsen

Makeup Department
Bernhard Kalisch	....	makeup artist
Regina Reinhard	....	hair stylist

Production Management
Werner Fritzsche	....	unit manager
Helmut Klein	....	production manager
Horst Schmidt	....	unit manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Sigrid Meyer	....	assistant director

Art Department
Hans-Joachim Schwarz	....	set constructor
Peter Zakrzewski	....	set constructor

Sound Department
Christian Müller	....	sound
Christfried Sobczyk	....	sound mixer

Special Effects by
Kurt Marks	....	special effects

Camera and Electrical Department
Dieter Lück	....	assistant camera
Heinz Pufahl	....	assistant camera

Other crew
Joachim Hellwig	....	story editor
Cornel Patrichi	....	choreographer
Inka Unverzagt	....	choreographer

Production Companies

• VEB DEFA-Studio für Spielfilme
• Künstlerische Arbeitsgruppe ''Futurum''

Distributors

• VEB Progress Film-Vertrieb (1976) (East Germany) (theatrical)
• First Run Features (2005) (USA) (DVD)
• Icestorm Entertainment (1999) (Germany) (DVD)
• Popron Music & Publishing (2008) (Czech Republic) (DVD)
• Popron Music & Publishing (2008) (Slovakia) (DVD)
• YLE Teema (2007) (Finland) (TV)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

East Germany

Language:

German

Color:

Color (ORWO-Color)

Company:

VEB DEFA-Studio für Spielfilme

Trivia:

According to director of photography Peter Süring, the scenes in Romania (mud volcanoes and salt mines) were the first to be shot. The film laboratory at the Romanian National Film Studios in Buftea were used to processing Eastman Kodak stock, and were initially unable to process the East German ORWO negative. After re-calibrating the Romanian lab equipment, it was able to process the ORWO stock, albeit with a soft contrast look that the director and DP liked. As a result, all of the footage subsequently shot at the Babelsberg Studios in East Germany was shipped on a daily basis to Romania for processing.

Wo ist RONK?

This is one of very few existing East-German sci-fi flicks, and it's certainly not lost its value of entertainment over the years. On the contrary, the film repeatedly makes the audience laugh hysterically, although sometimes without the intention of being funny.

The plot is quite simple: A crew of cosmonauts land on a foreign planet, investigating a radio signal, sent out asking for help. They reception they get from the native people on the arrival is however not as friendly as it first seems. Something fishy seems to be taking place underneath the planet's surface.

The film apparently had a reasonably high budget and some of the clothes and settings are actually cool. It's VERY much seventies, but not so much in a bad way. There is also some totally unprovoked nudity and the characters are hilarious.

I think probably most people should be able to enjoy this film in some aspect, at least those of us who still have a sense of humor childish enough to laugh at East-German bearded spacemen named RONK.