Art is universal. This is why a man born in Munich can be an icon in Hollywood, an American film industry. This is the story of Werner Herzog’s legacy. The German director is considered one of the greatest living directors on the planet, not only in terms of his body of work but in terms of his intellectual contribution to the filmmaking process.
Making a film is like being the conductor of an orchestra, building different instruments to work together and produce a singular effect on the viewer. With many directors working today and the frequency with which new projects need to be released, it can be difficult to patiently create a legacy. But that’s no problem for Werner Herzog. He has built a legacy including films, short and long, documentaries, opera and theater, in a career that spans 56 years. Here are some interesting facts to learn about the legendary director.
Biography of Werner Herzog
Before we dive into some interesting facts about the director, let’s get acquainted with the director. Herzog is a German son of Elizabeth Stipetic and Dietrich Herzog. He was born on September 5, 1942 in Munich and grew up in Sachrang, a Bavarian village for 12 years, following World War II.
During a difficult start to life that included his father abandoning him and his mother, he decided to become a filmmaker after being introduced to the existence of cinema in Sachrang by a projectionist. Werner’s early life began as a bit of a wanderer/adventurer, taking long journeys. He began to learn the art of filmmaking from an encyclopedia and stole his first camera, a 35mm camera.
He moved to America after winning a scholarship at Duquesne University. He never lingered long enough in Duquesne, leaving to earn money working on a pre-production documentary for NASA. He made his first film in 1962, a short titled Herakles when he was 19 years old. He has since made more than 60 films and documentaries. He also has over 12 books published to his name and has conducted numerous operas.
In the 2009 edition of Time Magazine’s Most Influential People Worldwide, Werner was named. Among several awards and nominations, he has a star on the Boulevard der Stars in Berlin. He has been married three times and has three children.
Celebrity Profile: 5 Facts About Werner Herzog
Werner Herzog lived a full and certainly eventful life. From fleeing to Mexico to American immigration and growing up until the age of 18 without listening to music, his life has been full of interesting information. Here are five of them.
1. He worked as a welder to finance his first films.
For a man like Werner, committed to becoming a filmmaker, the barrage of no’s he received from production companies didn’t stifle his desire to make movies, not for a man whose first camera was stolen at home. Munich Film School. He went to work and worked night shifts as a welder in a steel mill to earn money from his projects. He was 18 at the time and was in high school.
2. He made a film on every continent.
Werner Herzog may be filming on location, regardless of where the story was told, he is the only director to have made a film on every continent. This is no feat for a man who once walked 500 km from Munich to Paris. He also once traveled to Congo after high school.
3. He attended two universities. Never graduated.
Before being offered a scholarship by Duquesne University to study acting and dropping out, he had enrolled at the University of Munich to study history and literature. He also never completed the program. He is, however, a widely read man who speaks four languages: English, German, Spanish and French. He spoke Greek very well once.
4. He was promised to eat his shoe…and he did.
Herzog once made a bet with Errol Morris, an American filmmaker that he would eat his shoe if Errol made a movie about the pet cemeteries he was working on. Errol then finished the film, and in 1978 Herzog publicly baked his shoe and ate it. Although it might sound crazy, Herzog talked about the bet as his effort to encourage Errol and everyone else to make whatever plan they were looking for a reality.
5. He has his own film school
Due to being unhappy with the way the film schools are run, Werner decided to create his own. He founded his school, Rogue Film School in 2009, which offers courses such as – The Exhilaration of Being Shot Unsuccessfully, Traveling on Foot, Creating Your Own Filming Permits.