German Film Series, Fall 2008 - Sexual Revolutions in German Cinema

I am My Own Woman (Rosa von Praunheim, 1992)

One of Von Praunheim's best known films, I am My Own Woman is a fascinating look at the life of famed Berlin transvestite Charlotte von Mahlsdorf. The film, moving freely between documentary sequences and nostalgic reminiscence, is a queer look at nearly a century of German history through the figure of Von Mahlsdorf: from Weimar, through the Third Reich, the Cold War and up into unified Germany. In this, Von Praunheim offers an exploration of the places where personal sexual histories and official narratives collide.