Marta Flantz


Marta Flantz, also spelled Flanz was a Polish German-speaking actress and film director. She was among the first women in Poland to direct a feature film.

Biography

Marta Flantz was born in 1885. She studied acting in Vienna with Max Reinhardt; she acted in German. Flantz was married to the film director Bolesław Land. Together with Nina Niovilla, Stanisława Perzanowska and Wanda Jakubowska, she was one of four women who directed full-length feature films in the interwar Poland.
In 1929, Flantz played the title role in The Morality of Mrs. Dulska – the first Polish sound film, an adaptation of Gabriela Zapolska's play with the same title. Flantz was also a co-director of the sound scenes. Because she played in German, her role was dubbed. Her acting received favorable reviews.
In the 1930s, Flantz joined the Leo-Film production company ran by Maria Hirszbein. Flantz, together with Bolesław Land, wrote the screenplay for Prokurator Alicja Horn, based on the novel by Tadeusz Dołęga-Mostowicz. Flantz also directed the film together with Michał Waszyński. Two years later, she was the sole director of the romantic comedy Kochaj tylko mnie produced by Leo-Film. The main roles were played by: the debutante Lidia Wysocka, Kazimierz Junosza-Stępowski, Michał Znicz, Witold Zacharewicz and Helena Grossówna. The film followed love affairs of a theater star.
Flantz died in 1938.

Works