Weitere Namen
Hans Hannes (Weiterer Name) H. H. Zerlett (Weiterer Name)
Cast, Director, Assistant director, Screenplay, Music
Wiesbaden Buchenwald

Biography

Hans H. Zerlett, born August 17, 1892, in Wiesbaden, did not finish school and "ran away" (Zerlett) from home to start a career as an actor. He performed at several provincial theatres but volunteered for military service in 1915. After his resignation from military service due to an illness during World War I, Zerlett became known as the artistic director of a tour program of the war play "Der Hias" although he had been busily working in the business. His repertoire list from 1916 already states 254 roles Zerlett had played.

 

In 1917, Zerlett became the director of Berlin's Friedrichstadt-Theater. From the beginning of the 1920s on, Zerlett also made a name as a playwright. Then, in 1927, Zerlett made his first steps in the movie business with his screen play to the comedy "Höhere Töchter". As the head dramatic advisor, Zerlett specialised on entertaining movies – with the exception of "Vererbte Triebe", a film that propagated the sterilization of "hereditary challenged" criminals.

In 1934, Zerlett made his debut as a film director with the Karl-Valentin/Liesl-Karlstadt short film "Im Schallplattenladen". In the same year, Zerlett also made his first feature film as a director with the comedy "Da stimmt was nicht" starring Adele Sandrock and Viktor de Kowa, which became the start to a successful career. In the eyes of his critics, Zerlett, who also wrote the screen plays to all of his films, was an experienced director of mainstream entertainment movies that reached out to a large audience. His most successful films include the medical drama "Arzt aus Leidenschaft", the revue film "Es leuchten die Sterne", and the comedy "Die selige Existenz". But Zerlett also made Nazi propaganda films such as the anti-Semitic music film "Robert und Bertram", and the drama "Venus vor Gericht" (1941) that agitates against the so-called "degenerate art" and against democratic values.

But from 1942 on, Zerlett, who in 1937 had become the head of production at Tobis Filmkunst, returned to making very successful entertainment films again. After the end of World War II, Zerlett was arrested by the Russian secret service and died of tuberculosis in 1949 while still being held in war captivity. In 1950, Zerlett was acquitted of having been a Nazi follower in a posthumous denazification process.

Filmography

1957/1958
  • Participation
1943-1945
  • Director
  • Screenplay
1944/1948
  • Director
  • Screenplay
1942/1943
  • Director
  • Screenplay
1943
  • Director
1942
  • Director
  • Lyrics
1941/1942
  • Director
  • Screenplay
  • Lyrics
1941
  • Director
  • Screenplay
1940
  • Director
  • Screenplay
  • Lyrics
1939
  • Director
  • Screenplay
1939
  • Director
  • Screenplay
  • Lyrics
1938
  • Director
  • Screenplay
1937/1938
  • Director
  • Screenplay
  • Lyrics
1938
  • Director
  • Screenplay
1937
  • Screenplay
1937
  • Creative supervisor
1937
  • Director
  • Screenplay
1936/1937
  • Director
  • Screenplay
1936/1937
  • Director
  • Screenplay
  • Lyrics
1936
  • Director
  • Screenplay
  • Lyrics
1936
  • Director
  • Screenplay
1935/1936
  • Director
  • Screenplay
1935
  • Director
  • Screenplay
1934/1935
  • Director
  • Screenplay
  • Lyrics
1935
  • Screenplay
  • Lyrics
1935
  • Screenplay
  • Lyrics
1934
  • Screenplay
  • Lyrics
1934
  • Screenplay
1934
  • Dialogue editor
  • Dialogue
  • Lyrics
1934
  • Lyrics
1934
  • Screenplay
1934
  • Director
  • Screenplay
  • Lyrics
1934
  • Screenplay
1933
  • Screenplay
  • Lyrics
1932/1933
  • Screenplay
1932/1933
  • Dialogue editor
  • Screenplay
  • Lyrics
1933
  • Dialogue editor
  • Screenplay
  • Lyrics
1933
  • Screenplay
  • Lyrics
1933
  • Screenplay
1933
  • Dialogue editor
  • Screenplay
  • Lyrics
1932
  • Screenplay
1932
  • Screenplay
1932
  • Screenplay
1932
  • Screenplay
1932
  • Screenplay
1932
  • Screenplay
1931
  • Screenplay
1931/1932
  • Screenplay
1931/1932
  • Screenplay
1932
  • Dialogue editor
  • Screenplay
1932
  • Screenplay
1931
  • Screenplay
1931
  • Screenplay
1931
  • Screenplay
  • Lyrics
1931
  • Screenplay
1930
  • Screenplay
1930
  • Screenplay
1930
  • Cast
  • Screenplay
1930
  • Screenplay
1930
  • Screenplay
1930
  • Screenplay
1930
  • Screenplay
1929/1930
  • Screenplay
1929/1930
  • Screenplay
1928
  • Screenplay
1929
  • Screenplay
1928
  • Screenplay
1927
  • Screenplay