Ernst Winar

Ernst Winar

Born: September 3, 1894
Died: June 28, 1978
in Leiden, Netherlands
Ernst Winar, born Wilhelm Joseph Carl Eichhoff (1894–1978), was a German-Dutch actor, film director and novelist. He appeared in 34 films between 1916 and 1955, and directed 14 films in that period. In 1920 he published the novel 'Peccavi...???', which he co-wrote with actor Adolphe Engers; the book was considered scandalous at the time because of its gay protagonist.

Born into a German family as Wilhelm Joseph Carl Eichhoff, Winar broke off his studies in engineering at a young age and joined the Filmfabriek Hollandia in Haarlem; he assisted directors and crew, and made his acting debut in a supporting role in the film Majoor Frans (1916). Winar was also active on stage, joining the Bouwmeester theater for a short time. Adter some time he started taking on acting jobs in Germany as well; he got his first leading role in Zirkus Renz ('Circus Renz', 1927) by Austrian director Wolfgang Neff. He trained his directing skills at the Terra Film film school in Berlin and in 1923 he directed his first film, Der Mann im Hintergrund ('The Man in the Background').

In the early thirties he came back to the Netherlands. He signed with the Cinetone Studios and subsequently made the films De kribbebijter (1935) and Op stap (1935) with Louis Davids in the lead role. Winar was considered one of only few Dutch directors at Cinetone who had truly mastered the filmmaking profession. After the Second World War, Winar shifted his interest to making children's films, such as Dik Trom en zijn dorpsgenoten ('Dik Trom and his fellow villagers', 1947) and Vier Jongens en een Jeep ('Four guys and a jeep', 1955). The latter was his last film as both actor and director. In the 1960s, Winar supervised young filmmaker Paul Verhoeven as editor and co-writer for his short film Eén hagedis teveel ('One lizard too many', 1960) and documentary Het Korps Mariniers ('The Marine Corps', 1965).

Movies for Ernst Winar...

Volk en vaderliefde
Title: Volk en vaderliefde
Character: Volkoudste
Released: March 11, 1976
Type: Movie
Otanes is certain that Smerdis, King of Persia is an impostor. He gathers together a group of people to stage a coup, only to face the question of which one of them will be worthy to take the thrown.
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De Laatste Dagen van een Eiland
Title: De Laatste Dagen van een Eiland
Released: September 16, 1938
Type: Movie
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Was eine Frau im Frühling träumt
Title: Was eine Frau im Frühling träumt
Character: Tom Braun
Released: March 1, 1929
Type: Movie
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Die Kleine vom Bummel
Title: Die Kleine vom Bummel
Released: December 30, 1925
Type: Movie
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Die Millionenkompagnie
Title: Die Millionenkompagnie
Released: January 1, 1925
Type: Movie
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Wettlauf ums Glück
Title: Wettlauf ums Glück
Released: May 14, 1923
Type: Movie
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Am roten Kliff
Title: Am roten Kliff
Released: April 29, 1922
Type: Movie
A man is found dead on the small German island of Sylt. There is speculation that it may have been a murder, motivated by romantic jealousy. The man who is to be accused of the crime becomes despondent and aimless, abandoning his wife and children.
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Der Erbe der van Diemen
Title: Der Erbe der van Diemen
Released: April 15, 1921
Type: Movie
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The Four Devils
Title: The Four Devils
Character: Fritz
Released: November 1, 1920
Type: Movie
One out of three silent adaptations of the novella "Les quatre diables" written by Danish author Herman Bang. The most famous one, although unfortunately lost, is without any doubt F.W. Murnau's "4 Devils". This German version, by Danish director A.W. Sandberg, was done eight years prior to Murnau's American one, and was a big success at the time.
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Fate's Plaything
Title: Fate's Plaything
Released: May 10, 1920
Type: Movie
Dolores gets a marriage proposal from the promising young doctor Lucas, but on the day of their marriage, she leaves him in the lurch and takes off with the South American dancer and adventurer Hugo Amadis. But Hugo treats her badly. Dolores leaves Hugo and begins a career as a dancer to make ends meet for her and her son. One day, the son gets sick, and the doctor who helps the child through the crisis is Doctor Lucas. Lucas and Delores decide to start over.
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Carmen of the North
Title: Carmen of the North
Released: July 17, 1919
Type: Movie
On the verge of getting married to Marijke, young and insecure detective Jozef is assigned the case of a murdered factory girl. His relationship is threatened when he becomes madly infatuated with Carmen, the alluring prime suspect.
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The Devil in Amsterdam
Title: The Devil in Amsterdam
Released: March 21, 1919
Type: Movie
The devil has arrived in Amsterdam, hell-bent on bombarding a poor girl, a wealthy banker and a young painter with great misfortune. This film is presumed lost.
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Pro Domo
Title: Pro Domo
Released: September 21, 1918
Type: Movie
Count De Grancé have two degenerate children. For the adolescent daughter there is still some hope, as her main vice appears to be that she devours the novels of Emile Zola. The son leads a dissolute life in gambling dens, where he cheats at cards, and in night-clubs he associates with dancers. [As of 2024, it appears only a 12-minute fragment of the film survives, at EYE Filmmuseum.]
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The Crown of Shame
Title: The Crown of Shame
Released: January 18, 1918
Type: Movie
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Bygone Glory
Title: Bygone Glory
Released: September 24, 1917
Type: Movie
A street singer manages to work his way up to the position of an opera artist, only to be struck by fate, and return to his life on the street.
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La Renzoni
Title: La Renzoni
Released: September 8, 1916
Type: Movie
Married housewife Alda decides to become a singer under the stage name 'La Renzoni', in a duo-act with her father. All goes well, until her husband mistakes her father for her lover...
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Major Frans
Title: Major Frans
Released: August 25, 1916
Type: Movie
When his granddaughter is born, debt-ridden Colonel von Zwenken misses out on Aunt Roselaar's allowance of 20,000 guilders. Anxious to keep the money, his son-in-law telegraphs the aunt that a son was born, Frans, and the girl is brought up as a boy. Based on the novel by Anna L.G. Bosboom-Toussaint.