A Banklady's story

by Bénédicte Prot

13/06/2012 - Since June 7, shooting has been ongoing in Berlin for a feature film inspired by one of the most sensational crime stories in post-war Germany: that of Gisela Werler, the woman bank robber who became known as the Banklady, to be the title of the film.

This carpet factory worker orchestrated 19 bank robberies that kept the country in suspense for two years between 1965 and 1967, before her little band was arrested. The latter included her future husband Hermann Wittorff, whom she married in prison after their sentences were passed (13 year for him and only 9 years for her, as she declared that she had only done it out of love).

Werler's story has already been made into several documentaries for television and an animation film by Katja Baumann, but never before has her well-known sense for glamourous disguise, complete with wigs and film star sunglasses, made it to the big screen. Christian Alvart (Antibodies, Case 39) will be directing.

Nadeshda Brennicke (who had already worked with the director, in particular in Curiosity & the Cat in 1999) will play Gisela Werler, while Charly Hübner will play her partner and Ken Duken will take on the role of the inspector on their trail. Shooting should last 36 days.

Banklady, produced by Alvart's Berlin-based production company Syrreal Entertainment (which received €350,000 for the project from the FFA) with television broadcaster NDR, will be distributed by StudioCanal Allemagne next year.

(Translated from French)