Prof. Thomas Schadt

As a documentary filmmaker, one is in the comfortable position to freely "help oneself" to public broadcasting archives. Nevertheless, the context in which the material is reused is crucial to deciding the legitimacy of its use. “Personality rights”, inasmuch as they allow individuals to control the use of their name, image, and likeness, may also prevent the use of already public material.

Thomas Schadt, who has used archival material in his films on personalities including former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl and former German President Christian Wulff, points out the boundaries of our democratic self-understanding and examines the need for fictionalizations or critiques.
Why are barristers increasingly indispensable in editing rooms throughout Germany? And why are there no great political television series in Germany?