Stephan Graf v. Bothmer: THE STUDENT OF PRAGUE (1926)

For the music of the Faustian pact in *The Student of Prague*, Stephan von Bothmer draws from the depths of German Romanticism and combines it with state-of-the-art cinematic sounds at the CineTronium. He practically dissects Baldwin's tormented personality in his music; dark, melancholic, and possessing a fatal beauty.

*The Student of Prague* is considered one of the first auteur and art films in cinematic history. A poor student sells his reflection to an uncanny stranger—and in doing so, literally loses half his soul. With ingenious double exposures, the film makes the inner conflict visible: Baldwin and his mirror self face off in a duel. An artistic device that exists only in cinema. [Henrik Galeen, D 1926]

At the same time, the film breathes the atmosphere of German Romanticism: narrow streets, castles, duels, guilt, and doom. Love, ambition, and the lure of quick riches drive the protagonist to his downfall. "The Student of Prague" is thus also an early study of the price of success—and of the horror that begins when one loses sight of oneself. In this way, the auteur film draws on the still-nascent field of psychoanalysis: the mirror image as a symbol for the unconscious self.

"The Student of Prague" (1926) is a remake of the 1913 film of the same name and is even more passionate, more dramatic, and portrays Baldwin's soul as even more torn apart. This is primarily due to the stellar performances of the cast, especially the brilliant Conrad Veidt in what is arguably his finest role.