SOURCE: Alexander, Victoria. “Adolph, Leni, and Jesse.” Films in Review 47, nos. 7-8 (July-August 1996): 76-7.

In the following essay, Alexander discusses the significance of Riefenstahl's documentary Olympia to her career as a filmmaker.

Actresses are always lamenting their lack of power in the film industry, citing salary inequity with male stars, superficial parts, and only one female studio head (Dawn Steele) championing their cause. Imagine what the situation was like for women in the film industry in the 1930's—and in Europe. Leni Riefenstahl was an actress and part-time filmmaker who was handpicked by Adolph Hitler to film the annual Nazi rally, a film which became the masterpiece Triumph of the Will. Riefenstahl is modest in her book, A Memoir, about the impact this film had on Germany, Hitler, and her life at the time it was shown. For Riefenstahl must have wielded a sizable influence over Hitler after...