DEFA Foundation Makes Rare DDR Films Freely Accessible Online

The DEFA Foundation, which preserves the cinema legacy of the former East Germany, has uploaded the 1975 Heiner Carow film "Ikarus" to its YouTube channel DEFA Filmwelt, offering the previously censored title free to viewers. "Ikarus" tells the story of a young boy searching for his absent father and was withdrawn from cinemas shortly after its release.

Marking DEFA’s 80‑year anniversary, the foundation highlights that its archive holds around 700 titles, ranging from fairy‑tale adaptations to serious works such as "Spur der Steine". Early DEFA productions, including the 1946 film "Freies Land", are now widely available legally on the internet, reflecting the organisation’s effort to bring historical East German cinema back into public view.