Leni Riefenstahl was born in 1902 in Berlin.As a child, she was shielded from the impacts of WWI and the social hardships of hyperinflation and the depression. As a young girl she excelled in athletics and gymnastics, but her passion was dancing.
She completed her formal schooling in boarding school and then went on to become a skilled dancer. She began her work in 1921 under the guidance of Max Reinhardt and traveled around Europe performing. In 1925, her dancing career suffered a severe setback when she seriously injured her knee. Despite this setback, she became increasingly confident and she developed a love for acting. She was hired by Arnold Fanck and starred in 5 movies between 1926 and 1933. Her two earliest films were Holy Mountain and Blue light, both of which were predominantly filmed in the mountains. Leni exposed her true bravery and confidence, doing all the mountain climbing scenes herself. These works ran parallel to the culture and style of Weimar and she was seen as "a woman in a man's world".
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