Spaghetti Western Directors, Screenwriters, Cinematographers

Spaghetti Western Director ~ Walter Beck

Walter Beck was born on September 19, 1929, in Mannheim, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Beck was a German film director and screenwriter known for his prolific work in East German cinema, particularly fairy tale adaptations and children's films produced by the DEFA studio.

His family moved to Berlin in 1937. After completing his Abitur, he initially aspired to become an actor but was accepted into the DEFA Nachwuchsstudio in the directing section.

Beck began his career in the 1950s as an assistant director on several DEFA productions before transitioning to directing and screenwriting in the late 1950s. His films often drew from classic fairy tales and folklore, blending entertainment with elements of moral storytelling suitable for young audiences, and he frequently handled both directing and writing duties on his projects. Notable works include “König Drosselbart” (King Thrushbeard) in 1965, “Dornröschen” (Sleeping Beauty), in 1971, “Der Prinz hinter den sieben Meeren” (The Prince Behind the Seven Seas), in (1982), “Der Bärenhäuter” (Bearskin), in1986, and “Froschkönig” (The Frog King), in 1988, among others that contributed to the popular DEFA tradition of Märchenfilme.

Beck's career spanned the existence of the German Democratic Republic, where he established himself as a key figure in family-oriented filmmaking, with credits extending into the post-reunification period.

Walter Beck died in Blankenfelde, Berlin, Germany on June 23, 2024. He was 95 years old.

Beck directed only Euro-western was “Trini” (Death for Zapata) in 1976.

BECK, Walter [9/19/1929, Mannheim, Baden-Württemberg, Germany – 6/23/2024, Blankenfelde, Berlin, Germany] – production manager, director, assistant director, writer, actor.

Death for Zapata – 1976

Spaghetti Western Screenwriter ~ Renée Asseo-Joffé

Renée Asseo-Joffé was born in Istanbul, Turkey on September 8, 1925. Shee was a French film director and screenwriter, known for “Les cracks” (1968), “Fortunat” (1960) and “La grosse caisse” (1965). She was the mother of the director Arthur Joffé, as well as Marion and Nina.

She was a co-screenwriter on one Euro-western, "The White, the Yellow and the Black" (1975) starring Giuliano Gemma, Tomás Milián and Eli Wallach along with Mario Amendola, Luis G. de Blain, Sergio Corbucci and Santiago Moncada She also was screenwriter of "La grosse caisse" (The Bass Drum) directed for her husband in 1965.

Renée is related to author and journalist Salomon Malka, the biographer of Emmanuel Lévinas and Franz Rosenzweig, and theatre professor, director and playwright Avraham Oz. She died on June 9, 2012, in Paris.

ASSEO-JOFFE, Renée (Renée Asseo-Joffé) [9/8/1925, Istanbul, Turkey - 6/9/2012, Paris, Île-de-France, France] – writer, married to director, screenwriter Alex Joffé (Alexandre Choura Joffe) [1918-1995] (195?-1995) mother of Marion Joffe [1952-    ], director Arthur Joffé (Arthur Julien Joffé) [1953-    ], Nina Joffé [1956-    ].

The White, the Yellow and the Black – 1975 (co)

Spaghetti Western Cinematographer ~ Manuel Berenguer

Manuel Berenguer Serra was born in Alicante, Spain on April 25, 1913. Berenguer dedicated himself to the photo finish of greyhound races. In Barcelona he came into contact with the tradition of Catalan amateur cinema. He became interested in the job of camera operator as a result of contact with Max William, a UFA news correspondent for whom he worked. At the beginning of the 1930s he decided to go to Germany encouraged by William. In Germany he spent three years in the Lindau laboratories, where he completed his training. Later, he continued to dedicate himself to reporting as a correspondent in Barcelona and the Balearic Islands. At the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War, Berenguer was doing his military service. Once Berenguer finished his service, he joined Laya Films where he worked on several reports (bombing of Lleida, Aragon 1937, Battalion of Catalonia, among others). After the war, the director of photography from Alicante worked for some town councils and associations (Arrival of the Christ of the Sea in Benicarló, 1940).

Berenguer shot his first film in 1941. In the 1950s he was one of the first to work with color in Spain. He worked on international projects of American cinema. He stopped working in 1977 after the filming of American films left Spain and his national projects were delayed. He worked on such notable films as “Doctor Zhivago” (1965) and “Krakatoa: East of Java” (1968) and the TV series ‘Rat Patrol” (1966).

Manuel Berenguer died in Spain on December 20, 1999 at the age of 86. His son Andrés Berenguer has followed in his footsteps.

Berenguer was a cinematographer on four Spaghetti westerns:“I sentieri dell’odio” (Bullets and Flesh) in 1964 with Mario Fioretti, “El hijo del pistolero” (Son of a Gunfighter) om 1965, “Miguel Pio” (Guns of the Revolution) in 1969 and “Una ciudad llamada bastarda” (A Town Called Hell) in 1971.

BERENGUER, Manuel (aka Manuel Berenger Jr., Manola Berenguer, M. Berenguer Serra) (Manuel Berenguer Serra) [4/25/1913, Alicante, Spain – 12/20/1999, Spain] – director, cinematographer, cameraman, father of assistant director, cinematographer, cameraman Andrés Berenguer [1944-    ].

Bullets and Flesh – 1964 (co)

Son of a Gunfighter - 1965

Guns of the Revolution - 1969

A Town Called Hell – 1971