Doris Dörrie (; born May 26, 1955) is a German film director, producer, and author. She is known for her comedic and socially critical films, particularly Men… (1985), which achieved both national and international acclaim. Dörrie has received critical recognition for both her cinematic and literary work, earning several awards, including the 2012 Bavarian Film Award and the 2003 German Book Award.
Early life and education
Born in Hanover, West Germany, Dörrie completed her secondary education there in 1973. That same year, she began a two-year attendance in film studies in the drama department of the University of the Pacific in Stockton, California. She then studied semantics, psychology, and philosophy at the New School for Social Research in New York.
In 1985, Dörrie's third feature film Men… earned her both national and international success. This film is a feminist satire that follows a man who, upon discovering his wife's infidelity, attempts to make her lover in his own image so she gets tired of him.
In later years, Dörrie became a film professor in Munich and also taught creative writing in the United States. In 1998, Dörrie published her first children’s book, Lotte will Prinzessin sein, illustrated by Julia Kaergel. In 2001, Dörrie led the production of Mozart’s Così fan tutte at the state opera house in Berlin. By 2003, she had produced a variety of works, including several documentaries, ten feature films, seven collections of short stories, a novel, a play, and three children’s books.
Dörrie has stated that her experience as a director aids her writing, with many of her unpublished short stories serving as inspiration for her screenplays. She has stated that she holds different goals for her literary and cinematic work, noting that her films aim to leave viewers happier than before watching them. Since 2019, she has been a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
In 2019, Dörrie served on the jury that chose Pauline Curnier Jardin as the winner of the Preis der Nationalgalerie.
Filmography
- 1976: Come Rain or Shine (Ob’s stürmt oder schneit)
- 1999 German Film Award in Gold for Am I Beautiful?
- 2003 Cultural Honorary Award of the City of Munich for film Naked
- 2022 Brothers Grimm Poetics Professorship
- 2023 Ehrenbürgerin der Landeshauptstadt München; Eng. tr. Honorary citizen of the state capital Munich