Manfred Salzgeber (1943–1994) was a film critic, curator, distributor, and activist who became a central figure in promoting queer cinema in Germany. In 1985, frustrated by the refusal of German public broadcasters and established distribution companies to screen the first US feature film to address HIV/AIDS (Buddies (USA, 1985)), he founded Edition Manfred Salzgeber to bring the film to German audiences himself. In the years that followed, Salzgeber increasingly specialized in both fiction and documentary films dealing with the HIV/AIDS crisis. He toured Germany with filmmakers, screening and discussing these works with audiences, while fostering collaborations between festivals, publicly funded cinemas, filmmakers, student unions, activist groups, and the national German AIDS Federation. Salzgeber firmly believed that films about the virus and its social consequences could foster empathy for those affected and raise awareness about prevention and care.
This paper traces Salzgeber’s attempts to establish and strengthen networks of filmmakers, distributors, exhibitors, and programmers to collaborate on educating and mobilizing German society in response to HIV/AIDS. Drawing on archival materials from the Deutsche Kinemathek, the Schwules Museum, the Deutsches Historisches Museum, and Salzgeber Medien, and interviews with Salzgeber’s contemporaries, including Rosa von Praunheim, Wieland Speck, Heiner Roß, and Ulli Klaum, the paper examines how Salzgeber understood film as a tool for political education and community building. The paper specifically focuses on his screening practices, which typically combined introductions, historical contextualizations of gay and lesbian film history, and extended discussions with filmmakers and audiences. At the same time, the paper addresses the resistance Salzgeber encountered when attempting to convince health organizations and activist groups of the pedagogical potential of film in relation to the HIV/AIDS crisis–an ambition that continues to resonate within German queer film culture today.