Philo Bregstein

Biography

Philo Bregstein is a Dutch filmmaker and writer. He studied law and went to the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia in Rome, where he studied film and graduated with Tutto per un provino in 1965. His first feature film Het Compromis was honoured in Venice with a Golden Dove for best debut film.

The Holocaust and Jewish identity are recurring themes in Bregstein's work - both in his films as well as his books and essays: he made documentaries about Jacques Presser (Dingen die niet voorbijgaan, 1970) and conductor Otto Klemperer (Otto Klemperers lange Reise durch Seine Zeit, 1974) and Op zoek naar Joods Amsterdam (1975).

In addition to this, Bregstein had an affinity for the vanguard of the Italian cinema. In 1969 he made the documentary Filmers buiten het gareel, which included Bernardo Bertolucci, who nearly 15 years later also worked on Bregstein's documentary about Pier Paolo Pasolini, Wie de waarheid zegt moet dood (1983).