Difference between revisions of "Orwo"
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| − | '''ORWO''' is a film brand. It is the abbreviation for "Original Wolfen" because it was made in the '''Filmfabrik Wolfen''', once a plant of [[Agfa]] in the East-German town Wolfen. In addition to film for still photography, Wolfen made cine film and film and plates for radiography. After the war the plant was in the hands of the U.S. occupying troops. Some assets, | + | '''ORWO''' is a film brand. It is the abbreviation for "Original Wolfen" because it was made in the '''Filmfabrik Wolfen''', once a plant of [[Agfa]] in the East-German town Wolfen. In addition to film for still photography, Wolfen made cine film and film and plates for radiography. After the war the plant was in the hands of the U.S. occupying troops. Some assets and documents, including the technical information about the Agfacolor negative film were claimed by the U.S. government as 'war indemnity',<ref>Roalf, Peggy (2004) ''Picture Perfect'' In: ''Colorama: The World's Largest Photographs''; Aperture Foundation, New York. ISBN 1-931788-44-8.</ref> and passed to American and other allied competitors, including Kodak and Ilford. Wolfen belonged to the Soviet sector of occupied Germany so when the Americans withdrew Wolfen became part of socialist East Germany. Some of the plant's equipment was taken in reparations by the Soviet Union, but the plant continued to work after both these losses, still producing Agfa-branded products. As with other German brands divided after the War (such as Zeiss and Balda) there was difficulty over the right to the brand. In the west, Agfa built a new film plant in Leverkusen. The Wolfen plant could continue to use the Agfa name in eastern Europe; however, use of the trademarks in the western market was problematic. The ''ORWO'' was first adopted as the name of the organisation, and then (as late as 1964<ref name=EP>[http://www.economypoint.org/o/orwo.html Article on Orwo] (apparently system-translated from German) at [http://www.economypoint.org/ EconomyPoint.org]</ref>) was registered as a trademark for the products to solve this problem. |
In 1994, four years after German reunification, Orwo was liquidated by the Treuhandanstalt.<ref>Treuhandanstalt: 'Trust Agency': the body created by the German government to privatise East German state-owned industries. When created, it was effectively the largest industrial company in the world.</ref> Heinrich Mandermann tried to privatise Orwo as one operation, ''Orwo AG'' but failed in 1998, and the organisation was instead privatised in several small parts.<ref>[http://www.filmotec.de/?page_id=28 Über FilmoTec] (about FilmoTec) at [http://www.filmotec.de/ Filmotec].</ref> The new company named FilmoTec was one of these; it took over the rights to make Orwo films, some made after original recipes. | In 1994, four years after German reunification, Orwo was liquidated by the Treuhandanstalt.<ref>Treuhandanstalt: 'Trust Agency': the body created by the German government to privatise East German state-owned industries. When created, it was effectively the largest industrial company in the world.</ref> Heinrich Mandermann tried to privatise Orwo as one operation, ''Orwo AG'' but failed in 1998, and the organisation was instead privatised in several small parts.<ref>[http://www.filmotec.de/?page_id=28 Über FilmoTec] (about FilmoTec) at [http://www.filmotec.de/ Filmotec].</ref> The new company named FilmoTec was one of these; it took over the rights to make Orwo films, some made after original recipes. | ||
Revision as of 20:25, 18 August 2011
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| ORWO 35mm B&W films, DIN 27 (ISO 400) & DIN 20 (ISO 80) image by Peter Wenzel (Image rights) |
ORWO is a film brand. It is the abbreviation for "Original Wolfen" because it was made in the Filmfabrik Wolfen, once a plant of Agfa in the East-German town Wolfen. In addition to film for still photography, Wolfen made cine film and film and plates for radiography. After the war the plant was in the hands of the U.S. occupying troops. Some assets and documents, including the technical information about the Agfacolor negative film were claimed by the U.S. government as 'war indemnity',[1] and passed to American and other allied competitors, including Kodak and Ilford. Wolfen belonged to the Soviet sector of occupied Germany so when the Americans withdrew Wolfen became part of socialist East Germany. Some of the plant's equipment was taken in reparations by the Soviet Union, but the plant continued to work after both these losses, still producing Agfa-branded products. As with other German brands divided after the War (such as Zeiss and Balda) there was difficulty over the right to the brand. In the west, Agfa built a new film plant in Leverkusen. The Wolfen plant could continue to use the Agfa name in eastern Europe; however, use of the trademarks in the western market was problematic. The ORWO was first adopted as the name of the organisation, and then (as late as 1964[2]) was registered as a trademark for the products to solve this problem.
In 1994, four years after German reunification, Orwo was liquidated by the Treuhandanstalt.[3] Heinrich Mandermann tried to privatise Orwo as one operation, Orwo AG but failed in 1998, and the organisation was instead privatised in several small parts.[4] The new company named FilmoTec was one of these; it took over the rights to make Orwo films, some made after original recipes.
- ↑ Roalf, Peggy (2004) Picture Perfect In: Colorama: The World's Largest Photographs; Aperture Foundation, New York. ISBN 1-931788-44-8.
- ↑ Article on Orwo (apparently system-translated from German) at EconomyPoint.org
- ↑ Treuhandanstalt: 'Trust Agency': the body created by the German government to privatise East German state-owned industries. When created, it was effectively the largest industrial company in the world.
- ↑ Über FilmoTec (about FilmoTec) at Filmotec.
