Margit Carstensen, the celebrated actress renowned for her work with filmmaker Rainer Werner Fassbinder, has passed away at the age of 83 in Heide, Germany. In recent years, Carstensen lived a secluded life due to lung emphysema and related health issues.
Her last screen appearance was in 2016 in the TV series “Tatort – Wofür es sich zu leben lohnt.” Carstensen received the Götz George Prize in Berlin in 2019 for her lifetime achievements.
Born in Kiel, Carstensen initially studied acting at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater in Hamburg. She joined the ensemble of the Hamburger Schauspielhaus from 1965 to 1969, where she said that “a world opened up, and I had to open myself up too.”
A Muse of Fassbinder
In 1969, Carstensen moved to Bremen, where she met the charismatic playwright and filmmaker Rainer Werner Fassbinder (1945-1982). She described Fassbinder as “a great poet, writer, and visionary – with an incredible charisma and tremendous power” in an early 2020 interview.
Carstensen gained fame for her starring role in Fassbinder’s film “The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant” (1972), which earned her the Gold Filmband award. She also delivered a remarkable performance in “Martha” (1974), playing the humiliated wife alongside Karlheinz Böhm as the pathologically domineering husband.
Collaborations with Fassbinder and Schlingensief
Carstensen starred in Fassbinder’s films such as “The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant” (1972), “Martha” (1974), and “Chinese Roulette” (1976) after joining the Hamburger Schauspielhaus ensemble in 1965.
Aside from her work with Fassbinder, Carstensen had a long artistic collaboration with Christoph Schlingensief. She appeared in his film “100 Years of Adolf Hitler – The Last Hour in the Führerbunker” (1989) as Magda Goebbels and in his media satire “Terror 2000” (1992) as a detective. She also worked with director Leander Haußmann on films such as the East German comedy “Sonnenallee” (1999).
In recognition of her lifetime achievements, Carstensen was honored with the Götz George Prize in Berlin in 2019.
