A secret stash of porno movies made by the East German army during the Cold War has been discovered. During the '80s, an amateur film circle was set up in a barracks in Biesdorf, East Berlin, in order to provide blau movies for the army top brass as well as visiting dignitaries. Despite the politburo's anti-pornography stance, over 100 people were involved in the films—in front of, as well as behind the camera.


The films, with titles such as Glass Dreams, Private Werner's Big Surprise and F***ing for the Fatherland, were made on 12mm cameras. Initially, a dozen men were involved, but by the mid-'80s, there were 160 people in the know. Soldiers were measured up to see if they were well-enough endowed for a starring role in the films, which were short and shoddy.

Former soldeier Dietmar Schuertze, now a media spokesman for the Bundeswehr, worked as both actor and sound assistant on the movies. "They were made, essentially, in secret but nothing got done in that man's army without the approval of the brass," he said, adding that they were made for the ruling classes' consumption. Filming often took place at garden parties, with officers and party officials checking the action out.


Some of the less salacious moments were shown on German TV earlier this week, but the quarter-century-old movies were incredibly dated. "I didn't recognize myself," said one former soldier. "And neither, thank God, did my wife." [Telegraph]