The Diary of Anne Frank

The Diary of Anne Frank (original title Das Tagebuch der Anne Frank) is a 2016 German drama film. It was directed by Hans Steinbichler and written by Fred Breinersdorfer, with music composed by Sebastian Pille. The film is based on Anne Frank's diary and tells the story of Anne Frank, the Jewish girl who, during the Second World War and after the Nazis occupied the Netherlands, went into hiding in Amsterdam with her family and other Jews, wrote down her thoughts in her diary during that time and became one of the victims of the Holocaust. Lea van Acken plays the title role; the cast also includes Martina Gedeck, Ulrich Noethen and Stella Kunkat.

Filming began on 26 January 2015 in Cologne and continued until March 2015 in Bavaria, Berlin and Brandenburg. Some scenes were shot at original locations in Amsterdam, for instance at the Merwedeplein, where the Frank family lived before going into hiding; the exterior shots of Prinsengracht 263 were made at the nearby Leidsegracht, because the appearance of the original Anne Frank House has changed since the 1940s. The producers Michael Souvignier and Walid Nakschbandi acquired the exclusive worldwide rights for films about Anne Frank's diary and made the production in cooperation with Universal Pictures; the work was supported by the Anne Frank Foundation, so that the producers were able to use the entire archive. Steinbichler regarded the film as a production for the younger generation, stating that he wanted to convey the story in a completely subjective way and to turn the written texts of the diary into speech.

The world premiere took place on 16 February 2016 at the 66th Berlin International Film Festival, in a special presentation for young people. The film was released in Germany on 3 March 2016 by Universal Pictures International. It was listed among the eight films that could have been Germany's submission for Best Foreign Language Film at the 89th Academy Awards, but it was not selected. It received largely positive reviews from critics, with many praising van Acken's performance as Anne Frank, and the film grossed over 31 million dollars.