Scenes are currently being shot in Muffendorf for the series "Faking Hitler" (working title), which will be shown on TVNow this year and later on RTL. The six-part series tells the story of the forged Hitler diaries, in which reporters from Stern and art forger Konrad Kujau sparked the biggest media scandal of the postwar period. The filmmakers also address current issues such as fake news, the trivialization of National Socialism and how people are susceptible to deception. The series is produced by UFA Fiction.

The producers were able to cast the historical series with top-class German actors: Lars Eidinger plays Stern journalist Gerd Heidmann, Moritz Bleibtreu takes on the role of art forger Konrad Kujau and Sinje Irslinger plays Jung editor Elisabeth Stölzl. The story of the forged diaries is expanded in the film to include the story of the Jung editor. She is blackmailed by the Jewish Nazi hunter Leo Gold (Daniel Donskoy) with the Nazi past of her father (Ulrich Tukur).

Of course, the film team attracts attention. It's not everyday that Moritz Bleibtreu rides through Muffendorf's main street on a bicycle to shoot another scene in one of the half-timbered houses. Time and again, the street is closed off at short notice - but never for more than three minutes. "It all goes smoothly here. The team really does its best to ensure that we residents are hardly disturbed. It's not every day you have this kind of filming right on your doorstep," says one resident. One of the security staff can only return the praise, saying that the residents of Muffendorf are very patient and also interested in the work. According to Philipp Graf of the film agency boxfish films, the film crew is not subject to the 10 p.m. curfew, otherwise the nighttime shooting would not be possible.

While Bleibtreu is filming on Muffendorf's Hauptstrasse, actor Lars Eidinger is preparing for his assignment at the crew base. He strolls around there between the beer benches that have been set up and jokes with female members of the film crew. The base is located on Remi-Baert-Platz directly opposite the Kommende. The filmmakers have set up their own little film city there. Catering, make-up, several vehicles for lounging and technical vans are located there. Historic vehicles that appear in the film are also parked there. Among them is a Jaguar with a Hamburg license plate - it is meant to be the car of Stern reporter Gerd Heidmann. But the film team's vehicles are scattered throughout Muffendorf, and parking spaces are scarce. In some cases, residents are subject to parking bans and no stopping zones. However, there will be no mention of Bonn or Muffendorf in the film: According to GA information, the scenes will be said to take place in Saxony, namely in the home village of the art forger Kujau. Filming took place on Wednesday and Thursday, and the film team will return next week for further shooting.

Eidinger, who undoubtedly belongs to the ranks of the great German acting stars, attracts attention in Muffendorf not only through his acting skills, however. The 45-year-old has also made a name for himself as a photographer. On Instagram, he publishes his pictures, all of which reflect the oddities of reality. To be able to capture these images and discover them as a viewer, you need a very good eye. One photo from the Berlin actor was taken at the crew base - it shows a man sitting on a beer bench wearing a turquoise sweater. In the immediate vicinity is an e-scooter - which is also turquoise. The photo has been liked by celebrities such as singer Adel Tawil, actor Bjarne Mädel, photographer Paul Ripke and artist Stefan Marx. Other impressions show an incomplete road marking, a jacked-up trailer and even two identical Honda sports cars parked directly behind each other. Images that Tagesschau anchorwoman Judith Rakers also likes. But he also photographs his colleagues, such as Ulrich Tukur, who is waiting for his assignment. On Instagram, Eidinger has more than 156,000 followers.

Bad Godesberg seems to be very popular with filmmakers at the moment: In recent months, despite the corona crisis, many film shoots have taken place there. Most recently, the Redoute was the setting for filming with comedian and author Bastian Bielendörfer, and a TVNow thriller was shot on the Godesburg. ZDF also filmed a comedy and a thriller in Mehlem - all with prominent casts. In November, ARD produced a two-parter about the Dreesen family of hoteliers - on the original location, of course.

"Faking Hitler" is adapted from Stern's award-winning podcast "Faking Hitler - the true story of the Hitler diaries." The magazine used original tape recordings to do a journalistic review of the scandal. Filming is taking place in Troisdorf, Cologne, Bonn, Düsseldorf and Hamburg. The film project is supported by the Film- und Medienstiftung NRW. The six-part film is to be released on TVNow at the end of the year.

(Orig. text: Maximilian Mühlens / Translation: Carol Kloeppel)