German filmmakers in Hollywood

"Mechanic: Ressurrection" is the latest film by Hanover-born director Dennis Gansel. He worked with two top stars: Jessica Alba and Jason Statham (pictured). The storyline and setting are reminiscent of a James Bond classic.

In 1922, Berliner Ernst Lubitsch became one of the first foreign directors to move to Hollywood and try his luck. He was a silent filmmaker who knew how to deal with large groups of extras - and attain commercial success. For Hollywood, he was a perfect fit. Later, the filmmaker made a name for himself with comedies.

Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau followed on the heels of Lubitsch's success. He had already established himself in Germany's silent film scene before his reputation reached Hollywood. Murnau was known for his artistic approach to imagery and bold imagination. His groundbreaking horror film "Nosferatu" (pictured) was a milestone of the genre. Murnau was killed in a car accident in California in 1931.

Like many other filmmakers, Fritz Lang fled the Nazi regime and immigrated to the US in the 1930s. Lang, who was known in the US for films like "Metropolis" (1927) and "M" (1931), worked in Hollywood until the mid-1950s. There, he filmed adventure and mystery films like "Ministry of Fear," starring Ray Milland and Marjorie Reynolds (pictured).

After a long hiatus, the New German Cinema filmmaker tried his luck in the US in the 1980s. Wim Wenders was one of the first of his generation to do so, but his success with films like "Hammett" was encouraging. He would later come close to sweeping up an Oscar. His 2012 documentary "Pina" was nominated three times.

Volker Schlöndorff won an Oscar for "The Tin Drum" in 1980, but it wasn't until five years later that he came to Hollywood. There, he continued what he did best: film adaptations of great novels. He turned books by Arthur Miller and Margaret Atwood into movies. He also honored Hollywood itself by making a film about legendary director Billy Wilder (pictured, left with Schlöndorff).

Most surprising is the fact that Werner Herzog made his way to Hollywood. Herzog had made a name for himself with his aesthetically refine black-and-white films and bizarre adventure epics with actor Klaus Kinski. He went to the US 10 years ago. Since then, he's continuously made documentaries and feature films with big stars like Eva Mendes and Nicolas Cage, pictured here in "Bad Lieutenant."

With his World War II drama "Das Boot," Wolfgang Petersen became famous in the US and received six Oscar nominations. No wonder that the filmmaker then relocated to America's cinema hub. In 1991, after a rough start, he presented his first US-made film, the mystery "Shattered." Petersen established himself and made high-budget productions like 2006's "Poseiden," pictured here in the making.

Even more successful - at least as far as box office revenues go - is Roland Emmerich. Even his early made-in-Germany films clearly revealed his penchant for Hollywood blockbusters. Emmerich moved to the US in the early 1990s, where he continues to be wildly successful with catastrophe films. He's pictured here presenting his recent "Independence Day: Resurgence," the sequel to his 1996 classic.

Florian Henckel von Donnersmarcks debut, "The Lives of Others," was a sensation and was awarded an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film. His next film was made in the US in 2010: "The Tourist," starring Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp. It was a flop with critics, and von Donnersmarck is now back to working in Germany again.

In the past few years, a number of young German filmmakers have tried to get their foot in Hollywood's door. Some of them returned, discouraged, to Germany. But that hasn't stopped others - like Dennis Gansel - from trying. His latest action flick, "Mechanic: Resurrection," opens in US cinemas on August 26.