Filmmakers again flocking to Babelsberg

POTSDAM, Germany, Sept. 6 (UPI) -- The German studios where screen icons Marlene Dietrich and Greta Garbo began careers decades ago are once again the busy sites for major film productions.

Triumphing over an inglorious era as the site for Adolf Hitler’s propaganda machine, the 95-year-old Babelsberg studios are under new management, Der Spiegel reported Thursday.

By the end of December, 11 films, including Tom Cruise's "Valkyrie" and the Wachowski brothers' "Speed Racer," will have been produced at the studios where the classic films, "Nosferatu" and "Metropolis" were made.

Filmmakers are taking advantage of government subsidies that cover up to 20 percent of their costs, the newspaper said.