For a coffee with Ursula Strauss • NEWS.AT

Even the short time before the conversation with Ursula Strauss offers insights into their effect: a few dozen actors and extras, cameramen and lighting technicians are scurrying around the interior of Hernstein Castle to watch the third episode to film in the fifth season of "Schnell Identified". Every shot is repeated several times, every scene has to fit. A number of the bags that have been parked bear the simple inscription "Uschi", symptomatic of the esteem in which the 43-year-old actress is held in the team. A quick group photo with her and her "ex-husband" Andreas Lust, then most of the buses and cars leave. And the "inspector" comes to us on the terrace, the hotel manager delivers the coffee personally.

How exhausting is such a shoot, Ms. Strauss? Is everything already routine after four finished seasons with ten episodes each? "Routine would be bad, I want to challenge myself every time. A running camera is like a third pair of eyes for me." Not only for the successful ORF series, which reaches an average of 800,000 viewers in Austria and a total of four million in Germany. Even better ratings (with more than 1.2 million viewers the highest ORF film in ten years) was her appearance at the end of 2016 in the ORF-ZDF two-part series "Das Sacher" as "Grande Dame" in the hotel, which was more than just an accommodation facility . On Anna Sacher, a kind of guiding figure for Strauss: "She bravely fought for her place in society and was one of the most influential women of the time. She stood for an open, international Vienna." Working with director Robert Dornhelm was demanding, not overwhelming: "I already knew him from Los Angeles, he invited our team to have a barbecue in his garden."

Tears of joy

Back then, in 2009, "Revanche" by Götz Spielmann was nominated for the foreign Oscar, the film that Ursula Strauss directed in 2008 after the successes "Bose Cells" and "Fallen " by Barbara Albert, the breakthrough at the international level had been achieved: "The hustle and bustle surrounding the Oscars was incredibly exciting, I was gasping for breath when I was nominated." It was as intense as after her first acting experience: After a successful performance as Lady Macbeth in an amateur theater company: "I locked myself in the toilet and cried bitterly with joy. And I knew that I was on the right path and wanted to be an actress. "

It has become one with a wide range: "Television is different from cinema, it plays on a different floor, in a different ballroom. But I like to dance everywhere." The ball season for "Uschi" seems to be going on for a very long time at the moment. She quickly denied: "There is no planability in my job. I'm busy this year, there are exciting discussions and projects for the next year, but nothing really fixed." And as for all mere mortals, unpredictable dangers: three years ago, the four-time Romy award winner was "shot down" by the driver of another car. The consequences: multiple fractures, hospital stay, rehabilitation. "I finished my job for a few months. It was a real life crisis, in addition to the physical pain." In addition, there was a particularly painful loss during this phase: her father, ex-mayor of her birthplace Pöchlarn ("I still try to be there as often as possible"), died. Trauma therapy helped her back then – and a previously planned TV project. However, she only had the last screws operated out of her body a few weeks ago and can now really close with the topic.

Fighting without weapons

She doesn't see herself as "the ORF's all-purpose weapon", as she is called in view of her frequent deployments (2014 also in David Schalko's multi-part series "Altes Geld"), half appreciatively, half enviously : "You have to fight for success, but without weapons, through passion and precise work. But of course our industry is very competitive." And, another parallel to the journalistic world, of strong (one-) savings bids: "In the past we were able to shoot nine and a quarter days per episode with 'Schnell determined', now we only have eight."

Same workload, but significantly less time: "We're stuck in a tight corset, if a cog falls out, it gets tight. Five episodes in one, then a four-week break, then another five episodes." But always as close to reality as possible: During the previous shoot, residents on the Margaretengurtel alerted the police after bodies had apparently been taken away.

How does Ursula Strauss see herself as an artist? "I want to entertain the audience with good stories." Just entertain? "I also want to convey messages, but without pointing fingers. I want to offer entertainment with attitude." As with other artistic projects: Since 2012, Strauss has been director of the culture festival "Wachau in real time", in autumn again with venues from Dürnstein Abbey to Spitz Castle. Since 2013 she has served as President of the Austrian Film Academy together with Oscar winner Stefan Ruzowitzky. And again and again she offers an insight into the professional and amorous adventures of the diva with songs by Marlene Dietrich and excerpts from the biography written by her daughter Maria Riva.

Strong women

A similarly strong figure to Anna Sacher. And a woman who is as strong as Christine Nöstlinger, with whom Strauss feels particularly connected. The film adaptation of Nöstlinger's autobiographical children's book "Maikäfer flieg!" with her in the leading role, the Diagonale opened in Graz in 2016. And just last Sunday she drew with Christian Dolezal at a reading of Nöstlinger's "Iba de gaunz oamen Leit" at Semmering, the life of eternal "losers in prosperity" who have to "gfrettn" through life beyond sentimental comfort.

So strong women, does that correspond to her self-image, does she feel like a feminist? Her first answer is a spontaneous "Yes!". Then a relativization, which is an reinforcement: "First and foremost, I'm a woman and I find it unbearable, for example, that women and men are still not automatically paid the same in all sectors, that women still have to fight for their position and it's getting worse there is still no real gender equality." She is also a strong politician who is currently instilling particular confidence in her: "In the refugee issue, Angela Merkel has been demonstrating for two years now how realpolitik can be combined with humanism. She has shown her composure, and I think that's a good thing." Of course, it's easier for her because "Germany is doing so well economically." But she also convinces that she doesn't need to stage her appearance: "Men aren't judged on whether they're beautiful either. It should be about programs rather than poses."

"Balloon competition"

But now in Austria there is almost a beauty contest between three top men. Strauss: "I made my choice in the middle of this competition of balloons, lists and career changers." Understandably, she doesn't want to say more. A recent outbreak documents that at least one of the three is definitely out of the question for them: "One of the people involved in the Villach carnival got upset about the fact that young asylum seekers also wear sports shoes and use smartphones. He doesn't seem to know that the really poor ones People don't even make it to Europe, that those who come also had a life before fleeing, of course they also have something and don't come in tatters.Apart from that, they need their smartphones because that's usually the only connection to their families. " And in general on the "unfortunately changed climate" for migrants: "Many people in Austria, one of the richest countries in the world, forget that they themselves may one day need to be welcomed somewhere. The conditions in which many asylum seekers live have to are terrible."

Overall, she sometimes feels overwhelmed by the world situation and the frightening terrorism: "Sometimes I can no longer watch the news when I constantly see people dying, suffering, starving, fleeing without empathy. Before that I'm afraid of not being able to act anymore, but just taking note of things." It's no wonder that there are so many conflicts in this world: "The rich-poor gap is getting bigger and bigger, many people don't know how to feed their families. And in a world where the arms industry is so big and makes such a profit, there will probably always be war." Two men are currently making her particularly uncomfortable: "Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un from North Korea are currently acting like two dangerous children. Unfortunately, they have power over particularly dangerous toys."

Ursula Strauss

was born in Melk, grew up in Pöchlarn, graduated from the educational institution for kindergarten education and attended the drama school at the Volkstheater. In 1999 she began her film career. In 2008, the film "Revanche" with her in the leading role was nominated for the foreign Oscar, and since 2009 she has played the leading role in the ORF crime series "Schnell determined". She spoke to Peter Pelinka on the sidelines of filming for the sixth season at Hernstein Castle.

For News, Peter Pelinka goes "for a coffee" with interesting contemporaries every week. pelinka.peter@news.at

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