Although Riefenstahl always denied being an admirer, even lover, of Hitler - and trials in the aftermath of WW2 found her innocent of any crime - her work for Hitler was central in creating the seductive and compelling mythology of Nazism which dominated one era, and which still attracts people today. After her release by Allied forces the former dancer and actress turn to photography and later underwater filming, while doing plenty of work in Africa. However, it was only in a new millennia when she finally able to return to cinema, releasing Underwater Impressions in 2002.

We, as people and historians, will never know what Riefenstahl really felt about Nazism, but her contribution to it - made either wittingly or unwittingly through her gifted skills - was enormous. Critics find it impossible to believe Riefenstahl could have created something so overwhelmingly endorsing for something she didn't agree with, but the role of modern advertising executives everywhere provides a sharp counterpoint. However, a press statement by Christina Weiss, the culture minister of modern Germany, tackled the question of art and Riefenstahl's innocence perfectly: "Her career also shows though, that one cannot lead a good life in the service of bad, that art is never apolitical."

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