Das Stacheltier was a satirical series of short films that was produced by the East German DEFA Film Studios

Deutsche Film-Aktiengesellschaft

Deutsche Film-Aktiengesellschaft, better known as DEFA, was the public-owned film studio in East Germany throughout that country's history.-History:...

 from 1953 to 1964. The short films were meant to be shown in film theaters preceding the newsreel

Newsreel

A newsreel was a form of short documentary film prevalent in the first half of the 20th century, regularly released in a public presentation place and containing filmed news stories and items of topical interest. It was a source of news, current affairs and entertainment for millions of moviegoers...

 and the main feature. The only feature film in the series was the silent film Der junge Engländer directed by Gottfried Kolditz in 1958.

Many well-known East German directors and actors contributed to the film series, including Frank Beyer

Frank Beyer

Frank Beyer was German film director. In East Germany he was one of the most important film directors, working for the state film monopoly DEFA and directed films that dealt mostly with the Nazi era and contemporary East Germany. His film Traces of Stones was banned for 20 years in 1966 by the...

, Erwin Geschonneck

Erwin Geschonneck

Erwin Geschonneck was a German actor. His biggest success occurred in the German Democratic Republic, where he was considered one of the most famous actors of the time.-Early life:...

, Gisela May

Gisela May

Gisela May is a distinguished German character actress of theatre and a singer, critically acclaimed for performing the songs written by Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weil. She also appeared as a film and TV actress in a number of movies between 1951 and 1991.Gisela May studied at the drama school in...

, Rudolf Wessely

Rudolf Wessely

Rudolf Wessely is an Austrian actor.-Selected filmography:* Wahnfried * Derrick - Season 11, Episode 7: "Ein Spiel mit dem Tod"...

, Otto Tausig, Peter Sturm

Peter Sturm

Not to be confused with the National Institute for Research in Computer Science and Control director by the same name.Josef Michel Dischel , known by his adopted stage name Peter Sturm, was an Austrian and an East German actor.-Early life:Josef Michel Dischel was born into a religious Jewish family...

 and Heinz Schubert

Heinz Schubert (actor)

Heinz Schubert was a German actor, drama teacher and photographer, best known for playing the role of Alfred Tetzlaff in the German television comedy sitcom Ein Herz und eine Seele.- Life :...

.