Christian Skrein

© Christian Skrein

Austria | Born in 1945

“I had already met the Beatles in Hamburg before the filming of Help!.
I was 19 years old at the time and a fan of their music.
We immediately got along, and that’s why I was given
the assignment to document the film shoot.”

Christian Skrein

From March 13 to 22, 1965, Christian Skrein documented the winter scenes of the film Help!, which the Beatles shot in the then still largely unknown ski resort of Obertauern, briefly turning it into a site of international pop history.

Following Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!, it was their second feature film under the direction of Richard Lester. What began as a practical decision – finding a snow-reliable filming location for the month of March – quickly evolved into a mix of improvisation, chaos, and pop-cultural euphoria. Since none of the Beatles could ski, many scenes had to be filmed with ski instructors as doubles, while the musicians themselves rather awkwardly trudged through the snow. These circumstances lent the film a certain lightness and ultimately suited the humorous, at times absurd style of Help!.

The Beatles stayed at the Hotel Edelweiss and even gave an impromptu concert at the Hotel Marietta – their only one in Austria, incidentally. For the Beatles, the film was just one part of their packed schedule, but for Obertauern it marked a turning point. The resort gained international recognition and remains closely associated with this episode in music and film history to this day.

Although self-taught, Christian Skrein had already begun working as a professional photographer at the age of 17. At around 19, he achieved his international breakthrough: he became the youngest photographer to work for the renowned fashion magazine Vogue – at a time when it was considered one of the most influential platforms for fashion photography worldwide.

From 1966 onward, his photography studio in Vienna played an important role not only within the city’s avant-garde scene. Skrein photographed Christo, Josef Beuys – and even before his work with the Beatles – the Rolling Stones. Despite his success, he withdrew from active photography surprisingly early, at just 25 years old. Instead, he turned to advertising film as a producer, director, and cinematographer. His photo studio became a film studio –albeit in Los Angeles. Decades later, Skrein was awarded a Technical Oscar.

Christian Skrein is regarded as an important chronicler of the “Swinging Sixties” and as one of Europe’s most significant private photo collectors. The Skrein Photo Collection is considered one of the largest private photography collections in the world. He donated his entire Beatles body of work to the Salzburg Museum.