Helga Reidemeister was one of the most renowned documentary film directors of her generation and was very active in education. Reidemeister initially studied free painting at the Hochschule für Bildende Künste in Berlin. She then worked as a social worker in the Märkisches Viertel in Berlin from 1968 to 1973, which had a great impact on her. There she met working-class women who did not feel properly represented in the documentaries she showed them. These women motivated her to study film herself. She made several films about working-class families and the role of women. Her work also focuses on Afghanistan and the city of Berlin. She has taught at the Baden-Württemberg Film Academy since 1994 and, as a senior lecturer, was instrumental in establishing the documentary film specialization. Helga Reidemeister has also lectured at numerous other universities in Germany and abroad.