Eight Hours Don’t Make a Day

Synopsis

Commissioned to make a working-class family drama for public television, up-and-coming director Rainer Werner Fassbinder took the assignment and ran, dodging expectations by depicting social realities in West Germany from a critical—yet far from cynical—perspective. Over the course of five episodes, the sprawling story tracks the everyday triumphs and travails of the young toolmaker Jochen and many of the people populating his world, including the woman he loves, his eccentric family, and his fellow workers, with whom he bands together to improve conditions on the factory floor.

First Air Date: 1972-10-29

Last Air Date: 1973-03-18

Number of Seasons: 1

Number of Episodes: 5

Created By: Rainer Werner Fassbinder

Networks: WDR Fernsehen

View Technical Specifications on IMDb

Top Cast

Gottfried John as Jochen Epp
Hanna Schygulla as Marion Andreas
Luise Ullrich as Grandma
Werner Finck as Gregor
Wolfried Lier as Wolf
Irm Hermann as Irmgard Erlkönig
Kurt Raab as Harald
Wolfgang Schenck as Franz Miltenberger
Herb Andress as Rüdiger
Rudolf Waldemar Brem as Rolf Schwein

Seasons

Season 1 (1972)

The young toolmaker Jochen fights with his colleagues to a performance bonus. He gets to know the girl Marion. For both, it is love at first sight.

Episodes:

Ep. 1: Jochen and Marion (1972-10-29)

A love affair blossoms between middle-class tool factory employee Jochen and office advertiser Marion.
Ep. 2: Oma and Gregor (1972-12-27)

Jochen's grandmother Oma searches for an affordable apartment to share with Gregor, a gentleman she picked up in a park. When Oma comes across an abandoned library space, she and Gregor decide to become do-it-yourself squatters and turn it into a kindergarten.
Ep. 3: Franz and Ernst (1973-01-21)

After the death of the foreman, the tool factory comrades hope that Franz will get promoted. However, tensions rise when the manager instead brings in an outsider.
Ep. 4: Harald and Monika (1973-02-18)

Following a visit from Marion's strict mother, Jochen is pressured into proposing. Meanwhile, growing strained relations between Monika and the overbearing Harald start Monika on thoughts of divorce.
Ep. 5: Irmgard and Rolf (1973-03-18)

Upon discovering that the tool factory is being relocated, Jochen and Marion seek a new place while the workers list demands for their growing impatience.