Editing Leni Riefenstahl (section)

==Early life==
Helene Bertha Amalie Riefenstahl was born in Berlin on 22 August 1902.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Leni Riefenstahl|url=https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/leni-riefenstahl|website=encyclopedia.ushmm.org|language=en|access-date=18 May 2020}}</ref> Her father, Alfred Theodor Paul Riefenstahl,{{sfn|Trimborn|2002|p=20}} owned a successful heating and ventilation company and wanted his daughter to follow him into the business world.{{sfn|University of Washington 2008}} Since Riefenstahl was the only child for several years, Alfred wanted her to carry on the family name and secure the family fortune.{{sfn|University of Washington 2008}} However, her mother, Bertha Ida (Scherlach), who had been a part-time seamstress before her marriage, had faith in Riefenstahl and believed that her daughter's future was in show business.{{sfn|Trimborn|2007}}{{sfn|University of Washington 2008}} Riefenstahl had a younger brother, Heinz, who was killed at the age of 39 on the [[Eastern Front (World War II)|Eastern Front]] in [[Nazi Germany]]'s war against the [[Soviet Union]].{{sfn|Rother|2003|p=112}}

Riefenstahl fell in love with the arts in her childhood.{{sfn|Salkeld|2011|p=2}}<ref>{{Cite web |date=19 June 2021 |title=Leni Riefenstahl – Biography |url=https://courses.washington.edu/ger371/riefenstahl/biography.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210619151125/https://courses.washington.edu/ger371/riefenstahl/biography.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=19 June 2021 |access-date=9 November 2024 }}</ref> She began to paint and write poetry at the age of four.{{sfn|Salkeld|2011|p=2}} She was also athletic, and at the age of twelve joined a gymnastics and swimming club called ''[[Nixe (water spirit)|Nixe]]''.{{sfn|University of Washington 2008}} Her mother was confident her daughter would grow up to be successful in the field of art and therefore gave her full support, unlike Riefenstahl's father, who was not interested in his daughter's artistic inclinations.{{sfn|University of Washington 2008}} In 1918, when she was 16, Riefenstahl attended a presentation of [[Snow White]] which interested her deeply; it led her to want to be a dancer.{{sfn|University of Washington 2008}} Her father instead wanted to provide his daughter with an education that could lead to a more dignified occupation. His wife, however, continued to support her daughter's passion.{{sfn|University of Washington 2008}} Without her husband's <!-- The subject of the previous sentence is Leni's mother. "She" in the second clause of this sentence also refers to Leni's mother. So this first clause of this sentence should also refer to Leni's mother, hence "Without her HUSBAND'S knowledge..." vs "Without her FATHER'S knowledge... -->knowledge, she enrolled Riefenstahl in dance and ballet classes at the Grimm-Reiter Dance School in Berlin, where she quickly became a star pupil.{{sfn|University of Washington 2008}}