The study focuses on the life of film producer Ludwig Waldleitner (1913-1998) and his film productions. Using Waldleitner as an example, it provides an overview of West German film production in the second half of the 20th century. Five of the most significant films from Waldleitner's work are examined in detail and serve as a key to understanding cross-works phenomena: 1. The feature film The Girl Rosemarie (1958), 2. the film adaptation of the novel by Johannes Mario Simmel And Jimmy Went to the Rainbow (1971), and 3. the production of auteur films by directors Wolfgang Petersen (One of Us, 1974), Hans W. Geissendörfer (Sternsteinhof, 1976), and Rainer Werner Fassbinder (Lili Marleen, 1981).