 Bertold Brecht had directed his play "Mutter Courage und ihre Kinder" with the Berliner Ensemble, together with Erich Engel, in 1949.Manfred Wekwerth worked as his assistant for the production from 1951.After Brecht's death, the film "Mutter Courage und ihre Kinder" intended to be a faithful rendering of this model production on stage.