Born Georg Henri Anton Ivens into a wealthy family, Ivens went to work in one of his father's photo supply shops and from there developed an interest in film. Under the direction of his father, he completed his first film at 13; in college he studied economics with the goal of continuing his father's business, but an interest in class issues distracted him from that path. He met photographer Germaine Krull in Berlin in 1923, and entered into a marriage of convenience with her between 1927 and 1943 so that Krull could hold a Dutch passport and could have a "veneer of married respectability without sacrificing her autonomy."
Originally his work focused on technique, especially in Rain (Regen, 1929), a 10-minute short filmed over 2 years, and in The Bridge (De Brug, 1928). Around this time, along with Menno ter Braak and others, he was involved in the creation of the Dutch Film League (De Nederlandsche Filmliga) based in Amsterdam.