Nazi Propaganda Films

Hitler and the Nazis saturated their country with many types of propaganda to convince the German citizenry that the Nazi ideology was the only ideology. One type of propaganda that the Nazis relied on heavily was cinematic.
This work focuses on Nazi propaganda feature films and feature-length documentaries made in Germany between 1933 and 1945 and released to the public. Some of them were Staatsauftragsfilme, films produced by order of and financed by the Third Reich. The films are arranged by subject and then alphabetically, and complete cast and production credits are provided for each. Short biographies of actors, directors, producers, and other who were involved in the making of Nazi propaganda films are also provided.

Rolf Giesen, a former visiting professor of animation at the Communication University of China and president of an animation museum in Changchun, China, has compiled a special effects collection for Deutsche Kinemathek in Berlin and has co-written several animation features. He is an expert on early fantasy and science fiction films.

Rolf Giesen
Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 295
Bibliographic Info: 58 photos, appendix, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2008 [2003]
pISBN: 978-0-7864-3870-9
eISBN: 978-1-4766-1269-0
Imprint: McFarland

Preface     vii

Introduction     1

1 “Martyrs” of the Nazi Movement     9

2 Triumph of the Will: The Odd Case of Leni Riefenstahl     18

3 The Eternal Forest: Blood, Soil, and Euthanasia     35

4 Hitler Youth: Soldiers for the Führer     41

5 The German Film Academy     48

6 Baptism of Fire: Nazi Germany at War     51

7 Surrounded by Enemies     93

8 The Eternal Jew: Anti-Semitic Films     118

9 The Great King     143

10 Black-Out: The Home Front, or, “That’s Not the End of the World”     151

11 Götterdämmerung: Kolberg and the Fall of the Third Reich     163

Filmography     185

Appendix: A Who’s Who of Hitler Era Filmmaking     233

Notes     267

Bibliography     275

Index     279

“historically useful…well researched, nicely illustrated”—Classic Images; “the best book ever done on the subject…a must have…much recommended”—The Military Advisor; “notes and other references are significant”—Communication Booknotes Quarterly; “informative…unique”—Midwest Book Review.