A film unfinished

At the end of WWII, 60 minutes of raw film in an East German archive was discovered. Shot by the Nazis in Warsaw in May of 1942, the film became a resource for historians seeking an authentic record of the Warsaw Ghetto. The later discovery of a long-missing reel, including multiple takes and cameramen staging scenes, complicated earlier readings of the footage. Presented is the raw footage in its entirety, falsely showing the 'good life' of Jewish urbanites. Included is an interview, and more. | "Directed by ... Billy Wilder for the U.S. War Department in 1945, [this film] was originally intended for screening in occupied Germany and Austria and featured a German language soundtrack ... [T]he first documentary to show what the Allies found when they liberated the Nazi extermination camps: the survivors, the conditions, and the evidence of mass murder."-- On-screen menu.

Credits

Witnesses, Hanna Avrutzki, Luba Gewisser, Jurek (David) Plonski, Aliza Vitis-Shomron, Shula Zeder ; narration read by Rona Kenan; Belfilms (Firm); Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk; Südwestfunk (Baden-Baden, Germany); Yes Docu (Firm : Israel); Association relative à la télévision européenne; Oscilloscope Laboratories (Firm); Yael. screenwriter Hersonski (film director); Itay. film producer Ken Tor; Noemi. film producer Schory; Avrutzky (hana); Gewisser (luba); Dawid Jerzy Płonski; ʻAlizah Ṿiṭis-Shomron; Zeder (shula); Rona. narrator Kenan; Joelle Alexis; Itai. director of photography Neeman; Yishai. composer Adar; Baru (lin); Adrian Wood; Michael Berenbaum; Billy Wilder; Insdorf (annette)

Complete catalog record

Alternate title: Death mills. | Shetiḳat ha-arkhiyon.
Original source: Originally released as a motion picture in 2010. | Study guide features an essay by author and film historian, Annette Insdorf. | Extra features: Interview with author and film researcher Adrian Wood (ca. 15 min.) -- Scholar Michael Berenbaum on "A film unfinished" (ca. 4 min.) -- Death mills (1945, 22 min. ; directed by Billy Wilder ; new telecine made from archival 16mm elements) -- Study guide in PDF format [DVD-ROM feature]. | Editor, Joëlle Alexis ; director of photography, Itai Neeman ; music, Ishai Adar ; art director, Lin Baru.
Release: [New York City] : Oscilloscope Laboratories, [2011]
Physical description: 1 videodisc (1 hr., 30 min.) : sound, color and black and white ; 4 3/4 in. | plastic | 4 3/4 in. color black and white | stamping | polychrome | monochrome | laser optical | NTSC | video file | DVD video | all regions
Contents: Contents: Lost history -- Jewish Council -- "I might see my mother" -- Flowers, furniture, teapot -- Auerswald's reports -- Willy Wist, cameraman -- Garbage and lipstick -- Waiting to die -- Smuggling -- Underground Jewish archive -- Surprising discovery -- Dinner and theater -- "A Jew film" -- Death -- Ghetto in color -- "Today I can cry" -- Faces.
Subjects: Jews -- Poland -- Warsaw | Nazi concentration camps -- Poland | World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal narratives, Jewish | World War, 1939-1945 -- Propaganda | Nazi propaganda -- Poland -- Warsaw | Holocaust, Jewish (1939-1945) -- Poland -- Warsaw | Nazi concentration camps | Jews | Nazi propaganda | Propaganda | Warsaw (Poland) -- History -- 20th century | Germany -- History -- 1945-1955 | Germany -- History -- 1933-1945 | Germany | Poland | Poland -- Warsaw | 1933 - 1955
Country: Israel | Germany
Language note: In English, German, Hebrew, Polish, and Yiddish ; with optional subtitles in English.
Awards: Winner, World cinema doc editing award, Sundance Film Festival ; Winner, Best International Feature, Hot Docs Film Festival ; Winner, Documentary screenplay award, AFI/Silverdocs Film Festival
Ucla location: Instructional Media Library Stacks DVD | ID21501

Related films

Sources

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Record added 2026-11-08 20:56:10