Theresienstadt. Ein Dokumentarfilm aus dem jüdischen Siedlungsgebiet (original) (raw)

Films from the National-Socialist period must be considered in the context of state-influenced production and reception. Further informations »

Summary

"Theresienstadt", also known as "Der Führer schenkt den Juden eine Stadt", is one of the most cynical and despicable Nazi propaganda films. The film presents a totally made-up version of life in the death camp: Inmates in civil clothing are shown in a normal environment, enjoying work and play.

The film was a project of the SS and the "Zentralamt zur Regelung der Judenfrage in Böhmen und Mähren". Its hideous purpose was to deceive the foreign public and the International Red Cross about the horrific reality of the camps and to cover up the ongoing organized genocide of the Holocaust. After being deported to Theresienstadt, Jewish director and actor Kurt Gerron was forced to oversee the production of the film. Most of the participants were actual inmates of the camp, and nearly all of them – including Gerron – were later murdered in Auschwitz.

Theresienstadt was never released in its original form, only a few scenes were used in Nazi newsreels in 1944.