Hiroshima-Nagasaki, August 1945
Dir. Erik Barnouw
Camera: Akira Iwasaki, 16min. B&W, 1945/1970, 16mm film
The earliest (and the only) film record of the immediate atomic bomb devastation was shot in September 1945 in Hiroshima and Nagasaki by Japan Film Co., but was later confiscated by the U.S. Occupation Army. It was kept as a top-secret file until 1967, then for some bureaucratic reasons was discreetly released to the National Archive. A film team at the Columbia Univ. lead by Erik Barnouw (filmmaker/film historian) paid a trip to the National Archive to view the 2hrs 40min.-long film. Devastated by the power of the footage, they decided to make a short film to convey the terror of the A-bomb, especially focusing on the human effect footage. This 16min-long film was broadcast in the US in 1970 and stirred the whole of America then engaged in the Vietnam War. The original film had been simultaneously returned to Japan, and NHK had made a documentary with it, but the human effect scenes were cut due to the privacy issues. This a-bomb film made by the American filmmakers was re-imported to and was broadcast in Japan in 1970. It was largely welcomed by the Japanese audiences, especially by the Hiroshima-Nagasaki survivors as the true record of their experiences.
A rare, and indeed the FIRST U.S. film about the A-bomb experience, this is a must for viewers everywhere.
will be screened w. “Black Rain”, 8/7, 7:30pm
also w. “My Journey with Hibakusha,” 8/13, 7:30pm