Selling Democracy - The Lost Films of the Marshall Plan 1948–1953

Friday 26 June, 17:00-18:30
Open Society Archives, Arany Janos 32 u.
Me and Mr. Marshall | The Story of Koula | The Shoemaker and The Hatter | Let's Be Childish!

Saturday 27 June, 15:45 - 17:15
CEU Auditorium, Nador 9 u.
Houen Zo! | Whitsun Holiday | Aquila | Do Not Disturb! | Without Fear

Guest: Sandra Schulberg Downloadable program

After World War II, a series of propaganda films was made to promote the European Recovery Program (ERP), better known as the Marshall Plan, to ‘win the peace’ in Europe. The films were shown in movie theaters and were intended to persuade Europeans to work together and overcome the devastating war experience. They offer a fascinating glimpse of a time when the medium of film was used to sway public opinion and promote social change, but they also relate to today’s challenges of international assistance, conflict resolution and promotion of democracy.
Sandra Schulberg, award-winning movie producer and Adjunct Professor in Columbia University’s Graduate Film Division, will present a selection of these rare films which were lost from view for over 60 years. Until 1990 these films were banned in the US and prohibited in Hungary.


These screenings are taking place as part of the international conference Beyond East of West: Twenty Years of Media Transformation After the Fall of Communism, organized by the Center for Media and Communication Studies at CEU; the Annenberg School for Communication, University of Pennsylavia; the International Communication Association; and the European Science Foundation funded project COST A30 East of West. Support for the film series provided by the United States Embassy, Budapest.