EVENT: Prof. Lectures on Visual Propaganda and Nazi ‘Jud Süss’ Film

To Michael Edelson, a Greenport resident and Professor Emeritus of film studies, “Jud Süss” is the vilest anti-Semitic film ever made — and that thought is shared by thousands around the world.

Produced by the Nazi party in 1940, the film was used to intensify the existing hatred of Jews in Germany and in occupied Europe during World War II. Nearly 40 million people viewed the film, and, in many countries today, “Jud Süss” cannot be screened unless it is accompanied with an explanatory presentation.

Prof. Edelson will use the Nazi film as a focal point of a free lecture he will give on the powerful effects of propaganda on our decision-making on Sunday at 1:30 p.m. at in Greenport. Prof. Edelson, who taught film studies and art history for years at Stony Brook, will also evaluate a century’s collection of images and film clips drawn from domestic and foreign feature films, documentaries, product and political TV commercials, public service announcements, posters and print ads.

Using side-by-side comparisons, Prof. Edelson will illustrate how subtle differences mold the message influencing the audience even in such an “entertainment” film. He will also demonstrate how propaganda in the form of political spots aims at capturing our votes. 

“It hasn’t changed,” he said. “‘I Like Ike’ except for the modern slick quotient.  And one candidate over another is not far from one toothpaste over another; all choices are conditioned by the effectiveness of advertising, a synonym for propaganda.”

Floyd Memorial Library is located at 539 First Street, Greenport, NY, 11944.  Contact Poppy Johnson for further information about the free screening at 631-477-0660.