Riefenstahl's Triumph Of The Will In Germany

Hitler was an avid fan of films, supporting production of many films. Hitler used films effectively to disseminate Nazi propaganda. “Fascism used its mass arenas as stage-props to construct a new kind of hyper-reality for the movies that left the masses unable to distinguish between reality and representation, between truth and propaganda”. One of the most famous films during this time, “Triumph of the Will,” produced in 1935 by Leni Riefensthal, is both aesthetically and technologically outstanding. The film portrays Germany

The film Triumph of the Will was created in 1934 after Hitler was named Fuhrer of Germany. At the time, Hitler was eager to improve the public image of the NSDP (National Socialist German Workers ' Party). After his election as chancellor in Early January 1933, Hitler gave Leni Riefenstahl the job of filming the annual NSDAP conference in Nuremberg, Germany . Riefenstahl accepted the offer and agreed document, direct and edit the Conference. As years pasted, the infamous “documentary” began to be speculated as possible Nazi Propaganda.

Leni Riefenstahl was one of the most revolutionary and certainly most controversial filmmakers of the early twentieth century. The lasting influence of her innovative filmmaking techniques on twentieth century cinema is undisputed by scholars throughout history, but the exact nature of her work is surrounded by ongoing controversy. Riefenstahl’s production of the feature films “Triumph of the Will” (Source 3) and “Olympia” (Source 1) have left a lasting imprint on history; these films established Riefenstahl’s influential career as a film director under the years of the Nazi regime. Although these films are attributed by scholars and critics to be Riefenstahl’s greatest achievements they are also considered to be her greatest fault, for

Triumph of the Will is a documentary of the Nazi Party conference in 1934 in Nuremberg. From the first frame of the film, Riefenstahl captures every essence of how worshiped Hitler

As the film opened in Germany and around the world it became obvious that Riefenstahl had achieved overall success, beyond all expectations. In America, specifically New York it was called “flawless” and “a highly fascinating fantasy”. The Blue Light was even awarded a silver medal at the first Venice Biennale that year. Riefenstahl still saw herself primarily as an actress, but after her new found success, expected to continue filmmaking as a career. If The Blue Light had not influenced her career path she would not have reached her prominence with her films such as Triumph of the Will and Olympia to come. Riefenstahl did not only gain wider international fame, she also gained the admiration and support of Adolf Hitler. According to Audrey Salkeld, “Hitler was already an admirer of hers, having been won over by her first dance of fluttering veils in her first movie.......From then on, he had followed her career with interest, The Blue Light in particular catching his imagination.” Indeed the success of The Blue Light was one of the determining influences on Riefenstahl’s rise to prominence as she states, “This film was pivotal in my life, not so much because it was my first successful effort as a producer and director, but because Hitler was so fascinated by this film that he insisted I make a documentary about the Party rally in Nuremberg. The result was Triumph of

The triumph of the will is considered one of the major visual icons of Nazism . As the Historian William Shirer said "many of the most enduring images of the Nazi regime and its leader derive from Riefenstahl's film “ . This movie is truly an artistic endeavor that shows how art can often be beyond the surface purpose of a project, that explicates in the cinematic techniques that work in concert with one another to create a cohesive portrait of this political and military leader, Adolph Hitler. Riefenstahl’s movie is a great example of how can the rhetorical appeals Ethos , Pathos , Logos be melted together to produce one of the best convincing weapons . This can be obviously implied in the choice of music , gestures

Triumph of the Will is a 1935 propaganda film directed, written and edited by Leni Riefenstahl. Nazi leader Adolf Hitler ordered the film and participated in its making as an unofficial executive producer. Triumph of the Will follows the 1934 Nazi Party Congress in Nuremberg, promoting the narrative of Germany's return as a world power with Hitler as the peoples God-like mesiah. Triumph of the Will was released in 1935 and became a prominent example of propaganda in film history. Though Leni Riefenstahl disputed the claim that her film was a propaganda piece, many contest that her work glorified the power of the Nazi party and manipulated the German people in to blindly following the will of Adolf Hitler. Today Triumph of the Will continues as a key representation of Nazi propaganda.

Today, in 2014, most people think about Superman when they hear the word Metropolis. This 1927 German film, however, is far from something as bright, colorful and all-American as Superman. America 's greatest hero represents ideals like hope, whereas Metropolis (1927) embodies the opposite and something far more sinister. By looking at the production elements and the cinematic tropes that Metropolis created and inspired, in relation to power dynamics, a scholar can see how the German people felt under the German Reich, that eventually led to the Nazi regime. How are political messages conveyed? What is the relationship between machinery and workers? How do the workers and the rich contrast each other? These questions and many more

Their intentions included ridding the gaps between religious and social classes, learning how to be the ultimate leader, tolerance of violence against Jews, and discrimination against nations that gained territory at Germanys expense. These sub goals were meant to ensure a “culture” that depicted Nazism and national pride. Scholars for many years have argued that Nazi propaganda was a sure successor in gaining German support, but recently this argument has been scrutinized. After analyzing many articles and journals, it is clear that the third Reich had failed in their attempts to mobilize public opinion through propaganda. They were unable to mobilize the opinion of multiple social classes that Adolf Hitler was clearly aiming to sway, which results in failure according to his definition of success that will be later analyzed.

The iconic representation of Triumph of the Will is the illustration Nazi Party Congress of 1934, speech by Hitler to military groups. The symbolic representation

Leni Riefenstahl was offered the opportunity to film for the Third Reich in 1933. Out of both fear and intimidation to comply, Riefenstahl accepted this offer and in 1934 went on to film the Nuremburg Rally, known as ‘Triumph of the Will’. With a crew of roughly 170, combined with Riefenstahl’s exceptional skills, she achieved the Ministry of Propaganda’s ideal to portray Hitler in a God-like and heroic manner, with the first 10 minutes dedicated solely to him. The purpose of this film was exactly that, to subconsciously coerce the public into viewing and idolising Hitler as the one and only, ‘Fuhrer’. This further added to the primary perception of Riefenstahl as a propagandist due to the nature of the films and their intentions.

Rusan Kumaravadivel Professor Deirdre Flynn ENGB70H3 31 October 2014 Propaganda Versus Entertainment In Triumph of the Will, Leni Riefenstahl’s use of cinematic techniques emphasizes the heroism that Adolf Hitler possesses, leading to the inspiration of the audience to view Hitler as a God due to the propagandistic nature of the film. However, in Stagecoach, John Ford uses film techniques to express the genre of a Western film. Riefenstahl’s film adheres more closely of purposely using specific types of film techniques to express and promote Nazi ideology while Ford’s Stagecoach uses cinematic techniques for the goal of entertainment and to progress the diegetic elements.

At the beginning of the documentary, we are told that Hitler is going to Nuremberg to “review his faithful followers”; the scene enters with ominous music playing and a plane flying through the sky filled with large and puffy clouds, and then the plane flies above the city we assume is Nuremberg. During the documentary it portrays all the people of Nuremburg are happy and excited to greet Hitler. Throughout this paper I will be talking about the different persuasion techniques and elements and principles of design that are found in the Triumph of the will documentary. Once Hitler lands he is greeted by the millions of people in Nuremburg.

Resulting from the propaganda debate is the view that Riefenstahl’s films and their ability to influence political beliefs have transcended their original context to modern society, thus demonstrating the power of propaganda. Nevertheless, when considering Riefenstahl’s films, one cannot neglect the fact that her work was not considered propaganda when they were first produced. Riefenstahl’s most notable films, Triumph of the Will and Olympia, both won awards after their releases and were acclaimed as masterpieces. In light of this, the widespread Fascist movement within Riefenstahl’s own context justifies the propagandistic nature of her work as they were a reflection of her society, and the belief that Riefenstahl should be celebrated rather than condemned for the contribution she made to German culture and society

By comparison, with Triumph of the Will, Olympia bears a much closer resemblance to a documentary film during the event of the Berlin Olympics in 1936. Goebbels saw this as an opportunity to show the world of Germany as a triumphant nation and thus used Riefenstahl to the Nazi Party’s advantage to document the games. Critics have argued that her work is characterised by the adherence to Nazi’s values and aesthetics, which is evidenced through the ideological themes seen in the film. Although Riefenstahl defends Olympia as an “art film” claiming that “other films were propaganda, not this film”. It is clear that it subliminally promotes the doctrine of the ‘Herrenvolk’, evidenced by the heavy focus of the near perfect human form of the elite