Podcast Summary:

Podcast: New Books Network
Episode: Jakub Gortat, "Remembering National Socialism in Austrian Post-war Film (1945-1955)" (Brill, 2025)
Date: October 29, 2025
Host: Jenna Pittman
Guest: Jakob Gortat

Overview

In this episode, Jenna Pittman interviews Jakob Gortat about his new book, Remembering National Socialism in Austrian Post-war Film (1945-1955). The conversation explores how Austrian films of the early post-war period reflected, reframed, or neglected Austria's complicity in National Socialism. Gortat examines the narratives, styles, and audience reception of these films, highlighting how popular memory and mythmaking intersected with cinema, and why Austria's post-war filmic approach to its Nazi past diverged notably from Germany's.

Main Discussion Points & Insights

Jakob Gortat’s Background and Research Motivation

• Gortat has long focused on Austrian and German cinema, especially how both cultures address their Nazi pasts in film.
• He found a scholarly gap regarding Austria's cinematic engagement with its history, in contrast to the robust literature on German memory and film.
  • “No one was actually interested in the case of Austria, even though it was a country that also shared the responsibility of National Socialism.” (03:18)

Why Film? The Role of Cinema in Post-War Memory (04:05)

• Film was a vital, popular medium in Austria from 1945-1955—a social place and source of entertainment, even comfort amidst post-war hardship.
• Gortat assessed the popularity of films using archival theater records and press reviews.
• His central argument: Post-war Austrians were reluctant to confront their recent Nazi past, but a minority of films did treat these themes—albeit cautiously, with an eye not to alienate audiences still intimately connected to that era.

Core Narratives in Austrian Post-war Films (07:31)

• Most films avoided the Nazi era, instead glorifying the Habsburg monarchy and illustrious composers, promoting a nostalgic, idyllic image of the nation.
• When films did touch on Nazism, they echoed the “first victim” myth:
  • The Moscow Declaration (1943) positioned Austria as the first victim of Hitler, a notion quickly embraced for national comfort, while downplaying Austrian complicity.
  • “Austrian cultural elites, including filmmakers, didn’t want to show this co-responsibility…not to mention the Holocaust, for example.” (09:19)

Austria vs. Germany: Divergent Cinematic Memories (10:44)

• German “rubble films”: Focused on bombing aftermaths, returning soldiers, and the country’s physical and moral destruction.
• Austrian films: Avoided showing ruins or trauma, instead conveying optimism—war conceived as a fleeting catastrophe overcome by national character.
• “The Second World War was reduced to a very short event... like a catastrophe. And then thanks to the hardworking Austrians, this situation was very soon improved.” (11:40)

The Myth of Innocence and Avoidance of Complicity (13:04)

• By centering ordinary people or resistance narratives, films created distance from national responsibility and avoided depicting widespread complicity.
• Complicity and responsibility for Nazi crimes were largely ignored or only indirectly acknowledged in character choices.
  • “The best way is to focus on ordinary people… And this was possible, but still in a very, very limited way as I wanted to show in my book.” (13:40)

Post-War Divisions: Austria, West & East Germany (14:51)

• Austria remained under Allied occupation longer than Germany and prioritized neutrality.
• No war films were made in Austria between 1949-54, unlike West Germany, which produced war dramas reflecting on the Eastern Front and POW experiences.
• Two key Austrian war films in the mid-50s:
  • The Last Bridge (1954)
  • The Last Ten Days (1955)
  • “After 1955, those films weren’t made anymore because everyone was enjoying the miracle of 1955, the so-called State Treaty. Finally we are free, independent and neutral. So let's put the past on the shelf and let's focus on the future.” (17:16)

Types of Post-War Austrian Films Studied (19:45)

• Gortat classified films into three broad groups:
  1. Films with Nazi past as background only: Marginal, non-central references.
  2. Heimkehrer (Returnee) films: Focused on men returning from captivity to familial and social disruption.
  3. Anti-Nazi resistance films: Visually rich in Nazi iconography; centered on ordinary Austrians resisting the regime.
• Selection methodology: Combined historical cinema literature review with close analysis for relevant content.

Analytical Approach: Film Form, Reception, and Popularity (23:08)

• Gortat provided complex filmic analysis:

  • Narrative structure, main characters, dramaturgy

  • Attention to style: Influence of American film noir, late German expressionism, creation of atmospheres of fear and suspicion

  • Reception studies: Both box office data (theater runs) and critical reviews, finding some films easily forgotten, others widely embraced across Vienna (screened in all districts).

  • “Some of them were redolent of the American noir cinema or very, very late expressionist German cinema. So you can see, for example, a city when it's very dark... the atmosphere of fear.” (23:30)

Influence of Filmmakers’ Backgrounds (26:32)

• Many film professionals, including actors, directors, and producers, had been involved in Nazi-era cinema.
  • Example: Karl Harbel (head of Wien-Film) continued his career seamlessly after the war.
  • Example: Paola Vesseli, a prominent actress associated with Nazi propaganda films, continued acting post-war.
• Involvement of less-compromised filmmakers, like director G.W. Pabst, often led to more critical representations of the Nazi past in film.
  • “So the question is whether we are able to come to terms with the Nazi past, providing that so many of the filmmakers were involved.” (28:15)

Standout Films: Recommendations (30:01)

• Gortat’s top picks for listeners:
  1. The Last Ten Days (Letzte Tage, 1955, dir. Pabst):
     • A dramatization of Hitler’s final days. Influential on later films like Downfall (2004).
     • “It is a very, very good movie that shows the end of the war and the end of the world for the Nazis…” (30:29)
  2. Angel with the Trombone (Der Engel mit der Posaune, 1948):
     • Chronicles Austrian history from the 1880s to WWII; Nazi era is compressed into roughly 20 minutes.
     • “Although the narrative extends for about 60 years, the Nazi era is reduced to only 20 minutes.” (31:42)

Broader Historical and Cultural Contribution (32:46)

• Gortat emphasizes his book’s challenge to the “first victim” myth, highlighting Austria’s responsibility, antisemitism, and national denial.
• Points out a further misconception: some films historically considered German were actually Austrian (often due to popularity in Germany).
• “This myth is only a myth … after reading your book you might be aware that it was not the case that many were involved…” (33:06)

The Sound of Music and Popular Memory (35:31)

• Host cites The Sound of Music as the version of post-war Austria most familiar to American audiences, criticizing its perpetuation of the “first victim” narrative.
  • Gortat agrees that popular film representations deeply influence public memory and historical understanding.

Upcoming Research (36:55)

• Gortat’s new project will analyze reception of popular Austrian “Habsburg films” (including the Sissi films) in Germany and elsewhere, probing why German critics—unlike those in other countries—were captivated by “kitsch” portrayals of Austria.

Notable Quotes & Timestamps

• “No one was actually interested in the case of Austria, even though it was a country that also shared the responsibility of National Socialism.”
  —Jakob Gortat (03:18)
• “They very eagerly picked up the idea to present Austria as the first victim of the Nazi aggression… This conviction of being the first victim … was a myth they really believed in.”
  —Jakob Gortat (09:00; 33:06)
• “The Second World War was reduced to a very short event…like a catastrophe…thanks to the hardworking Austrians, this situation was very soon improved.”
  —Jakob Gortat (11:40)
• “Although the narrative extends for about 60 years, the Nazi era is reduced to only 20 minutes… it was possible to talk about this past, but not too long.”
  —Jakob Gortat (31:42)
• “So the question is whether we are able to come to terms with the Nazi past, providing that so many of the filmmakers were involved.”
  —Jakob Gortat (28:15)

Key Timestamps

| Timestamp | Segment / Topic | |-----------|------------------------------------------------| | 01:53 | Gortat’s background & genesis of the project | | 04:05 | Central argument & importance of film medium | | 07:31 | Construction of narrative & “first victim” myth| | 10:44 | Austria vs. Germany in post-war film narratives| | 14:51 | Comparison with East and West Germany | | 19:45 | Film selection methodology & groups | | 23:08 | Analytical approach: style, reception, popularity| | 26:32 | Filmmakers’ backgrounds and influence | | 30:01 | Recommended films | | 32:46 | Broader scholarly contribution | | 35:31 | On The Sound of Music and mythmaking | | 36:55 | Gortat's next project |

Tone

The episode is scholarly but accessible, with Pittman bringing warmth and personal curiosity and Gortat delivering sober, precise analysis. Both are enthusiastic about filling gaps in public and academic understanding of Austrian post-war memory and film.

Summary Takeaways

• Austrian post-war cinema largely perpetuated narratives of innocence, avoidance, and a glorious past, echoing political realities and societal reluctance to confront complicity in Nazi crimes.
• A handful of films, often with international connections or critical directors (notably G.W. Pabst), offer more nuanced or critical perspectives.
• The myth of Austria as “first victim” of Nazism was both domestically convenient and fostered by Allied policy—not just a product of local denial.
• Gortat’s work fills a vital gap in both film studies and memory studies, challenging German-centric narratives and revealing how Austria crafted its post-war self-image through film.