Westerbork Film 🎦 2021 | Complete Remastered Edition

Westerbork Film 🎦 2021 | The complete remastered edition of the Westerbork Film , here annotated online in CC – by Michel van der Burg as an ongoing integrating resource.

The original display edition of the restored Westerbork film was edited only for black bar removal conform 4:3 format and insertion of a title card intro and outro. Annotations are added as CC – closed captions.

Source : digital display edition of the restored Westerbork film compilation made available in Public Domain by Sound and Vision from May 18, 2021. Courtesy of Collection NIOD held at the Netherlands Institute for Sound and Vision. Source File : Westerbork (gerestaureerd) | Display edition. Retrieved (20210518) PID: URN:NBN:NL:IN:20-ZCRLTUSICOSDILNR .

Description & Introduction film

The Westerbork Film – a silent film – is unique…the only authentic documentary footage filmed in a Nazi camp – a waiting room for death in the Netherlands for more than 100,000 Jews, and Roma, Sinti, and resistance workers. A documentary filmed spring 1944, in the Westerbork camp, by the German-Jewish camp prisoner Rudolf Werner Breslauer – the camp photographer, and commissioned by camp commander, SS-Obersturmbannführer, Albert Konrad Gemmeker.

The Westerbork camp was set up in 1939 before the war in Holland, by the Dutch government, as a central refugees camp for Jewish refugees from Nazi-Germany.
July 1942 , when the Nazi’s decided to start ‘Entjüdung’ of the Netherlands, they took over the camp for use as transit camp for deportation of mainly Jews, and Roma, Sinti, and resistance people to eastern Europe.
March 2, 1944 , SS leader Rauter in the Netherlands reports to Germany’s SS Reichsführer Himmler : the Netherlands are ‘Judenfrei’. March 5, 1944 the camp is ‘Arbeitslager’ – a work camp – when
Rudolf Breslauer starts filming the daily life of the Westerbork prisoners. After Breslauer films the deportation of Jews, Roma and Sinti to Bergen-Belsen and Auschwitz on May 19, 1944 the filming stops. The film is also not edited. In 1986 the dutch RVD Information Center makes a first montage in 4 acts of the footage into what is known now as the Westerborkfilm. In 2017 the film dossier – film and production documents – enter the UNESCO Memory of the World Register. Spring 2019 the Westerbork Film – full version (RVD) was published online and annotated – https://settela.com/2019/06/05/westerbork-film-full-version-rvd/ .

Spring 2019 the dutch Sound & Vision , EYE Filmmuseum and NIOD (former RIOD) started a major restauration project and search for all footage of the Westerbork film in all archives.
Two reels with original negative film were discovered by image researcher Gerard Nijssen.
All restored unique shots using both the camera original film and film copies (prints – when no original is known) were used for the new restored Westerbork film compilation made available as ‘display edition’ – with no title actually – by Sound and Vision | NIOD on May 18, 2021.

This newly restored 2021 version of the Westerbork film , 145 min long – was prepared for presentation here in 4:3 format (black bars removed) with a 6 seconds title card superimposed both at the start and the end of the film (superimposed on the originally 30 sec intro text and 17 sec outro text sections by Sound & Vision), in order not to change the length of the film – to allow exact reference to the original file’s timeline.

Westerbork Film 🎦 2021 | 20220302 was first uploaded March 2, 2022, and is now after annotation of the online film made public May 7, 2022 together with a short introductory film : Westerborkfilm Introduction | 20220507 | Michel van der Burg | Settela•Com | An introduction film by Michel van der Burg on the Westerbork film with a first showing May 7, 2022 in METRO Kinokulturhaus , Vienna , Austria at the DOCUMENTS OF DESTRUCTION | DOKUMENTE DER VERNICHTUNG Symposium 6-7 May, 2022 curated by Florian Widegger. Presented by Filmarchiv Austria in cooperation with the Vienna Jewish Film Festival and the Mauthausen Memorial.

Annotations

On YouTube called Chapters – there limited number due to limit number of characters in description

0:00:08 Introduction

Original Reel E325

00:00:29 Batteries recycling – April/May 1944 – Original Reel E325

00:01:28 Clothing factory – April/May 1944 – Original Reel E325

00:02:15 Shoemaking – April/May 1944 – Original Reel E325

00:02:43 Batteries recycling – April/May 1944 – Original Reel E325

00:04:43 Laundry…ironing – April/May 1944 – Original Reel E325

00:04:56 Furniture workshop – April/May 1944 – Original Reel E325

00:08:04 Metalwork – April/May 1944 – Original Reel E325

00:09:50 Outside workshops Tischlerei | Wood work – April/May 1944 – Original Reel E325

00:10:04 Outside workshops Schlosserei | Metalwork – April/May 1944 – Original Reel E325

00:10:33 Schlosserei | Metalwork – April/May 1944 – Original Reel E325

00:12:29 Medical laboratory – April/May 1944 – Original Reel E325

00:13:37 Zahnstation | Dental Clinic – April/May 1944 – Original Reel E325

00:14:22 Entrance camp – March/May 1944 – New clip found by researcher Gerard Nijssen on original reel E325

Original Reel E198 Roll 1/4

00:14:26 Outbound transport to Bergen-Belsen and Auschwitz – May 19, 1944 – Original Reel E198 Roll 1/4

Original Reel E198 Roll 2/4

00:16:21 Outbound transport to Bergen-Belsen and Auschwitz – May 19, 1944 – Original Reel E198 Roll 2/4

00:16:44 Boarding in 3rd class cars for Bergen-Belsen , including the ‘Diamond Jews’ group – E198 Roll 2/4

00:16:49 Outbound transport to Bergen-Belsen – May 19, 1944 – Toddlers Marc and Stella Degen – Original Reel E198 Roll 2/4

00:16:52 Settela Steinbach | Roma & Sinti |

NOTE : for this shot right after the Degen toddlers, Breslauer had to move all the way back to last cars of the transport to Auschwitz – May 19, 1944 – E198 Roll 2/4

00:17:03 Outbound transport to Bergen-Belsen and Auschwitz – May 19, 1944 – Original Reel E198 Roll 2/4

00:17:49 Gemmeker group passing camera in the middle

00:17:55 Outbound transport to Bergen-Belsen and Auschwitz – May 19, 1944 – Original Reel E198 Roll 2/4

Original Reel E198 Roll 3/4

00:18:13 Outbound transport to Bergen-Belsen and Auschwitz – May 19, 1944 – Original Reel E198 Roll 3/4

00:18:51 On the right : SS-Obersturmführer Albert Gemmeker , Commander of Westerbork transit camp

00:18:56 Outbound transport to Bergen-Belsen and Auschwitz – May 19, 1944 – Original Reel E198 Roll 3/4

00:19:00 Albert Gemmeker – 3rd from left

00:19:03 Outbound transport to Bergen-Belsen and Auschwitz – May 19, 1944 – Original Reel E198 Roll 3/4

00:19:35 Dienstleiter Heinz Todtmann | Personal Aide Gemmeker | frontal view | Author Westerbork Film Plan

00:19:40 Pushing an extra cattle car – Original Reel E198 Roll 3/4

00:19:48 Dienstleiter Heinz Todtmann | Author Westerbork Film Plan | standing on the right with papers

00:19:59 Gemmeker , Commander of Westerbork transit camp

00:20:15 Gemmeker | looking up

Original Reel E198 Roll 4/4

00:20:18 Outbound transport to Bergen-Belsen and Auschwitz – May 19, 1944 – Original Reel E198 Roll 4/4

00:20:35 Jews (incl. from penal barrack 67) boarding cattle cars for Auschwitz – FK, the flying squad, assisting with luggage

00:21:19 Name & date on this suitcase were key to finding the transport date ; Suitcase F. Kroon 26-9-82

00:21:33 Outbound transport to Bergen-Belsen and Auschwitz – May 19, 1944 – Original Reel E198 Roll 4/4

00:21:51 Boarding 3rd class cars for Bergen-Belsen, including the ‘Diamond Jews’ group

00:22:04 Outbound transport to Bergen-Belsen and Auschwitz – May 19, 1944 – Original Reel E198 Roll 4/4

Restored RVD Westerbork Film duplicates

00:22:30 Inbound transport from Amsterdam – March 15, 1944 – filmed with Victor camera

00:24:55 Inbound transport prisoners Camp Vught – March 21, 1944 – filmed with Victor camera

00:26:40 Registration prisoners Camp Vught – March 21, 1944 – filmed with Victor camera

00:28:02 Inbound transport from Vught – March 21, 1944

00:28:09 Aircraft recycling – April/May 1944

00:45:14 Agfa film

00:45:25 Batteries recycling

00:47:14 Silver paper recycling, April / May 1944

00:49:20 Clothing factory

00:53:35 Toy factory

00:55:00 Toy factory

00:58:48 Manufacture of brushes

00:59:55 Shoemaking

01:02:25 Manufacture of handbags

01:04:09 Manufacture of soles and gloves

01:05:02 Weaving, repairing stockings

01:07:08 Agfa

01:07:14 Cufflinks factory

01:09:09 Laundry … ironing

01:11:06 Construction materials for barracks, April / May 1944

01:13:26 Construction greenhouse

01:16:05 Train to Oranje canal ship … loading bricks

01:24:46 Camp farm

01:35:30 Work the land

01:41:57 Arrival camp mine carts with bricks

01:44:01 Construction purification plant

01:45:20 Logging trees near Assen town

01:52:37 Religious Service Protestant Group in Great Hall , March 5 , 1944

01:52:46 Soccer match at Appellplatz, Sunday afternoon

01:55:52 Women workout

01:57:22 Revue night Bunter Abend – April 1944

Restored reel F1014

02:03:31 Animation Intertitles Transport Data

02:03:36 Camp farm / Work the land

02:04:41 Intertitle (planned for Revue Bunter Abend footage)

02:04:43 Construction barracks

02:05:03 Soccer match at Appellplatz

02:05:17 Ball shots – Special effects

02:06:23 Revue night Bunter Abend – April 1944

02:11:29 Miscellaneous short takes

Restored reel F1015

02:11:53 Gevaert logo

02:11:55 Young woman in overalls attaches sign to camp sign (Verwaltung, Hauptmagazin, Industrie, Kleiderkammer)

02:12:08 Religious Service of Protestant Group in Great Hall, March 5, 1944

02:16:14 Shoemaking

02:17:13 Aircraft recycling

02:17:56 Manufacture of brushes

02:18:05 Cufflinks factory

02:18:21 Aircraft recycling

Credits

02:25:19 Credits

CREDITS & REFERENCES

Special thanks to Valentine Kuypers , curator at Sound and Vision, image researcher Gerard Nijssen, and the Westerbork Memorial Center researchers Bas Kortholt , Koert Broersma and Gerard Rossing. Aad Wagenaar, research journalist and author of book Settela.

Work on the 2021 Westerbork film edition has been a joint effort of four dutch organizations : the Dutch media archive Sound & Vision, Camp Westerbork Memorial Centre , the NIOD Institute for War, Holocaust and Genocide Studies, and the Jewish Cultural Quarter in Amsterdam.

NIOD Institute for War, Holocaust and Genocide Studies | 250i Westerbork, Judendurchgangslager | 854 Stukken over de Westerbork-film, 7 maart – 20 april 1944 en z.d. | File retrieved May 23, 2019 from Nationaal Archief (last accessed 2021 Apr 17)
URL https://www.archieven.nl/nl/search-modonly?mivast=298&mizig=210&miadt=298&micode=250i&milang=nl&mizk_alle=westerbork%20film&miview=inv2#inv3t2

Unesco.org – Memory of the World – Westerbork films (accessed 20190605)
URL http://www.unesco.org/new/en/communication-and-information/memory-of-the-world/register/full-list-of-registered-heritage/registered-heritage-page-9/westerbork-films/

The Westerbork film, May 7, 2022 at the symposium DOKUMENTE DER VERNICHTUNG of the Jüdischen Filmfestival Wien , the Mauthausen Memorial , and Filmarchiv Austria.

Settela, het meisje heeft haar naam terug (1995-2007) by Aad Wagenaar ISBN 9789089751898 / English translation by Janna Eliot ‘Settela’ (2005-2016) ISBN 978-0-9933898-2-5 .

Documentary film Settela, gezicht van het verleden by Cherry Duyns (VPRO, 1994).

De Westerborkfilm 📽️🎞️ | Nederlands Instituut voor Beeld & Geluid | YouTube Apr 8, 2021 URL https://youtu.be/8Y-A4BkWY18

Restauratie Westerborkfilm (May 12, 2021) Valentine Kuypers | Beeld en Geluid (accessed 2021 Jul 19) URL: https://bit.ly/3kGteVs

Gerestaureerde filmbeelden Westerbork (1944) (May 18, 2021) Nederlands Instituut voor Beeld en Geluid | Youtube (accessed 2021 Jul 19) URL: https://youtu.be/-zCmr6PSNcI

Kamp Westerbork gefilmd (May 2021) Koert Broersma, Gerard Rossing (editor Gorcum B.V., Koninklijke van) ISBN 9789023257622.

‘Kamp Westerbork gefilmd’ by Koert Broersma and Gerard Rossing (editors Dirk Mulder and Ben Prinsen) ISBN 9023232658

Dawn Skorczewski & Bettine Siertsema (2018): ‘The kind of spirit that people still kept’: VHA testimonies of Amsterdam’s Diamond Jews, Holocaust Studies URL: https://doi.org/10.1080/17504902.2018.1516361

Diamantkinderen: Amsterdamse Diamantjoden en de Holocaust . Translated title of the contribution: Diamond Children: Amsterdam’s Diamond Jews and the Holocaust. Siertsema, Bettine (2020) Uitgeverij Verbum ISBN 9789493028340

Fabian Schmidt (2020): The Westerbork Film Revisited: Provenance, the Re-Use of Archive Material and Holocaust Remembrances, Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, URL : https://doi.org/10.1080/01439685.2020.1730033

Children of the Holocaust Who Are Anonymous No More | May 18, 2021 by Nina Siegal | The New York Times |
URL https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/18/arts/children-of-the-holocaust-who-are-anonymous-no-more.html

Refugee Camp. Camp Westerbork Memorial Center. URL https://kampwesterbork.nl/en/history/second-world-war/refugee-camp

Location map of the Netherlands | Karte: NordNordWest | Wikimedia | Creative Commons by-sa-3.0 de | URL https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westerbork_transit_camp

Westerbork Film Scripts | 20220508 | Michel van der Burg | Settela•Com | ISSN 2949-9313

Westerbork Film Correspondence | 20220509 | Michel van der Burg | Settela•Com | ISSN 2949-9313

Westerbork Film in ‘Proces Rauter’ 1948 (20190520) Michel van der Burg | Settela•Com | ISSN 2949-9313

Westerborkfilm Introduction | 20220507 | Michel van der Burg | Settela•Com | ISSN 2949-9313 | Introduction by Michel van der Burg on the Westerborkfilm screening in METRO Kinokulturhaus , Vienna , Austria at the DOCUMENTS OF DESTRUCTION | DOKUMENTE DER VERNICHTUNG Symposium 6-7 May, 2022 curated by Florian Widegger. Presented by Filmarchiv Austria in cooperation with the Vienna Jewish Film Festival and the Mauthausen Memorial.

TAGS #Westerborkfilm #introduction #MichelvanderBurg #remastered #Breslauer #documentary #DOKUMENTEDERVERNICHTUNG #METRO #Kinokulturhaus #FlorianWidegger #Westerborkfilm #FilmarchivAustria #ViennaJewishFilmFestival #MauthausenMemorial #Westerbork #film #arbeitslager #Lagerfilm #industry #RudolfBreslauer #Degen #restauration #review #michelvanderburg #holocaust #barracks #children #concentration #camps #deportation #dog #guard #Jew #Diamond #labor #machinery #Netherlands #railcar #Roma #Sinti #starsofdavid #tool #train #station #transitcamp #uniform #Westerbork #UNESCO #film #Settela #Gemmeker #Auschwitz #BergenBelsen #documentary #resistance #1Memo #SettelaCom #MiraclesMedia #arbeitslager #Todtman #SoundandVision #NIOD #RIOD #RVD #Rauter #Lagerfilm

Updates

20220509 Annotations (Chapters) expanded

20220511 Info on order of shots added in post Westerbork Film Shots Order | 20220511 . Based on that info , here the Annotations list now has sub-headings like ‘Original Reel E325′ etc.

20220604 – Format changes credit line , references

20230518 – Credits and references updated with ISSN

Deportation Westerbork Film

Deportation Westerbork Film • Edition 2021

SILENT FILM

Deportation 19 May 1944 from the dutch Westerbork transit camp, filmed by the German Jewish refugee and camp prisoner Rudolf Breslauer. Shortly thereafter 20 km north in the dutch town Assen, train cars are added from the Belgian Transport XXV (25) from transit camp Kazerne Dossin (Dossin barracks) in Mechelen, and the combined transport with Jews, Sinti and Roma, including Settela Steinbach, continues to the east…to the Bergen-Belsen and Auschwitz concentration camps.

Footage (original camera negative) filmed by Rudolf Breslauer 19 May 1944 in Camp Westerbork, Netherlands.

Film edited by Michel van der Burg (film grain noise reduction | reordering footage fragments | black bar removal) using as source : the digital display edition of the 2021 restored Westerbork film compilation – courtesy of the NIOD | Nederlands Instituut voor Beeld en Geluid (Sound and Vision) – based on the newly discovered original camera negative film (canister E198). File ref: BUM20210719_01_19440519

Deportation Westerbork Film | 20210719 | Michel van der Burg | Settela•Com | ISSN 2949-9313

Background

First Westerbork Film (RVD)

The full version of the Westerbork Film (RVD edition) was first published spring 2019 ( settela.com//2019/06/05 ) – 75 years after the German-Jewish camp prisoner Rudolf Werner Breslauer filmed his last scene in the Westerbork transit camp – the deportation train to Bergen-Belsen and Auschwitz, May 19, 1944 (REF 1).

That Westerbork Film – the so-called RVD edition – is a montage of raw film footage made in 1986 by the Dutch National Centre for Information (the Rijksvoorlichtingsdienst, RVD) in 4 parts (Acte 1-4). Though authentic documentary footage – all the reels of film used in the 1986 edition Westerbork Film, actually, are film copies. The fate of the camera-original film was not known.

New restored Westerbork film – 2021 edition

The renewed interest for the Westerbork Film with the Unesco Memory of the World Registration sparkled also interest at the dutch NIOD Institute for War, Holocaust and Genocide Studies in the restoration of the Westerbork Film and a new survey of all available film footage archives spring 2019 let to the discovery – by the dutch image researcher, historian, Gerard Nijssen and co-workers of the Sound and Vision institute (Beeld en Geluid) of 2 canisters with ‘camera-original’ footage.

One of these canisters contains the original camera negative footage of all known fragments of the May 19, 1944 deportation – canister E198 (labeled : Negatief origineel – Westerbork – Transport – 64 meter).
This news and a glimpse of the new high quality ‘camera-original’ footage was aired January 20, 2020 by the national dutch broadcaster NOS (REF 2).

Conservator Valentine Kuypers (Sound and Vision) on the restoration

Part of the new restored film premiered online 18 April 2021 during the Mediacafé conference ‘Westerbork, caught on film’ hosted by Valentine Kuypers (conservator, Beeld en Geluid) and Bas Kortholt (Camp Westerbork Memorial Centre).
The new 2021 Westerbork film is a compilation of the best quality footage of all unique scenes found on all archive film reels, with digital scanning and conservative restoration aiming at stabilization of the images and removal only of dust, scratches, and splices without damaging film grain. No efforts were done to correct bouncing images (a camera defect) , or sharpen the images.
In addition – after the restoration – a display copy of the archive film was made and that copy has been further adjusted by color grading and retiming to mimic the original playback speed of 16 frames per second. (REF 3).

The full film of the restored Westerbork compilation was presented May 18, 2021 in Camp Westerbork Memorial Centre and made available online that day via Sound and Vision. Work on the 2021 Westerbork film edition has been a joint effort of four dutch organizations : the Dutch media archive, Sound and Vision, Camp Westerbork Memorial Centre , the NIOD Institute for War, Holocaust and Genocide Studies, and the Jewish Cultural Quarter in Amsterdam.

May 18, 2021 Sound and Vision also published via their YouTube channel (Nederlands Instituut voor Beeld en Geluid) the video ‘Gerestaureerde filmbeelden Westerbork (1944)’ – a 21 minute compilation of fragments of the new restored film footage of Westerbork, including half of the May 19, 1944 footage (REF 4).

New film findings in book “Kamp Westerbork gefilmd”

Dutch Westerbork film researchers Koert Broersma and Gerard Rossing also presented May 18, 2021 a new edition of their first in 1997 published book “Kamp Westerbork gefilmd”. For this new edition, the newly restored, cleaned and digitized version of the Westerbork Film allowed them to identify more passengers on the deportation train, including children who survived (REF 5, 6). In their book they noted that canister E198 – with the ‘camera-original’ footage of the May 19, 1944 deportation- unfortunately shows 3 splices – and showed an image of one of these splices.

Deportation Westerbork Film | Edition 2021

This film shows all the known footage filmed by Rudolf Breslauer 19 May 1944 of the deportation from Camp Westerbork from the newly discovered original camera negative film (canister E198) made available in the digital display edition of the 2021 restored Westerbork film compilation – courtesy of the NIOD | Nederlands Instituut voor Beeld en Geluid (Sound and Vision).
The film reel of canister E198 – though camera-original negative has 3 splices between film fragments not assembled in the order shot – i.e. starting with the deportation train leaving Westerbork.
The digital display edition of Sound and Vision shows no splices, but has 2 very short white transitions — and clearly no reordering was done for that archive film based copy.
In order to mimic the sequence of clips shot by Rudolf Breslauer, I reordered for the present film, those 4 fragments guided by both the route of one of the passengers, and the two white transitions in the digital display edition, as well as an image illustrating a splice shown by Koert Broersma and Gerard Rossing in their book “Kamp Westerbork gefilmd” .
The black bars of the widescreen source were trimmed, resulting in the standard format again.
Specialized software (Neat Video) was used for conservative reduction of film grain noise. No grading, sharpening etc was done.

In the film poster image, the train leaving Camp Westerbork – showing at the rear the freight car with vertical planks deporting 75 people including Settela Steinbach and her family to Auschwitz. That car actually is the fourth-last car of the train.

Notes

2. Nieuwe beelden van iconische Westerborkfilm gevonden (Jan 20, 2020) | NOS (accessed 2021 Jul 19) URL: https://bit.ly/3isIqTp

3. Restauratie Westerborkfilm (May 12, 2021) Valentine Kuypers | Beeld en Geluid (accessed 2021 Jul 19) URL: https://bit.ly/3kGteVs

4. Gerestaureerde filmbeelden Westerbork (1944) (May 18, 2021) Nederlands Instituut voor Beeld en Geluid | Youtube (accessed 2021 Jul 19) URL: https://youtu.be/-zCmr6PSNcI

5. Kamp Westerbork gefilmd (May 2021) Koert Broersma, Gerard Rossing (editor Gorcum B.V., Koninklijke van) ISBN 9789023257622.

6. Children of the Holocaust Who Are Anonymous No More by Nina Siegal | The New York Times (May 18, 2021) (accessed 2021 Jul 19) URL: https://nyti.ms/2UQvAq5

TAGS #deportation #train #Westerbork #RudolfBreslauer #1Memo #MiraclesMedia #michelvanderburg #SettelaCom #Netherlands #Settela #Gemmeker #KazerneDossin #holocaust #CampWesterbork #Jew #Roma #Sinti #child #UNESCO #documentary #Mechelen #Auschwitz #BergenBelsen #film #diversity

Updates

July 19, 2021 – The current video is shown via Vimeo.
A higher quality file has been uploaded to youtube , but is currently blocked etc by two copyright claims – this will take me probably 1(-4) weeks to deal with.

Jul 25, 2021 – Started today two content ID disputes (YouTube edition) , currently under review | Both submitted on Jul 25, 2021.

Jul 26, 2021 – One claimant (restricting monitization) released their copyright claim on the youtube video.

Jul 27, 2021 – Claimant #2 released restrictions (blocking views) for the remaining time of the dispute review proces.
I now replaced the embedded Vimeo video with the YouTube edition.

Aug 18, 2021 – After reviewing my dispute, Claimant #2 has decided to release their copyright claim on the YouTube video “Deportation Westerbork Film | 20210719” . The video is finally screening on YouTube without restrictions.

20220604 – Format changes credit line , references

20230518 – Credits and references updated with ISSN

20250224 – Citation info added , and Notes section format editing

Citation info : Deportation Westerbork Film • Edition 2021 | 20210719 | Settela•Com | ISSN 2949-9313 | Footage filmed by Rudolf Breslauer in 1944, courtesy of NIOD | Sound and Vision . URL https://settela.com/2021/07/19/deportation-westerbork-film-20210719/

Gestapo Methods | Evrard Voorpijls

Evrard Voorpijls – Belgian political prisoner , resistance fighter – told a grim story on Gestapo torture methods, during the Last Witnesses – “De Laatste Getuigen” – book (ISBN 9789054877370) presentation by Marc Van Roosbroeck (chairman of vzw “De werkgroep 10 december 2008”) on 20 May 2011 in Tongeren , Belgium.
Evrard Voorpijls (born 6 March 1923) died at the age of 89 (March 5, 2013) in the town he was born, in Maaseik, Belgium.

First post 20210520 – Updated film (for music copyright reasons dd 20210521 by shortened film edition, with replacement of the Belgian national anthem ‘La Brabançonne’ by an U.S. Navy performance of François Van Campenhout’s composition (public domain retrieved from commons.wikimedia.org) .

TRANSCRIPT

Ik ben aangehouden geworden, nieuwjaar 1944.

Ik werd overgebracht van Maaseik naar Hasselt, naar de gevangenis.

En de tweede dag dat ik in die gevangenis zat in Hasselt, heeft de Sicherheitsdienst die gehuisvest was op de Havermarkt te Hasselt, recht tegenover het gerechtshof …

Ik werd daar naartoe gebracht.
En met handen op de rug achter de stoel gebonden.

Scherp licht op mijn ogen gezet.

En ze hadden juist, de opdracht, wat ik deed in de weerstand.

Ik werd ondervraagd, en ik heb dat altijd doen afschreeuwen.

Ik werd beschuldigd, dat ik wapens en munitie van Wallonie naar Maaskant bracht.

Dat ik de sluikpers verspreidde – dat was in die tijd de ‘De Rode Vaan’.

Ik heb Russische en Franse krijgsgevangen – die ontvlucht waren – heb ik geholpen.

En eventueel zelfs piloten die ik aangewezen kreeg, dat ik die dan naar een weerstands-huis moest brengen, en van daaruit gingen ze dan terug naar Engeland, over Frankrijk en Spanje.

Ik heb het altijd afgeschreeuwd, waarvan ik beschuldigd werd.

En ik heb gezegd tegen de ondervragers:
Hoe kan ik dat gedaan hebben ?

Ik, als mijnwerker, want …

Als mijnwerker, was het geluk onder den oorlog – ge werd nooit naar Duitsland gevoerd, want ge werkte voor de Duitsers – daar werd wel sabotage gepleegd in de kolenmijnen.

Ze hebben mij geslagen en gestampt.
Totdat ik bewusteloos neerviel op de vloer.

Ik kreeg een kom water over mijn gezicht gesmeten.
Terug … ondervraagd , drie dagen aan één stuk.

Dan hebben ze me weer terug naar de gevangenis gebracht in Hasselt.

En de week daarna zijn we overgebracht worden, naar Antwerpen, naar de Begijnenstraat, naar de Wehrmacht gevangenis.

Daar ben ik dan ondervraagd geworden door de Gestapo in de Dellafaillelaan onder in de kelder.

Toen ze mij daar binnen brachten – zag ik bloedplekken op de muren.
Toen begon ik toch een beetje te bibberen, zal ik maar zeggen.

Maar van de ene kant – ik ben een stijfkop.
En dat ben ik nog – wat ik voor heb , dat moet gebeuren.

Ze hebben me weer ondervraagt .
Dezelfde vragen gesteld als in Hasselt.

Ik bleef altijd hetzelfde zeggen.

En te lange laatste, na 3-4 dagen ondervraging…
…hebben ze mij duimschroeven opgezet –
op deze vingers – want dat zijn de pijnlijkste vingers , als ge aan het werk zijt.

Nog niet bekennen – aandraaien , aandraaien, aandraaien – nog niet toegeven.

En toen, hebben ze tandenstokers onder mijn nagels geklopt.

Nog niet toegeven.
En toen, hebben ze ijskoud, die nagels uitgetrokken.

En als ge wilt – ge kunt het zien :
Ze zijn mismaakt – en met die handen kan ik niet veel doen.

Zelfs de grote tenen – hebben ze de nagels uitgetrokken.

Dat was hier bij de ondervraging door de Gestapo.

Marc Van Roosbroeck (voorzitter) : Dank u wel Evrard, voor deze zeer moedige getuigenis.

—

TRANSLATION (20210525) by Michel van der Burg

I have been apprehended, New Year 1944.

I was transferred from Maaseik to Hasselt, to prison.

The second day in that prison…
taken to the Sicherheitsdienst…
housed at the Havermarkt in Hasselt…
right in front of the court.

I was taken there.

And…with hands behind my back…
tied to a chair.

Bright light, put on my eyes.

They were right…about my assignment…
what I was doing in the resistance.

I was interrogated…
and that, I always have screamed away.

I was accused, of bringing weapons and ammunition,
from Wallonia to the Maaskant.

That I distributed the clandestine press…
that was ‘De Rode Vaan’ at the time.

I helped Russian and French prisoners of war, who had fled.

And, on occasion, even pilots that I was assigned.

I had to take them to a resistance house…
from which they went back to England – over France and Spain.

I have always denied their accusations.

And I said to the interrogators:
How could I have done that?

Me, as a miner, because…

As a miner…luck was…during the war…
you were never taken to Germany…
because, you worked for the Germans…
though, sabotage was committed there in the coal mines.

They hit and kicked me.
Until I fell unconscious on the floor.

I got a bowl of water thrown in my face.
Then, interrogated again, three days in a row.

Then, they brought me back to prison, in Hasselt.

And the week after, we were transferred…
to Antwerp, to the Begijnenstraat, to the Wehrmacht prison.

There, I was interrogated by the Gestapo…
in the Dellafaillelaan, in the basement.

When they brought me in there…
I saw blood stains on the walls.

Then, I started to shiver a bit…so to speak.

But on the other hand…I’m a pigheaded person.
And I still am : what I’m planning, that must be done.

They interrogated me again.
Asked the same questions as in Hasselt.

I always kept saying the same thing.

And finally, after 3-4 days of interrogation…
they put thumbscrews on me…
on these fingers…
because, those are the most painful fingers…
when you are at work.

Still don’t confess…
tighten, tighten, tighten…
still don’t give in.

And then, they knocked toothpicks under my fingernails.

Still don’t give in.
And then, they icily, pulled those nails out.

And if you like…
you can see it :
they are deformed…
and I can’t do much with those hands .

Even the big toes…they have pulled out the nails.

That was here at the Gestapo interrogation.

Marc Van Roosbroeck (chairman) : Thanks for this very courageous testimony.

Credits

Testimony by Evrard Voorpijls during the Last Witnesses – “De Laatste Getuigen” – book (ISBN 9789054877370) presentation by Marc Van Roosbroeck (chairman of vzw “De werkgroep 10 december 2008”) on 20 May 2011 in Tongeren , Belgium.

Transcript & Translation (20210525) by Michel van der Burg.

News

20210525 – English translation CC added in YouTube video. Both transcript (Flemish) and translation added in website post.

TAGS #EvrardVoorpijls #Gestapo #resistance #1Memo #MiraclesMedia #michelvanderburg #partisan #MarcVanRoosbroeck #Weerstand #torture #Belgium #political #prisoner #testimony #Tongeren #holocaust #witness #Maaseik #Antwerpen #getuigen #education #school #Evrard #Voorpijls

Updates

20220604 – changes credit line

20230518 – Credits updated with ISSN

Westerbork Film Football Edit | Edition 2021

Westerbork Film Football Edit | Edition 2021 | 20210517

SILENT FILM

The UNESCO – Memory of the World – ‘ Westerbork films’ dossier (REF 1) consists of both the actual film footage, as well as a dossier with the 1944 film plan, film script, title cards (intertitles), and a file with correspondence between the camp and the outside world on obtaining camera’s , film and film processing. That film footage was researched and presented before on Settela•Com.

In a recent post (Westerbork Film Intertitles | 20210515; REF 2) the drawings for the title cards were shown in a short film I made, that also showed a few seconds of Breslauer’s archive film footage demonstrating that not all of his Westerbork Film is a compilation of rushes only -he also had done some experiments filming and animating title cards. Aside from that, the film was not edited, and title cards were not yet inserted.

Today, working on presenting that 1944 film plan and script, I noticed in that editing script (all written in the German language) the instruction “Untertitel: ( in einen rollenden Fussball einkopiert ) Appelplatz am Sonntag Nachmittag.” , in English : ‘Subtitle: copied into a rolling football – roll call area on Sunday afternoon’. That is the text on one of these title cards I worked with, and I had seen Breslauer’s filming and slow-motion experiments with a rolling football, on that same F1014 reel that was used for his animation tests (REF 3). This has been described also in the 1997 dutch Westerbork film dossier analysis by Broersma & Rossing (REF 4) – a book I studied 2 years ago – and details I re-discovered later today. Tomorrow these authors will present a new edition (dutch), available later this month.
Breslauer never got the chance to try copying that title card on the rolling ball – I did today : a little digital experiment of copying that title card Appellplatz am Sonntag Nachmittag on the rolling ball. Just 4 seconds, repeated 4 times in this little film : Westerbork Film Football Edit.

TAGS #Westerborkfilm #animation #script #Appellplatz #1Memo #MiraclesMedia #michelvanderburg #Holland #Netherlands #CampWesterbork #Settela #RudolfBreslauer #UNESCO #NIOD #holocaust #intertitle #titlecard #titelkaart #documentary #file #drawing #Jew #Roma #Westerbork #remake #postproduction #postwar #edit

Below on website only – because of space and linking constraints on social media – the links, references, sources, credits :

References

1 – UNESCO Memory of the World Register – Unesco.org – Mémoire du monde – Le film de Westerbork (accessed 20190605) URL http://www.unesco.org/new/fr/communication-and-information/memory-of-the-world/register/full-list-of-registered-heritage/registered-heritage-page-9/westerbork-films/

2- Westerbork Film Intertitles | 20210515 | Michel van der Burg | Settela•Com | ISSN 2949-9313 (accessed 2021 May 17) URL: https://wp.me/p91enH-3e

3 – Unknown Westerbork Film Reel…F1014 | 20190616 | Michel van der Burg | Settela•Com | ISSN 2949-9313 (accessed 2021 May 15) URL: https://wp.me/p91enH-2b

4 – ‘Kamp Westerbork gefilmd’ by Koert Broersma and Gerard Rossing (editors Dirk Mulder and Ben Prinsen; ISBN 9023232658). Note, a new edition will be available May 2021 (editor Gorcum B.V., Koninklijke van; ISBN 9789023257622 ) – not yet published.

Notes : Both Appelplatz and Appellplatz are used in German and in script and title card

Credit

Thanks to ‘Kamp Westerbork gefilmd’ by Koert Broersma and Gerard Rossing (editors Dirk Mulder and Ben Prinsen; ISBN 9023232658). Note, a new edition will be available May 2021 (editor Gorcum B.V., Koninklijke van; ISBN 9789023257622 )

Title card source : NIOD Institute for War, Holocaust and Genocide Studies | 250i Westerbork, Judendurchgangslager | 854 Stukken over de Westerbork-film, 7 maart – 20 april 1944 en z.d. | File retrieved May 23, 2019 from Nationaal Archief (last accessed 2021 Apr 17) URL https://www.archieven.nl/nl/search-modonly?mivast=298&mizig=210&miadt=298&micode=250i&milang=nl&mizk_alle=westerbork%20film&miview=inv2#inv3t2

Film footage source : Filmed by Rudolf Breslauer, retrieved from : Unknown Westerbork Film Reel…F1014 | 20190616 | Michel van der Burg | Settela•Com | ISSN 2949-9313 (accessed 2021 May 17) URL: https://wp.me/p91enH-2b

Updates

20220604 – Format changes credit line , references

20230518 – Credits and references updated with ISSN

Westerbork Film Intertitles

Westerbork Film Intertitles | 20210515 | Michel van der Burg | Settela•com

SILENT FILM

Westerbork Films Dossier

These Westerbork film documents – the film script etc – complement the Westerbork film footage presented earlier – a first full version (RVD) of the Westerbork Film posted in 2019 (20190605) and the complete UNESCO album of all known footage shot by inmate Werner Rudolf Breslauer in the Westerbork camp in 1944, posted early 2020 (REF 2).
The final part of the UNESCO registry (Le film de Westerbork – édité le 8 mai 2017 – ID code 2016-118 ) lists all the documents on the Westerbork Film at the NIOD Institute for War, Holocaust and Genocide Studies.
That NIOD archive file — called (translated) : Directing, texts and correspondence of the film “Westerbork” consists of a file containing the original screenplay or script for the film, title cards, notes, correspondence and administration . That entire file has been scanned (total of 60 black and white scans) and is available online.
More information on the history and origin of the film translated from the french UNESCO registration is posted later.

Title Cards

Here, in this short film, the title cards are presented. Title cards referenced in the UNESCO registry, and prepared in the camp in 1944 for the Westerbork film. The name of the artist drawing these cards is not known, I guess. Digital scans of 11 different letter cards were retrieved from the public online archive of the NIOD Institute for War, Holocaust and Genocide Studies at the dutch National Archive (Nationaal Archief) – full info in CREDITS.

Film Sections

In this film these title cards are used in different ways, shown in 5 sections. The arrangement of the cards was chosen by me.

1 : ‘ORIGINALS’ – TRANSLATION IN SUBTITLES – The first section shows english subtitles with the restored scan images of the orignal drawings made in Camp Westerbork. The restoration includes exposure adjustment, crop, and if necessary rotation and flip horizontal or vertical of the supplied scans.

2: NEGATIVES – The second section shows the same images, now as negatives (white on black), the way title cards are usually shown in movies, and Breslauer did too while working on the Westerbork Film – see below on section 4.

3) The 3rd sequence of the title cards shows the negatives again, now animated with cross-overs (fade in- and out) between the negatives.
Trickaufnahmen – trick shots – was mentioned in the film plan (discussed further in a later post). Trick shots like slow-motion and similar animation work by Breslauer is actually found on the Westerbork film reel F1014 with so-called ‘Residual material’. This was previously reported in the 1997 edition of the book ‘Kamp Westerbork gefilmd’ by Broersma & Rossing (REF 3). That reel’s footage, to me feels like this was Breslauer’s working material for tests – so a test reel, rather than rest reel.

4 : BRESLAUER’S 1944 ANIMATION TEST – This 4th segment shows the above discussed footage of Breslauer’s test work with a title card’s negative on film, as well as his animation of cards with numbers of ‘input’ and outgoing deportations. That animation uses drawings , images , not found in the NIOD archive – showing statistics for deportations to Bergen-Belsen 3029 , and Lager Vught 897 . This Westerbork film footage was retrieved from : Unknown Westerbork Film Reel…F1014 (20190616) Michel van der Burg | Settela•Com | ISSN 2949-9313 (REF 4).

5 : ANIMATION COLLAGE – Here I combined the animation made in section 3 of this film, with the 1944 animation footage of Breslauer – all edited here again to conform.

TAGS #Westerborkfilm #animation #titelkaart #1Memo #MiraclesMedia #michelvanderburg #Holland #Netherlands #CampWesterbork #Settela #RudolfBreslauer #UNESCO #NIOD #holocaust #intertitle #titlecard #documentary #file #drawing #Jew #Roma #Westerbork

References

2 – WESTERBORK FILMS COLLECTION – UNESCO ALBUM | 20200120 | Michel van der Burg | Settela•Com (accessed 2021 May 15) URL: https://settela.com/2020/01/20/westerbork-films-collection-unesco-album/

3 – ‘Kamp Westerbork gefilmd’ by Koert Broersma and Gerard Rossing (editors Dirk Mulder and Ben Prinsen; ISBN 9023232658

4 – Unknown Westerbork Film Reel…F1014 | 20190616 | Michel van der Burg | Settela•Com | ISSN 2949-9313 (accessed 2021 May 15) URL: https://wp.me/p91enH-2b

Credit

Source : NIOD Institute for War, Holocaust and Genocide Studies | 250i Westerbork, Judendurchgangslager | 854 Stukken over de Westerbork-film, 7 maart – 20 april 1944 en z.d. | File retrieved May 23, 2019 from Nationaal Archief (last accessed 2021 Apr 17) URL https://www.archieven.nl/nl/search-modonly?mivast=298&mizig=210&miadt=298&micode=250i&milang=nl&mizk_alle=westerbork%20film&miview=inv2#inv3t2

Westerbork Film Intertitles | 20210515 | Michel van der Burg | Settela•Com | ISSN 2949-9313

Updates

20220604 – Format changes credit line , references

20230518 – Credits and references updated with ISSN

1945 – Terugkeer Van Den Vliegenden Hollander | Return Of The Flying Dutchman

(English below)

1945 – Terugkeer Van Den Vliegenden Hollander

Brits-Nederlandse propagandafilm over de Nederlandse vliegeniers, ‘vliegende Hollanders’, tijdens de Tweede Wereldoorlog en bij hun thuiskomst na de overwinning op de Duitsers.
De stijl van de film is heroïsch en bestaat uit fragmenten van archief-, journaal- en speelfilms. Met Philip Bloemendaalachtige voice-over.

De film begint op 10 mei 1940 en toont de overmacht van de Duitsers – voor de Nederlanders was het ‘geen oorlog zoals zij zich die voorstelden’. Te zien zijn beelden van de Duitse inval in het Westen met o.a. de landing bij Moerdijkbruggen en het bombardement op Rotterdam, de gevechten bij Sedan, de Nederlandse overgave, vluchtende Nederlanders naar Engeland en de aankomst van de Koningin Wilhelmina in Londen.

Nederlanders in opleiding bij de RAF als vliegtuigbemanningen. Oefenen op de schietbaan. Nederlanders in eigen land bij het ondergrondse verzet. Ook aandacht voor drukken van illegaal drukwerk in Nederland. Het verspreiden van De Waarheid. “Dit volk bleef aan de overwinning geloven”. Gedwongen te werk stellen in Duitsland, de Arbeidseinsatz. Geloof in de vrijheid werd gevoed door de kerken. Preek vanaf de kansel. ZKH prins Bernhard bij het 322 squadron met hun mascotte, de papegaai Polly Grey. Beelden van aanvallen op Duitse transporten. Verschillende vliegtuigen zijn te zien, zoals de Spitfire, Hawker Typhoon, B-25 Mitchell bommenwerpers en Lancasters. Zij die dit overleefden kregen hulp, van o.a. mevrouw Van Bruggen die vertelt over een gebeurtenis in november 1943, toen een RAF-piloot was neergestort bij een boerderij in de buurt. Samen met de boerin hielpen ze de piloot, en een aantal van zijn collega’s, te ontsnappen, terug naar Engeland.

De invasie in Normandië, tijdens D-Day. “En de kust werd genomen”. Ook de Nederlandse middelzware bommenwerpers werden door Montgomery ingezet. Het oprukken van de geallieerde troepen door Noord-Frankrijk, België en Nederland. Beelden van Artillerievuur en gevangen Duitse soldaten. De bevrijding van Rouan, Amiens, België en Eindhoven.
Landen van North American B-25 Mitchell op vliegbasis [Soesterberg]. Ontvangst en huldiging op het kasteel van Helmond. Een officieel welkom door de burgemeester van ‘s-Hertogenbosch. Daarna komen de Vliegende Hollanders thuis. Vervolgens speldt ZKH prins Bernhard bij sommigen van hen het Vliegerkruis op. Sommige Vliegende Hollanders keerden niet terug…. “Aan hun nagedachtenis wordt deze film eerbiedig opgedragen.” Hun namen verschijnen in beeld.

1945 – Return Of The Flying Dutchman

British-Dutch propaganda film about the Dutch aviators, ‘flying Dutchmen’, in the Royal Air Force — in the Fighter Command, the Bomber Command and the Pathfinder Force — during the Second World War, and on their return home after the victory over the Germans.

World War II propaganda film (1945) produced by the Royal Air Force Film Production Unit & Nederlandsche Luchtstrijdkrachten.
The film is composed of scenes taken from numerous films made between 1940 and 1945.

The film starts with the ‘Blitzkrieg’ in Holland, the German invasion by surprise – landing in the West of Holland , bombing of Rotterdam, and escape of the dutch Queen Wilhelmina arriving in London.

Next training of the RAF flight crews, and of the dutch resistance in Holland is shown, and the forced labor of Dutch workers in Germany – the ‘Arbeitseinsatz’.
The dutch Prince Bernhard visits the Dutch squadron of the Royal Air Force – RAF 322.

Following the Normandy invasion, the British army advances in France and Belgium on its way to the Netherlands. The enthusiastic residents of the dutch city of Eindhoven welcome the tanks. Prince Bernhard honors the brave pilots with the Airman’s Cross (Dutch: Vliegerkruis) . Finally, a plaque shows the long list of names of those who fell in the five war years.

Credit

Return Of The Flying Dutchman ~ Film ‘Terugkeer Van Den Vliegenden Hollander’ produced (1945) by the Royal Air Force Film Production Unit & Nederlandsche Luchtstrijdkrachten ~ Source : “Collection Netherlands Institute of Military History” – thanks to Stephan Deiters | NIMH .
Remastered film :
1945 – Terugkeer Van Den Vliegenden Hollander | Return Of The Flying Dutchman | 20210508 | Michel van der Burg | Settela•Com | ISSN 2949-9313 | CC BY 4.0 .

TAGS #FlyingDutchmen #RAF #pilot #1Memo #MiraclesMedia #Holland #Belgium #Normandy #Rotterdam #bombardment #WW2 #war #invasion #Blitzkrieg #Arbeitseinsatz #propaganda #plane #pilot #QueenWilhelmina #PrinceBernhard #resistance #decoration #AirmansCross #Vliegerkruis #death #heroic

Updates

20220604 – Changes credit line

20230518 – Credits updated with ISSN

Deportation Train

Deportation Train
Deportation train departure 19 May 1944 at the dutch Westerbork transit camp filmed by Rudolf Breslauer. Shortly thereafter 20 km north in the dutch town Assen, train cars are added from the belgian Transport XXV (25) from transit camp Kazerne Dossin (Dossin barracks) in Mechelen, and the combined transport with Jews, Sinti and Roma, including Settela Steinbach, continues to the east …

Filmed by Rudolf Breslauer 19 May 1944 in Camp Westerbork, Netherlands. From Westerbork film montage reel 1 (RVD cat.nr. 02-1167-01) courtesy of Nederlands Instituut voor Beeld en Geluid | OpenImages.
BUM20200415_31_19440519 .
Deportation Train | 20200414 v20200415 | Michel van der Burg | Settela•Com | ISSN 2949-9313

Updates

20220604 – Format changes credit line

20230518 – Credits updated with ISSN