September 26, 2005
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT:  Leslie Unger — (310) 247-3000
                         lunger@oscars.org

“Oscar’s Docs” to Focus Next on End of WWII

	Documentary Feature winner "The True Glory" (1945).

Beverly Hills, CA — The Oscar®-winning documentaries of 1945 and 1946 will screen on Monday, October 3, at 7:30 p.m., in the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' Linwood Dunn Theater as part of "Oscar’s Docs: The First Twenty Years of Academy Award®-Winning Documentaries.” The 12-week series showcases the first 40 short and feature-length documentaries honored by the Academy since the inception of the category in 1941.

As World War II drew to a close in 1945, the Academy continued to honor films that illuminated for the public the realities of war. “Hitler Lives?,” a controversial film centered on the history and possible future of German aggression, directed by Don Siegel and based on the one-reel “Your Job in Germany” by Theodore Geisel (also known as Dr. Seuss), was awarded the Oscar for Documentary Short Subject. A 35mm print of the film donated to the Academy Film Archive by Turner Entertainment in 1997 will be screened. Documentary Feature honoree “The True Glory,” a portrait of the liberation of Europe, was produced through collaboration between the governments of the U.S. and Great Britain. A new 35mm print made from newly preserved elements in the National Archives and Records Administration collection will be screened.

In 1946, only one documentary, “Seeds of Destiny,” was honored by the Academy. Winner of the Oscar for Documentary Short Subject, the film took a look at the most innocent victims of WWII, the children of Europe, and their uncertain future. Preserved from original elements in the Academy Film Archive’s collection, a new 16mm print will be screened.

The October 10 installment of “Oscar’s Docs” will include screenings of “First Steps,” “Design for Death,” “Toward Independence” and “The Secret Land.”

Passes for "Oscar’s Docs: The First Twenty Years of Academy Award-Winning Documentaries" are available at a cost of $30 for the general public and $25 for Academy members and students with valid I.D. Tickets for individual evenings of the series are available for $5 for the general public and $3 for Academy members and students with valid I.D. Passes and tickets may be purchased by mail, in person at the Academy during regular business hours or, pending availability, the night of the screening when the doors open at 6:30 p.m. The Academy’s Linwood Dunn Theater is located at 1313 Vine Street in Hollywood. For more information call (310) 247-3000, ext. 111.

Editors: Please note that downloadable photos from these films are available at http://photos.oscars.org

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