OWI Case Study

Question 2-1

The OWI (the United States Office of War Information) was an extension of the United States government, created during World War II. It was created in order to deliver propaganda both at home and abroad. Through radio broadcasts, newspapers, posters, photographs, films and other forms of media, the OWI was the ultimate connection between the battlefront and it’s civilian communities.

a. The BMPA – Bureau of Motion Picture Affairs –

i. As mentioned above, during the US’s involvement in World War II, the Hollywood film industry became extremely involved with the government in order to support its war-aims information campaign through film and other forms of media. Following the declaration of war on Japan, the government created the Bureau of Motion Picture Affairs in order to better coordinate the production of entertainment features (film) with more patriotic, morale-boosting themes and messages emphasizing the “American way of life”, the nature of the enemy and the allies, civilian responsibility on the home front and of course, the fighting forces themselves.

Why these (OWI and BMPA) are relative to this class: OWI operated until about September of 1945 – which is essentially where this class picks up. BUT, with that being said, everything we have discussed and witnessed in this class from 1945 and onward has been affected by everything that occurred prior to! The same goes for BMPA – both OWI and BMPA marked a huge turn for the film industry – especially when it came to marketing and propaganda. We see that everyday in today’s film industry.

Question 2-2

PCA – the Production Code Administration, was encouraged by Catholics, and was created with the intention of enforcing the censorship code adopted by the ind...

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...eflects the director’s personal creative vision, as if they were the primary ‘auteur’ – which is the French word for author. As far as the law goes, any film that is produced is treated as a work of art, and the auteur, as the creator of the film, is the original copyright holder. This theory has influenced film criticism since the early 1950’s, when it was originally advocated for by the film director and critic, Francois Truffaut, through a certain type of film analysis. Auteur theory itself was developed a few years later in the US through the writings of The Village Voice critic, Andrew Sarris.

Why Auteur is relevant to the class: It marks an important time in the film industry for the copyright and authorship of the films in production. Thus, it’s an extremely important component to this class, and the evolution of the film industry over the past few decades.