A Critical History of Health Films in Central and Eastern Europe and Beyond

Special mention in the Janovics Center Award for Outstanding Humanities Research in Transnational Film and Theatre Studies, 2023

"The Jury commends the novelty of the topic of the monograph and the relevance of the way in which it analyzes its primary material. Shmidt and Kaser's effort originally approaches propaganda films about health from East-Central Europe as relevant contributions to understanding important transformations in global conceptions of governmentality. The monograph effectively addresses a substantial gap in the field and shifts away from usual bodies of work focused on Western countries' institutions and film productions. By combining a wide range of methodologies, film analysis, the history of medicine, cultural anthropology, and political theory, it is exceptionally interdisciplinary. By looking at different actors involved in making health films, it shows complicated entanglements between the local and the global. This approach enriches our knowledge of the role cinema played in contributing to and exerting biopower, while giving full account of previously neglected areas. The case studies reveal early cinematic tools of "othering," especially along the gender, class, and race spectrum."

"...thoroughly elucidates the political, medical, anthropological, sociological, and intersectional elements of its titular topic. Schmidt and Kaiser utilise historicised critical heritage and public health lenses to unpack the salience of Central and Eastern European health films as endogenous responses to public health conditions, regional relations, and cinematic trends." - European Journal of Communication

"This interdisciplinary book bridges the fields of film history, public health, and Central and Eastern European studies, providing readers with a nuanced understanding of health films and their role in shaping public health perceptions and policies in Central and Eastern Europe." - Anelia Kassabova, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Balkanistic Forum