A 24-minute time capsule of resilience: watch Denmark rebuild from rubble in real-time.
In the first days after the Liberation in May 1945, two Danish towns, Rønne and Nexø, were bombed by Russian planes, when the German commander of the island of Bornholm in the Baltic refused to surrender. Large sections of the two towns were destroyed and a big reconstruction effort was immediately mounted with the aid of the Danish state. Sweden lent a hand, donating a large number of prefab wooden houses. The moment was seized to lay out more practical town plans, while the reconstruction strove to preserve the style of the original houses, so as not to change the distinctive character of the two towns.
Cinematography
Stunning 1945 documentary footage, miraculously preserved.
Production
Swedish prefab houses as unlikely diplomatic gesture.
Director
Poul Bang
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Bornholm's unique position—occupied by Soviets until April 1946, unlike mainland Denmark—made this reconstruction politically loaded, yet the film stays delicately neutral.
Poul Bang also directed Denmark's first feature-length sound film in 1931; this quiet documentary was his final work.
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