Cinema in Occupied Belgium: Film, Audience, Propaganda, and Entertainment in World War II

Lecture and discussion in Dutch featuring guest speaker
Roel Vande Winkel

An interview conducted by Hans Vandevoorde

On Wednesday, December 9, CegeSoma and the Friends of CegeSoma (non-profit organization) are pleased to welcome Roel Vande Winkel to mark the publication of his book 'Bioscoop in bezet België. Film, publiek, propaganda en vermaak tijdens WO II’. He will be interviewed by Hans Vandevoorde.

What was it like going to the movies in occupied Belgium? What films were still available after May 1940? How did audiences react to the disappearance of American productions and an ever more tightly controlled lineup? And, above all, did people go to the movies to escape the war… or were they also confronted with propaganda there?
The German invasion of May 1940 profoundly disrupted the Belgian film landscape. Theaters closed, American films disappeared from the screens, and productions featuring Jewish actors were banned. Charlie Chaplin and Greta Garbo gave way to stars like Hans Albers and Zarah Leander. The programming, now strictly regulated, gave prominence to German, French, and Italian films.
At first, audiences were hesitant, but theaters quickly filled up again. Each week, more than 100,000 tickets were sold. In the midst of war, the movie theater remained a wonderful place for entertainment and escapism. How did audiences engage with the films presented to them? And what forms of collaboration or, conversely, resistance—emerged within the film industry?

In his book, the result of twenty-five years of research in international archives, Roel Vande Winkel does not focus solely on propaganda films. He also explores major box-office hits, audience reactions, local film productions, acts of resistance against collaboration within the industry, and the tragic fate of Jews active in the Belgian film industry.

During his conversation with Hans Vandevoorde, Roel Vande Winkel will help us rediscover occupied Belgium through the lens of movie theaters, at the intersection of everyday life, popular culture, propaganda, and war. Everyone is welcome at CegeSoma on 9 December for this final Public History Meeting of 2026.

Roel Vande Winkel is a professor at KU Leuven and teaches at LUCA School of Arts. He holds a licentiate degree in history and a doctorate in political and social sciences. He is co-editor of the Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television and has been conducting in-depth research into film and cinema history for many years, with a particular focus on the European film industry in the first half of the 20th century.


 

Hans Vandevoorde (1960) taught Dutch literature at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel until his retirement and is affiliated with the Department of History at Ghent University as a volunteer postdoctoral researcher. In 2024, he published 'Stil verzet. De oorlogsjaren van August Vermeylen, 1939–1945' (Lannoo). Recently, together with Katrien Vanhamel, he curated an exhibition and produced a catalog on Jan Walravens and the visual arts for the Felix Art Museum in Drogenbos.