Films by Daniel Burkholz

2021, 30 min
by Daniel Burkholz

Herman Scheerboom from Amsterdam was born into a half Dutch — half German catholic family. Growing up in the red light district of the city, he joined the Dutch Communist Party and was therefore considered to be the "black sheep" of the family. He fought in the Spanish Civil War, was taken prisoner and deported into a concentration camp. Luckily he was liberated by the Red Cross — after 4 years as camp inmate. Then, Scheerboom managed to catch a ship to England, where he right away joined the foreign Dutch forces to continue the fight against Fascism. He took part in the Operation Overlord, liberating France, Belgium and finally the Netherlands and his hometown Amsterdam from Nazi occupation.Later, Herman Scheerboom became a well known photographer during Amsterdam's Roaring 60ies and 70ies.

Germany 2021, 70 min
by Daniel Burkholz

Without women the fight against Fascism wouldn't have been won. But until today, this story has seldom been told. The great contribution of women to the defeat of Fascism is largely underestimated. "Bella Ciao - The Women's Resistance" pays tribute to these unsung heroines.

Germany 2020, 90 min
by Daniel Burkholz

"That's how my 12 year odyssey began..."– In 1933, when Hitler and the Nazi Party took over, the German Jew Kurt Julius Goldstein and many other men and women had to leave the country to survive. In the following years, many antifascists from all over Europe shared this fate. Together, they took part in the fight against the Nazi-Wehrmacht. They had not much hope to succeed in defeating the Nazis, until in May 1945 all of Europe was liberated from Fascism – none of these men and women would have expected that 75 years later, Fascism is on the rise again...

Germany 2013, 58 min
by Daniel Burkholz (Daniel Burkholz), Daniel Burkholz

Soon after the end of World War II, when the Cold War had started, the West German Government planned the building of a new army. This project caused huge protests among the war tired population. The government reacted quickly: Within a few weeks a political criminal law, constructed after the example of the Nazi law, was invented. All citizens, who were against the rearmament or for the reunification of West and East Germany, could be persecuted now as public enemies. The Communist Party of Germany and other opposition organizations were forbidden. About 500,000 men, women and children were affected by political persecution, which often was carried out by police men, public prosecutors and judges, who had been trained during the Nazi time. About 10,000 men and women were punished with imprisonment, partly for a very long time. Finally, the whole political movement was smashed down by this persecution, which is unprecedented in western democracies.