The Cold Blue - Vulcan Productions

About

In 1943, William Wyler, one of Hollywood’s most renowned and versatile directors, went to Europe to document the Air War in progress. Incredibly, all of the raw color footage Wyler shot for the “Memphis Belle” was recently discovered deep in the vaults of the National Archives, and a new film has been constructed out of the material. “The Cold Blue" is a meditation on youth, war and trauma, and stands as a tribute to one of the world’s great filmmakers, and the men of the 8th Air Force who flew mission after suicidal mission in the Second World War. Nine of the very few surviving veterans were interviewed in the summer of 2017, and their voices take us through the harrowing world that Wyler and his cameramen captured in the summer of 1943.

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About

Director/Producer: Erik Nelson
Producer: Peter Hankoff
Executive Producer: Paul G. Allen
Executive Producer: Rocky Collins
Executive Producer: Carole Tomko
Executive Producer: Clark Bunting
Executive Producer: Dave Harding
Executive Producer: Catherine Wyler
Supervising Producer: Amy Briamonte
Supervising Producer/Editor: Robert Erickson
Supervising Producer: Elizabeth M. Hartjens
Editor: Paul Marengo
Sound Design: David Hughes
Film Restoration: Ernest Savage
Music: Richard Thompson

Where to See It

Watch it on HBO

09.22.2021

Incredibly, all of the raw footage that Wyler and his team shot was found in the National Archives; 34 reels adding up to 15 hours in total.

05.10.2018

"You fly a real tough mission, and you're so glad to get back, and everybody says, boy, we made it through that one didn't we? And then next morning they come in, put their flashlight in your face. Alright boys, get up. You're going, you’re going to be leaving. We're going to be flying in two hours. Now that's, that's tough."

William Toombs - 8th Air Force Flight Engineer

05.10.2018

For the creation of TheColdBlue, the raw film was digitized to Ultra High Definition 4K resolution.

TheColdBlue

05.10.2018

All too often, history has been reduced to cliche, or black and white images that immediately distance us from the past. How is it possible to convey in documentary style events that took place over 75 years ago, when both the images and the men behind those images are fast fading?

Director Erik Nelson