Erik Durschmied
Encyclopedia
Erik Durschmied Cinematographer, producer, and director, is also an author, military history professor and a former war correspondent for BBC
, CBS
. Newsweek
called him a "supremely gifted reporter who has changed the media he works in", while The New York Times
wrote "he has seen more wars than any living general". Durschmied is best known for his book The Hinge Factor (since retitled How Chance and Stupidity Have Changed History). For the sum of his literary work, (his books are published in two dozen languages) he received the honorary citizenship of Austria.
, Austria
, Durschmied got his first taste of war firsthand as a child when the Germans entered Vienna, and the Allied bombers reduced his neighborhood to rubble. In 1952, Durschmied emigrated to Canada
and attended McGill University
. As a war correspondent, he reported on the ground during every conflict from Vietnam
to Iran-Iraq and Afghanistan
. He reported for BBC from 1959 to 1971. Durschmied interviewed many international figures, including John F. Kennedy
, Salvador Allende
, David Ben Gurion, and Saddam Hussein
.
He also worked as a cinematographer, covering thirty years of worldwide conflicts. In 1958, he shot the only film about Fidel Castro
, on-site with the rebel in the Sierra Maestre mountains. In 1964, Durschmied was part of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's documentary unit, with producer-director Patrick Watson, the first independent film crew ever allowed to shoot inside the People's Republic of China
. Their ground-breaking 90-minute film (shot on B&W 16mm film) "The Seven Hundred Million" was released as part of the series This Hour has Seven Days, which dedicated every fourth Sunday night to a full length documentary. The following year, he shot The Mills of the Gods: Vietnam for the CBC series Document; this episode won two Canadian Film Awards, Film of the Year and TV Information Certificate of Merit.In his ten years in Viet Nam, he produced a number of feature documentaries (BBC Panorama). In 1968, Durschmied shot the CBS Special Report Hill 943 in which he followed three soldiers in Alpha Company as they tried to capture Hill 943 in a bloody battle. In Afghanistan he followed Soviet units for CBS "Afghanistan-Under the Soviet Gun". Hanoi recalled him to Viet Nam in 1977 ("Viet Nam - Bitter Victory", for CBS), and then allowed him to follow the Vietnamese Army during their invasion of Pol Pot's Cambodia, where he reported from a devastated Phnom Penh. He also developed the television series Die Welt des GEO for Germany's UFA
.
Of his work, Newsweek
wrote "Durschmied is a supremely gifted reporter who has transformed the media he works in" and in Le Monde
: "He's survived more battles than any living general."
He is author of a series of highly popular books on military blunders that changed world history, translated into two dozen languages.
In later years, he has served as Lecturer of Military History at the Austrian Staff College, and has been a guest lecturer at the United States Military Academy
at West Point. Durschmied lives with his family in France
.
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
, CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
. Newsweek
Newsweek
Newsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...
called him a "supremely gifted reporter who has changed the media he works in", while The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
wrote "he has seen more wars than any living general". Durschmied is best known for his book The Hinge Factor (since retitled How Chance and Stupidity Have Changed History). For the sum of his literary work, (his books are published in two dozen languages) he received the honorary citizenship of Austria.
Biography
Born in 1930 in ViennaVienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, Durschmied got his first taste of war firsthand as a child when the Germans entered Vienna, and the Allied bombers reduced his neighborhood to rubble. In 1952, Durschmied emigrated to Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and attended McGill University
McGill University
Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...
. As a war correspondent, he reported on the ground during every conflict from Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
to Iran-Iraq and Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
. He reported for BBC from 1959 to 1971. Durschmied interviewed many international figures, including John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
, Salvador Allende
Salvador Allende
Salvador Allende Gossens was a Chilean physician and politician who is generally considered the first democratically elected Marxist to become president of a country in Latin America....
, David Ben Gurion, and Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...
.
He also worked as a cinematographer, covering thirty years of worldwide conflicts. In 1958, he shot the only film about Fidel Castro
Fidel Castro
Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz is a Cuban revolutionary and politician, having held the position of Prime Minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976, and then President from 1976 to 2008. He also served as the First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba from the party's foundation in 1961 until 2011...
, on-site with the rebel in the Sierra Maestre mountains. In 1964, Durschmied was part of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's documentary unit, with producer-director Patrick Watson, the first independent film crew ever allowed to shoot inside the People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
. Their ground-breaking 90-minute film (shot on B&W 16mm film) "The Seven Hundred Million" was released as part of the series This Hour has Seven Days, which dedicated every fourth Sunday night to a full length documentary. The following year, he shot The Mills of the Gods: Vietnam for the CBC series Document; this episode won two Canadian Film Awards, Film of the Year and TV Information Certificate of Merit.In his ten years in Viet Nam, he produced a number of feature documentaries (BBC Panorama). In 1968, Durschmied shot the CBS Special Report Hill 943 in which he followed three soldiers in Alpha Company as they tried to capture Hill 943 in a bloody battle. In Afghanistan he followed Soviet units for CBS "Afghanistan-Under the Soviet Gun". Hanoi recalled him to Viet Nam in 1977 ("Viet Nam - Bitter Victory", for CBS), and then allowed him to follow the Vietnamese Army during their invasion of Pol Pot's Cambodia, where he reported from a devastated Phnom Penh. He also developed the television series Die Welt des GEO for Germany's UFA
UFA
Ufa is a city in Russia.UFA or Ufa may also refer to:*Ufa River, a river in Russia*Ufa, Ethiopia, a town in Ethiopia*Ultra flat architecture, a network architecture design for LTE 4G mobile telecommunication networks...
.
Of his work, Newsweek
Newsweek
Newsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...
wrote "Durschmied is a supremely gifted reporter who has transformed the media he works in" and in Le Monde
Le Monde
Le Monde is a French daily evening newspaper owned by La Vie-Le Monde Group and edited in Paris. It is one of two French newspapers of record, and has generally been well respected since its first edition under founder Hubert Beuve-Méry on 19 December 1944...
: "He's survived more battles than any living general."
He is author of a series of highly popular books on military blunders that changed world history, translated into two dozen languages.
In later years, he has served as Lecturer of Military History at the Austrian Staff College, and has been a guest lecturer at the United States Military Academy
United States Military Academy
The United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. The academy sits on scenic high ground overlooking the Hudson River, north of New York City...
at West Point. Durschmied lives with his family in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
Filmography (as cinematographer)
- National Geographic Special, 1964 IMDb
- The Seven Hundred Million, 1964 Film Reference Library
- Hill 943, 1968
- The Mills of the Gods: Vietnam, 1965 IMDb