BONUS: Tribute to Peter Watkins (1935–2025)

About this episode

This episode pays tribute to filmmaker Peter Watkins, discussing his legacy and impact on cinema.

In this bonus episode of Cold War Cinema, Jason Christian is joined by the independent filmmakers Eric Marsh and Christopher Jason Bell, to discuss the films and legacy of the British filmmaker and media theorist Peter Watkins, who died on October 30, 2025, one day after his nintieth birthday. Watkins stands apart in film history for his bold cinematic vision, his innovations of the pseudo-documentary, and for his unflinching cinematic attacks on the mass media and authoritarian states. For these reasons and others, he has never been given his due in the academy or in popular culture. We discuss why this radical filmmaker is so important to us personally, and why his legacy should—and probably will—continue to grow. _____________________ We love to give book or film recommendations on the podcast, so here are ours for this episode: Eric recommends the film Bisbee '17 (2018, Robert Greene). Christopher recommends the film Revolution Selfie (2017, Steven de Castro). Jason recommends the book Future Revolutions: New Perspectives on Peter Watkins (2018, various authors). _____________________ Find Eric Marsh's films here . Find Christopher Jason Bell's work here . Find our previous…

People in this episode

Host: Jason Christian

Guests: Eric Marsh, Christopher Jason Bell

Topics covered

• Peter Watkins
• film legacy
• pseudo-documentary
• mass media
• authoritarian states
• film recommendations

Keywords

• Peter Watkins
• film legacy
• pseudo-documentary
• mass media
• authoritarian states
• film recommendations

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Bisbee '17, Revolution Selfie, Future Revolutions: New Perspectives on Peter Watkins, Punishment Park, Privilege

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