Writing in the 1960s US philosopher Paul Goodman noted that ‘while there are many studies about film and violence, there are no sustained considerations of the ways that film can represent, challenge and celebrate peacebuilding’ (Goodman, Designing Pacifist Films, 1962). This remains largely true and the Films for Peace project seeks to offer just such a sustained consideration. Following work on the war film and anti-war film (War Cinema: Hollywood on the Front-Line) (2006) and the representation of violent and traumatic events (Parallel Lines: Post-9/11 American Cinema), Dr Westwell examines how a range of films engage the lives of peacemakers, depict acts of conscientious objection, mutiny and desertion, explore religious and secular pacifism, and form an integral part of varied peace protest movements.
Films for Peace and the Centre for Film and Ethics has hosted screenings and discussions of Resan/The Journey (Peter Watkins, 1987; a fourteen-hour documentary screened over ten weeks) and War School (Mic Dixon, 2019). In June 2023 the exhibition ‘Greenham Women Everywhere’ was accompanied by curated screenings of Carry Greenham Home (Amanda Richardson and Beeban Kidron, 1983) and Ginger and Rosa (Sally Potter, 2012).
As part of the Films for Peace project Dr Westwell works for CND Peace Education delivering assemblies and workshops in schools and running workshops for trainee teachers. Dr Westwell recently joined head of CND Kate Hudson for a Q&A about the film Oppenheimer (2023) and wrote a blog about the film for teachers.
Dr Westwell’s work on the topic includes ‘Peace cinema: religious pacifism and anti-war sensibility in Friendly Persuasion (1956)’, Open Screens, 2019, and he is currently working on a monograph with the provisional title Films for Peace.