*Footage of this era and subject is rarely available in high-resolution scans.
WARNING: GRAPHIC MATERIAL
Title:
My Japan — 1945 War Finance Division Propaganda Film
REEL ID:
L071R009
RUN TIME:
16:00 (approx.)
Description:
My Japan is a 1945 American anti-Japanese propaganda short film produced during World War II by the War Finance Division of the United States Department of the Treasury in coordination with the United States Office of War Information. Made to promote the sale of American war bonds, the film takes the form of a mock travelogue purportedly presented by a Japanese narrator, and was the only film produced by the War Finance Division in 1945.
Rather than being an actual foreign documentary, My Japan uses a combination of staged narration and stock footage — including prewar travel scenes, cultural vignettes, and wartime material — to provoke American audiences into reexamining their own values and redirecting that sentiment toward support for the war effort.
The film employs reverse psychology, juxtaposing idealized scenes of Japanese daily life with commentary that minimizes American achievement and emphasizes Japanese resilience, casting the viewer’s reactions as a call to action on the home front. It was part of a massive federal effort tied to the Seventh War Loan campaign, reaching audiences through non-theatrical 16mm prints shown in schools, civic groups, and other domestic venues to encourage bond purchases.
As a government work from 1945, My Japan is in the public domain in the United States and represents a historically significant example of wartime propaganda film — notable both for its unorthodox narrative approach and its place within the Treasury-sponsored war bond campaigns.
Tags:
1945, World War II, U.S. Treasury Department, War Finance Division, Office of War Information, War bonds, Seventh War Loan, Propaganda film, Anti-Japanese, Mock travelogue, Public domain, Government film, 16mm film, Archival footage, Historical propaganda, U.S. home front, Cultural contrast, Stock footage, Nostalgic wartime media
