Carolina Seminar • Reel War: The Soviet-Afghan War on Screen, Part I, 1983-1989

This presentation will chart the flow of the Soviet-Afghan War on screen as the conflict raged, analyzing eight works–feature films, documentaries, and a television mini-series–in chronological order between 1983-1989. The portrayal of the conflict in these media evolves in this period from hopeful, patriotic support to bitter disillusionment, presaging the coming collapse of the USSR.

Jeff Jones is an associate professor in Russian/Soviet and world history at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. His book, Everyday Life and the ‘Reconstruction’ of Soviet Russia During and After the Great Patriotic War, 1943-1948, was published by Slavica Publishers in 2008. He is currently working on a book entitled Smoke, Mirrors, and Memories: Perspectives of the Soviet-Afghan War, 1979-2014.

The Carolina Seminar: Russia and Its Empires, East and West is co-sponsored by the Carolina Seminar Program, the UNC Department of History, and the UNC Center for Slavic, Eurasian, and East European Studies. Please note that the participants will give an overview of their projects, but will not read a formal paper. Instead, papers or book chapters will be circulated ahead of time to those who are interested in attending and participating in the discussion. To request a copy of the paper, please email Dr. Eren Tasar (etasar@email.unc.edu).