Bullets And Blueberries - Director Erik Nelson

Award winning documentary filmmaker Erik Nelson’s Bullets And Blueberries explores the evolution of the Holocaust beginning with the mass shootings by the Einsatzgruppen in Eastern Europe and Ukraine in 1941, crimes that culminated at Babi Yar where over 30,000 men, women and children were murdered in just two days. This “holocaust by bullets” was so horrific that it led directly to the mechanized and impersonal killings that reached their peak beginning in the spring of 1944. Bullets And Blueberries is structured around shocking, recently unearthed photos and footage compiled by the Nazis that documented their collective crimes. These images, some intended as grotesque souvenirs, now serve as forensic evidence, providing a stark window into the banality, horror, and ultimate consequences of evil. Featuring interviews with Holocaust scholars, survivors of both the Einsatzgruppen and Auschwitz, and a poignant appearance by Ben Ferencz—the 27 year old American prosecutor who led the Nuremberg trial against the Einsatzgruppen. Director Erik Nelson (Grizzly Man) joins us for a conversation on the casual and callous evil that led to the slaughter of hundreds of thousands of innocent people.

About the filmmaker - Multiple Emmy and IDA award winning filmmaker Erik Nelson has produced and directed a wide range of feature documentaries for his company "Creative Differences". These range from producing four films with Werner Herzog ("Grizzly Man", "Cave Of Forgotten Dreams", "Into The Abyss" and their Oscar nominated "Encounters At The End Of The World"), to directing “Dreams With Sharp Teeth” (2008) a biographical look at iconoclastic writer Harlan Ellison. Nelson’s more recent films, “A Gray State” (2017), a harrowing true crime look at the madness inducing culture of conspiracy, and the immersive World War II documentaries “The Cold Blue” (2019) “Apocalypse '45” (2021) along with the critically acclaimed “Daytime Revolution” (2024) demonstrate the director’s range and ability to weave a provocative story out of exquisitely restored archive footage.