Military Productions
It wasn't Hollywood alone that produced material during the war as the American military also formed their own film crews. The First Motion Picture Unit was the first military unit to be made up entirely of trained film industry professionals. As part of the U.S. Army Air Force, they produced training reels for recruits and propaganda shorts.
Wings for this Man 1945
One such production by the First Motion Picture Unit is the short film "Wings For This Man." This production starred the Tuskegee Airmen, the first African-American Air Force Squadron. The feature follows their journey to become members of the Air Force and even acknowledges that they faced prejudice and discrimination in pioneering the way for others to follow. However, the racism present in America is downplayed as it is not mentioned that the military was segregated at the time. This was often the case in U.S. propaganda, as pointing out the similarities between racial discrimination in America and Nazi Germany would have proven detrimental to the war effort.
Special Coverage Unit Footage
During the war, the United States also saw the value in capturing footage of their troops overseas as they marched through Europe. In 1943 The Special Coverage Unit was formed to record the landing of American troops during D-day. Film director George Stevens was placed in charge of this Unit and given the equipment to film in color, which was rare for the time. Stevens would go on to record the advancement of American troops through Europe. Some of this footage would include the liberation of concentration camps and proof of the atrocities committed by the Nazis during the Holocaust. This footage would later be used as evidence in court during the Nuremberg Trials to show the horrific nature of these crimes to the world.