Filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl's IOC commissioned film, "Olympia", released in 1938, highlighted the 1936 Games in a grandiose fashion, but arguably served as a means of spreading Nazi propaganda throughout Germany and the rest of the world at large. Although not to the extent of her previous film, "Triumph of the Will", her interpretation of the Olympic Games in Berlin highlighted the German athletes and the Olympiastadion in an almost divine fashion. The prologue of the film begins with an interpretation of the origin of the Greek Olympics, and serves to compare the German nation to that of Ancient Greece, which was a powerful nation during its time in history.
However, it is worth mentioning that Riefenstahl, having received criticism for her seemingly pro-Nazi films in years past, decided to include the American athlete Jesse Owens in many of the film's clips. Jesse Owens' presence serves as a stark contrast to many of the Aryan figures which pervade much of the film. In the end, however, Leni Riefenstahl's film captures the essence of what was considered to be "Hitler's Olympics", and was received well by the German nation upon its release.
