SUPPORT THE PROJECT

Help us Preserve the Visual Memory of the First World War.

To Hell and Back Project is an independent cultural-historical initiative dedicated to recovering, restoring, and preserving the filmed memory of the First World War. The project receives no institutional funding, and all research, travel, scanning, international coordination, and project development are carried out independently. If you believe in our mission of reviving forgotten images of 1914–1918 and returning these men to living memory, your support directly strengthens this work.

Supporting the project also directly supports the development and research work behind the upcoming proof-of-concept and final feature-length documentary, which aims to bring the frontline of the First World War to audiences with unprecedented authenticity and visual clarity.

Your support directly sustains the project’s most essential work: the ongoing research of archival film across Europe and North America; the coordination of professional 4K laboratory scanning; the historical verification of footage with leading historians; and the preparation of future screenings, academic events, and institutional collaborations. It also makes possible the continued development, research, and production of the final To Hell and Back documentary, ensuring that this unprecedented restoration and historical effort can reach its full form.

The project has already attracted international academic support, diplomatic interest, and attention from national research institutes following several significant historical discoveries. With your help, this work can grow even further and reach the scale it deserves.

German soldiers with locals during the Riga Offensive, September 1917.

Make a Donation

The To Hell and Back Project is entirely independent and receives no institutional funding. Donations make it possible to continue the work of locating, restoring, and contextualizing century-old film, as well as preparing the upcoming proof-of-concept and final documentary.

Your support helps cover research travel, archival access, 4K laboratory scanning, digital restoration development, and the verification of historically significant footage with experts across Europe. It also contributes to a research stipend, allowing the project to be carried out full-time with the care and continuity required for work of this scale.

Even a small contribution has a meaningful impact. Together, we can return these forgotten soldiers to living memory.

Make a Donation

Film Sourcing and Research Services

For institutions, filmmakers, historians, and private researchers working with First World War film heritage, professional research support is available through the project’s consulting service.

This includes assistance with archival film identification, sourcing, contextualization, geolocation of historical footage, public-domain and rights guidance, and coordination of professional scanning with partner archives.

Learn More Here

Still from a film showing German soldiers training in Champagne, 1917.

Patriotic postcard showing a young German soldier.

Become a Patron

Monthly support through Patreon helps secure the long-term future of the To Hell and Back Project. Patrons play a direct role in sustaining the ongoing research, restoration work, 4K scanning, and preparation for the final feature-length documentary.

As a Patron, you support the independent archival work that keeps this project moving forward — and you become part of the small community helping revive forgotten images of 1914–1918 with dignity and historical accuracy.

Patrons receive early project updates, behind-the-scenes notes, and occasional insights into ongoing archival discoveries and restoration progress.

Become a Patron