East German documentarists Annelie and Andrew Thorndike began their series ofclassic compilation documentaries in the early 1950s. The films, which treat theproblems of then-recent German history, are considered highly important in thedevelopment of the socialist compilation film and exemplary in the field ofdocumentary filmmaking. The Old New World is based on the famous statement byKarl Marx, "For socialist man, the entire history of the world is nothingbut the creation of man through human labor, nothing but the emergence of naturefor man, so he has the visible, irrefutable proof of his birth through himself,of his genesis." "In The Old New World theThorndikes forge bits and pieces of archival footage into a powerful pedagogicaltool relating the history of civilization. The film presents socialism as theprogressive new way to world peace and prosperity fighting for its life againstthe old, outmoded system of capitalism, which is presented as the cause of muchof the misery in the world. The Old New World offers a fascinating andilluminating vision of capitalism from the perspective of a rival ideology."(Marilyn Fabe)