LESSONS OF AUSCHWITZ: VR TRIBUTE BY SCHOOL STUDENTS
| Title | LESSONS OF AUSCHWITZ: VR TRIBUTE BY SCHOOL STUDENTS |
| Brand | RT |
| Product/Service | ONLINE FILM |
| Category |
D01. Social Video |
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Entrant
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RT Moscow, RUSSIA
|
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Idea Creation
|
RT Moscow, RUSSIA
|
|
Media Placement
|
RT Moscow, RUSSIA
|
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Production
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PHYGITALISM Moscow, RUSSIA
|
Credits
| Kirill Karnovich-Valua |
RT |
Creative Director |
| Denis Semionov |
Sa1nt Denis |
Digital Artist |
| Ania Fedorova |
RT |
Producer |
| Elena Medvedeva |
RT |
Producer |
| Revaz Todua |
RT |
Designer |
| Eldar Salamov |
RT |
Producer |
| Peter Theremin |
Peter Theremin |
Music & Sound design |
| Gleb Burashov |
RT |
Strategist |
| Ivor Crotty |
RT |
Producer |
| Ivan Fursov |
RT |
Editor |
| Ilya Grachev |
RT |
Cameraman |
| Lilly Kazakova |
RT |
PR |
| Katya Motyakina |
RT |
Producer |
| Margo Tskhovrebova |
RT |
Administrative Manager |
| Valeria Fimina |
Phygitalism |
Project manager |
| Pavel Postnikov |
Phygitalism |
UI Designer |
| Ivan Yunitsky |
Phygitalism |
Project Manager |
| Ekaterina Sidorova |
Phygitalism |
3D artist |
| Vlad Krutenyuk |
Phygitalism |
3D artist |
| Aleksandr Kryuchkov |
Phygitalism |
Developer |
| Aleksey Lushnikov |
Phygitalism |
Developer |
| Nikita Semionov |
School №548 |
School Student |
| Dima Kaderkaev |
School №548 |
School Student |
| Misha Borisov |
School №548 |
School Student |
| Vlad Sarychev |
School №548 |
School Student |
| Nata Makashvili |
School №548 |
School Student |
| Zhenya Timoshenkova |
School №548 |
School Student |
| Sasha Volkov |
School №548 |
School Student |
| Lera Agescheva |
School №548 |
School Student |
| Dima Sobaev |
School №548 |
School Student |
| Maria Doreuli |
Contrast Foundry |
Designer |
| Nikita Sapozhkov |
Contrast Foundry |
Designer |
| Liza Rasskazova |
Contrast Foundry |
Designer |
Background
The Holocaust. One of the most inhumane events in history in which approximately 6 million Jews were deliberately and systematically exterminated during World War II by the nazis. The Auschwitz concentration camp in Poland and its endless barracks in ruins, remain one of the world’s most painful memorial sites and serve as a living reminder of what evil can look like.
But as time passes, so do the Holocaust survivors - the voices of those who remember the atrocities are falling silent. The commemorative link between generations is dimming. Today, in a mostly digital world, it is important to restore the gap and keep younger generations interested in learning history. The victims’ stories of the Holocaust and horrors of Auschwitz are always with us, but must be retold by and for new generations.
Describe the strategy
“Lessons of Auschwitz” is a social experiment that aims to show how history can be retold and reimagined by younger generations through digital art. Using innovative XR film technology we aimed to create a new kind of commemorative tribute which will engage and touch younger viewers and inspire them to learn more about the Holocaust. “Lessons of Auschwitz” unites history, teenagers’ personal emotions, the lament of a theremin and innovative immersive tech to create powerful, moving art that sustains historical memory in a digital world.
The innovation behind “Lessons of Auschwitz” lies in merging the young artists’ virtual avatars with their VR illustrations in a joint space. For that we used Unity program which helped us transfer volumetric video and animations, which we would then alter and process with special shader effects. It was the first-ever case uniting virtual illustration, volumetric capture and theremin in one project.
Describe the execution
Visiting Auschwitz is a profound and deep rite of passage. To mark the 75th anniversary of its liberation we brought nine students from a Moscow high school to the Memorial in Poland to personally undergo this experience. We asked them to express their reactions in VR under the creative guidance of Russia’s leading XR artist, Denis Semionov.
A comprehensive six-month production lies behind the creation of this XR experience. In stage one, we decided to teach 9 students some historical background and organised a private tour to the Moscow Jewish Museum and a screening of Spielberg’s ‘Schindler's List’.
The project features the unique #VictoryFont "May" which was created specially for the project - behind each character is a documented Reichstag inscription, hand-written by soldiers in 1945. “May” creates a narrative link between the past and the present, between the Victory heroes and us, the inheritors of their legacy.
List the results
The innovative approach paid off with the project getting over 150,000 views (10 million impressions) on social media in the first week after the premier. "Lessons of Auschwitz" was welcomed with positive reviews during Holocaust Remembrance Week praising the fresh approach and moving artworks by teen artists commemorating victims of Auschwitz-Birkenau.
"Lessons of Auschwitz" is part of the #VictoryPages project - a versatile social media documentary commemorating the 75th anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany. The digital, multi-platform, educational project assesses the historical magnitude of V-Day through personal impressions of contemporaries and from the fresh perspective of digital art and creativity using the tools and language of modern media over five social networks.
Since the start of the project on January 13th 2020 #VictoryPages generated over 35 million impressions, 250,000 engagements, over 50,000 followers, 4,000,000 video views (800,000 minutes of watch time) and 200 publications in media.