Drents Archief - War Diary of Drenthe

War Diary of Drenthe

Drents Archief, Assen (NL), 2020

The Drents Archief manages a rich collection of personal writings that illuminate the local side of the Second World War. Schoolchildren use them as source material to create comic strips.

An archive comes to life

The Drenthe provincial archive seeks to share local stories of the war with young people via personal documents and supplementary source materials. In a pressure cooker session with archive staff, we developed a concept that is supported by various foundations. The innovative, interactive ‘War Diary of Drenthe’ takes pupils inside the lives of five young people who experienced the Second World War.

Augmented Reality

After an introductory film and tour, the pupils meet Truus, Benno, Antje, Jo and Harry on an iPad. Each has his or her own wartime story. Working from primary sources, the pupils create a comic about one of them. With the aid of augmented reality, pupils play the role of the protagonist. When a pupil stands in front of the camera, the figure assumes his or her posture. Once a posture is chosen, words can be added. The app lets pupils create an emotionally moving comic in a one-of-a-kind way.

“It’s a unique way for pupils to get acquainted with ego documents and original source research.”

Henk Nijkeuter, city and state archivist, Drents Archief — 25 November 2020

Credits

Client
Drents Archief

Content Design
Studio Louter

Interactive Media Production
Wonderment by Design

Awards

International Design Award 2021
Gold | Multimedia-Interactive Media

Cannes Corporate media & TV Award 2021
Silver | 360-Degree Videos, Virtual Reality

Cinekid Game & App Award 2021
Nomination

Comenius EduMedia Award 2021
Comenius EduMedia Medal

World Media Festivals Award 2021
Silver | Children & Youth Programmes: Education Ages  8-14