Europeana judges Heritage in Motion awards

Heritage in Motion is a multimedia competition for the creators and users of films, games, apps and websites on themes related to Europe’s heritage, cultural and natural, tangible and intangible. This year’s winners were revealed on 22 September on Europa Nostra’s livestream, from the Doge’s Palace in the World Heritage City of Venice, Italy, as part of the European Cultural Heritage Summit programme. 

Prizes were awarded in four categories, with a further two projects celebrated with special mentions, and the top accolade of Best Achievement Award given to one of the category winners.

This year’s award-winning projects take advantage of innovative technology - from video and games to artificial intelligence, augmented reality and machine-learning - combined with creative reimaginings of what might seem familiar to create something new and exciting. They all push the boundaries of the experiences we can create and share with digital culture. 

The Best Achievement Award, and winner of the ‘Games and interactive experiences’ category, was Casa Batlló 10D Experience - an immersive experience covering 2,000 square metres. The Gaudí Dôme introduces visitors to the genius of Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí via more than 1,000 screens. And the Gaudí Cube - a six-sided LED cube - takes the visitor into the mind of Gaudí through the work of digital artist Refik Anadol. All with a soundtrack and audio story in 15 languages.

Eleanor Kenny, Head of Communications and External Relations at the Europeana Foundation was part of the jury. Reflecting on the overall winner, she says, ‘Casa Batlló is a worthy overall winner. It is an exciting and inspiring project in its imagination and its ambition for how digital can be used to share and promote cultural heritage. What is particularly wonderful is that it focuses on the individual experience, creating something unique for each visitor. I cannot wait to experience Casa Batlló in person.’

‘The quality of the submissions across all categories this year was so impressive. I was also very drawn to work of the Carrickmacross Workhouse in the film and video category. It is a very powerful, evocative and modern storytelling of the Irish potato famine - an important historical period that is not widely enough known.’ says Eleanor.

‘It was a privilege to be part of the international jury - to be made more aware of what is happening on the ground in the sector in terms of innovation in these fields, and to be part of a wider collaborative effort to promote and recognise those achievements. 

‘Europe’s cultural heritage institutions and organisations are really carving a path in embracing and showing what is possible with the innovative use of new and existing technologies. These approaches are not without challenges but that is why this category of awards is so important - by showing what is possible, others will be inspired to follow and even go further. This provides new opportunities for society to relate to our shared heritage,  and helps reinforce the sector’s continued relevance in this digital era.’