The Rude Awakening has logged in! Offering a new perspective on war and peace

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On March 5^th, 2020, the first international meeting of “The Rude Awakening” gathered online the lead partner, Fondazione Belvedere-Gschwent, and all other project partners: Comune di Lavarone, ALDA, 101 Percento, Mémoire pour la vie, Gornjesavski Muzej Jesenice, Danube Connect, World of NGOs and the Macedonian Center of Photography.

“The Rude Awakening - a multimedia journey in the footsteps of frontline soldiers’ everyday life”, is a European project that aims to make technology part of museum visit experiences so that visitors feel more connected to World War I history and cultural heritage.

Originally supposed to be held in Skopje (North Macedonia), due to the coronavirus outbreak the in-person kick-off meeting was cancelled for health security reasons. It was the occasion to use the digital tools which are at the heart of the project. The partners were able to present their organisation, their activities and their goals for the running of the project. The partners decided to meet in person soon in order to go deeper into the debate and to better shape the project collectively: the next meeting will hence be held in Wien to discuss the online narrative of the Virtual Reality (VR) trailer and the video game that are among the main planned outcomes of the project.

This project is co-funded by the European Union MEDIA programme, a sub-programme of Creative Europe. Among the 8 projects granted by MEDIA, this is the only Italy-based one. 

The project wishes to foster innovative cross-sectoral approaches to facilitate the access and promotion of museums and historical sites on the issues of war and peace. With the support of digital and audiovisual contents based on the stories of WWI soldiers, “The Rude Awakening” wants to lead a new educational and emotional perspective on war and peace, whereby visitors will learn by doing as they fill the shoes of a soldier all along the museum visit, thus better understanding war memories and soldier life thanks to technology. The project especially aims to raise the awareness and interest of younger generations (between 13 to 20 years old) on the topic of war and peace.

For more information on the project and how to join it, please contact Artistic Director, Mr Renzo Carbonera: progetti@fortebelvedere.org