Anne Frank AR app draws on the lessons of history to promote tolerance

Conveying a #DontHateEducate message, the project incorporates a complementary website and docuseries to present testimonials from those affected by verbal and physical forms of intolerance.

The AR experience invites audiences to enter five virtual rooms containing personal objects relating to each occupant to immerse themselves in the lives of Dalit, a woman forced to deal with antisemitism; Mees, a transgender non-binary person who struggles to be accepted; Kuei, a young Black woman subjected to racial discrimination; and Majd, a refugee who faces prejudice because of his roots.

These stories are told in the context of Frank’s own experiences to show that hope springs eternal, even in moments of greatest despair.

Outlining the technical feats underpinning the app, Patricio Berríos Lobos, creative director XR at Media.Monks, said: “Bookcase for Tolerance is a great use case of immersive storytelling through AR. To be able to literally walk into the secret annex and get a glimpse of Anne’s life is a moving experience, until now only possible at the Anne Frank House Museum.

“In this context, the narrative leads us through the stories of modern young people facing intolerance; using special cameras, we scanned their rooms to generate 3D photos – a technique called photogrammetry – that users can explore in a 1:1, true-to-life examination of their experiences.”

PR for the initiative is being handled by Netherlands-based Hagens.

It’s been a busy week for Media.Monks, which only yesterday acquired Italian content marketing agency Miyagi in a Mediterranean manoeuvre.