How does political division shape an individual life? Why did Elke Rosin and her family spontaneously flee to West Berlin? Why did Jörg Hildebrandt remain in the GDR despite opposing its political system? And why did Uwe Rutkowski guard the closing border as a member of the People’s Police, even as his doubts continued to grow?
Using augmented reality, the witnesses appear life-sized in the users’ physical environment. Historical photographs, audio recordings, illustrations and spatially staged archive material accompany their stories. The mobile device becomes a window into Berlin in 1961, while the personal accounts remain at the centre of the experience.
For the MIREVI team, one of the central challenges was to translate complex documentary material into a coherent spatial experience without overshadowing the witnesses themselves. Building on our previous collaborations with WDR, including “WDR AR 1933–1945”, the “WDR Klima App” and “Zeitzeugen 1945 – Trümmerjahre in AR”, the project explores how immersive media can create new and accessible approaches to history.
“OstWest Zeitzeugen” was developed together with its target audience. From the beginning, students and teachers from schools in North Rhine-Westphalia, Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt contributed their ideas, experiences and feedback to the development process. Hundreds of additional students participated in online surveys.
The app is therefore not conceived as a finished archive. Students throughout Germany are invited to submit their own questions to the witnesses. Selected questions will be answered in further interviews and become part of a future update. In this way, the project establishes an ongoing dialogue between generations as well as between East and West.
The first chapter focuses on the construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961. Further chapters will be added gradually until 2029, expanding the app into a growing account of German division and its continuing impact on society today.
The free app is designed primarily for students from the ninth grade onwards. Accompanying teaching materials support its use in history and social studies classes. Accessibility features include subtitles, screen-reader compatibility, keyboard navigation and high-contrast presentation.
“OstWest Zeitzeugen – Mauerjahre in AR” is available free of charge for iOS and Android.
A project by WDR Doku&Digital and MDR, developed in cooperation with Hochschule Düsseldorf / MIREVI. With the participation of partner schools, Stiftung Berliner Mauer and Landesschüler*innenvertretung NRW.