The result was a stunning juxtaposition of the alarmingly physical and the hauntingly human.  By combining the storytelling talents of the Weta team with a meticulous curatorial process from the Te Papa team, a hyper-real series of human stories were woven together to create what has been Te Papa’s most successful exhibition ever.

We were tasked with collaboratively crafting a range of digital interactive touchscreen experiences to support the physical exhibition, telling the real stories of six real New Zealanders and their Gallipoli experiences that were featured in the exhibition.

These interactives had to be exist in harmony with the physical space, cater to all users from 9 to 90 and, most importantly, treat the sensitive & highly personal content with incredible sympathy – at all times we imagined the living descendants of the subject of the biographies using the product of our work.

Attention is drawn to the interactives through a series of beautifully crafted, visually sympathetic moving image enticer loops, inviting visitors to engage.  Upon entry to the biography, multiple navigational pathways & affordances are open to them, both linear and non-linear, ranging from natural touch interactions (swipe, pinch, tap), traditional sectional navigation and a zoom & explore mode allowing navigation of entire chapters of the person’s life.  The touchscreens have tested successfully with cross-generational audiences, largely due to the intuitive navigation regardless of technical nous.

Each biography is supported by beautiful archival imagery, diaries & objects.  All content is able to be expanded for closer inspection.

This amazing project has been a true career highlight for all involved.