A scalable digital archive collecting more than 30 years of history

Mittelfest is more than just a cultural event; it is the epicenter of an artistic movement embracing diversity and creativity from all over Europe since 1991, at a crucial time of revival and rapprochement between East and West.

Since its inception, Mittelfest has embodied the essence of international cooperation with a cosmopolitan and inclusive approach that has established the foundation for a festival that has withstood the test of time, becoming a focal point for encounters and cultural exchange among the many languages and cultures of the Central European and Balkan area.

Today, Mittelfest is a beacon of inclusion and collaboration involving 27 European countries, embracing a wide range of artistic expression, from music to theater, dance to circus. Through its rich and varied program, Mittelfest continues to promote dialogue and understanding among nations, celebrating the richness of diversity and the universality of art.

The association confronted us with the complex challenge of finding a way to bring online and promote over thirty years of artistic history through a digital archive that would reflect the diversity of its performances and appeal to a wide range of target audiences.

The need to create a digital archive that was not only a simple collection of materials, but also an engaging and accessible experience for all, placed the design of a platform that was easy to navigate and intuitive to use for a diverse audience at the center of Zeranta Digital’s thoughts.
From the younger generation seeking new cultural experiences to the older generation eager to relive significant moments from the festival’s past, the digital archive had to meet the needs of a wide range of users. Therefore, the challenge was not only to preserve the festival’s memories and performances, but also to do so in a way that was accessible and engaging for everyone, regardless of age or level of familiarity with digital technology.

Zeranta Digital’s Approach was to field a multidisciplinary team of professionals, each of whom contributed their experience and expertise to ensure the success of the project.

A participatory design with the client led to the drafting of an intuitive and engaging navigation flow based on the cataloging needs expressed by Mittelfest.

In this phase, Professor Roberto Canziani provided crucial support as content consultant. With his many years of knowledge of the Festival, he ensured that the archive content was accurate, relevant and well-organized. His valuable guidance helped to best present Mittelfest’s rich artistic history through the digital archive, ensuring a comprehensive information experience.

The web development department performed a key task: translating the ideas and design conceived by the design team into responsive and functional code, transforming the concept of the Mittelbabel digital archive into an online reality ready to be explored by users.

Functional specifications were implemented ensuring performance optimization that made the archive robust and scalable over time. The main goal was to ensure that the user experience was uniform and engaging across all devices, from desktops to tablets and smartphones. And so, the Mittelbabel digital archive has become an accessible and versatile platform, ready to host a wide range of art materials and grow over time.