XR Experience “Inside Kristallnacht” Takes Audiences Through Pivotal Moment in Holocaust History

The USC Shoah Foundation partnered with the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany (Claims Conference) on the development and launch of Inside Kristallnacht, an innovative mixed-reality experience that presents audiences the events of Kristallnacht through the eyes of Holocaust survivor and activist Dr. Charlotte Knobloch. The immersive experience, released on the 86th anniversary of Kristallnacht and accessible online, forewarns of the dangers of unchecked hate at a time when global antisemitism is at a post-Holocaust high.

Virtually inviting users into her grandmother’s home, Dr. Knobloch recalls the night of November 9, 1938, when her father, a prominent lawyer, received a tip-off call alerting him to imminent attacks on Jewish homes and businesses. She takes viewers with her into the streets of Munich, where, as a six-year-old, she spent the night roaming through the streets with her father as mobs vandalized Jewish shops and homes in what became known as the November Pogroms, also known as  Kristallnacht or the Night of Broken Glass.

Kristallnacht became a pivotal moment in Holocaust history, as the Nazi-orchestrated assaults on the Jewish population in Germany, Austria, and the Czech Sudetenland signaled an escalation of antisemitic violence and policies that ultimately culminated in the murder of 6 million Jews.

The Claims Conference, in partnership with Meta and UNESCO, commissioned the USC Shoah Foundation and immersive technology company makemepulse, to create this historically accurate, sensitive, and evocative mixed-reality experience. The project’s minimalist design powerfully animates Knobloch’s memories.

Technologically advanced initiatives like Inside Kristallnacht provide foundational historical knowledge while deepening the experience through the eyes of a survivor, said Dr. Robert J. Williams, Finci-Viterbi Executive Director of the USC Shoah Foundation, UNESCO Chair on Genocide Education, and Advisor to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance.

“The USC Shoah Foundation is proud to partner with the Claims Conference on this immersive experience. By embracing technology in ways that are responsible and engaging, we have the potential to enhance our collective memory and ensure that we honor the survivors, the victims, and the immeasurable loss suffered during some of the twentieth century’s most tragic years of antisemitic violence,” he said.

Inside Kristallnacht integrates archival footage, photographs, music, and audio of Kristallnacht, along with meticulously researched historical context, into the hand-drawn world of Dr. Knobloch’s story. Viewers can also engage in an interactive Q&A with Dr. Knobloch that uses natural language processing technology to match her prerecorded answers to the questions.

“Being part of this high-tech experience gives me great pride,” said Dr. Knobloch. “There are fewer survivors every year who can share their memories of the Holocaust and knowing that the lessons they have to share will last beyond any of us gives me hope for the future and makes me feel that those lessons will not be lost.”

Dr. Knobloch survived the Holocaust living as a Christian child on a Bavarian farm. After the war, she reunited with her father and remained in Germany, eventually dedicating her life to combating antisemitism. She served as the President of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, Vice President of the European Jewish Congress, and is the World Jewish Congress Commissioner for Holocaust Memory.

Inside Kristallnacht will be displayed in museums and film festivals and is available for classroom use; accompanying educational materials are currently under development.

Visit the Inside Kristallnacht experience.

Inside Kristallnacht Commissioned by and with Assistance from the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany and supported by the German Federal Ministry of Finance and the Foundation Remembrance, Responsibility and Future.