Stadtmuseum Berlin Foundation Case Study

Stadtmuseum Berlin Foundation: translating Berlin’s best scavenger hunts

About the client

Established in 1995, the Stadtmuseum Berlin Foundation comprises five museums in Berlin: the Märkisches Museum, the Museum Nikolaikirche (St. Nicholas’ Church Museum), the Museum Ephraim-Palais (Ephraim Palace Museum), the Museum Knoblauchhaus and the Museumsdorf Düppel (Museum Village Düppel). In addition to an exhibition at the Humboldt Forum that is dedicated to the exchange between Berlin and the world, the museums showcase the city’s vast urban and cultural history. They also remain must-see attractions that we are more than happy to partner with.

The project

Services:
Transcreation

Languages:
UK English, Turkish and Arabic

After teaming up on a sales campaign in 2011, we’ve continued to provide translation services to the Stadtmuseum Berlin Foundation, from German into UK English, for high-volume exhibition texts, press releases, web text, exhibition flyers and much more. So we were intrigued when the Foundation approached us with a new, multilingual transcreation project – a scavenger hunt based around the St. Nicholas’ Church!

They sought to engage families visiting Berlin and touring the city’s attractions, and for this, they needed translations from German into UK English, Turkish and Arabic. Participants were required to decipher riddles linking them to letters, which in turn were compiled to reveal a solution word. The translation needed to be appealing and accessible to families with children, offering an enjoyable insight into Berlin’s vibrant culture and history.

Our approach

VSI Berlin swung into action. The first step was translating the clues. This was done into English first, and then used as a template for our teams in Istanbul and Cairo. Each clue for the hunt led to a final quiz, which also had to be translated.

What made the project special were the skills required. The Foundation’s goal was to encourage families to take part in the hunt and learn about Berlin’s history. Our teams had to translate not only the text, but the whole concept into multiple languages, with a creative and entertaining approach that showcased their knowledge in transcreation and intercultural understanding. The project was definitely a fun challenge for us.

Outcome

Although VSI Berlin has been working with the Stadtmuseum Berlin Foundation for over a decade, the scavenger hunts were our first multilingual projects for them. We had the opportunity to support our long-standing client from our Berlin studio facility, alongside our talented teams of localisation experts in Istanbul and Cairo. Thanks to this combined Group effort, we made it possible for local content in Berlin to become a global point of interest.

After the success of the St. Nicholas’ Church scavenger hunt, the Foundation commissioned translations of two further projects for Museum Village Düppel and the Knoblauchhaus Museum. We look forward to our continued partnership that celebrates Berlin’s history.