The Studio at SCA, in collaboration with Alkira and Publicis Worldwide, have been named a finalist in the 2020 Mumbrella Awards for a media-first voice skill created for the Queensland Eye Institute Foundation’s (QEIF) fundraising art exhibition Last Seen.

Last Seen is a finalist in the Best Use of User Experience” category alongside four other finalists. The full list of finalists can be read here.

Earlier this year, Last Seen won the ‘Apps, Mobile and Voice – Education and Reference’ category of the prestigious Webby Awards. Competing against the likes of Harvard Business Review and Encyclopedia Britannica, it was the only Australian voice skill to be recognised globally in a one-of-a-kind smart speaker experience.

The Last Seen voice skill was conceived and developed collaboratively by The Studio at SCA, voice software experts Alkira and Publicis Worldwide, and was designed to enhance the experience for visitors to the Last Seen exhibition – a fundraising initiative for QEIF.

The Mumbrella Awards will take place as a virtual event on 8 October 2020 and will be hosted by SCA’s Hit Network national nights host Ash London.

The Last Seen exhibition paired Australians who have been impacted by blindness or vision impairment with artists to create paintings of their last significant memory before their vision started to deteriorate. The voice skill housed unique soundscapes that accompanied each painting. Those soundscapes recreated this poignant memory, bringing the paintings to life in sound.

During the exhibition, attendees could use the skill to listen to these soundscapes on their phones while looking at the painting, hear detailed stories behind the artworks, learn more about the artists and find more information on the QEIF, making the experience far more immersive and impactful.

SCA National Head of Radio Sales, Nikki Rooke, said: “It’s fantastic to see this innovative audio idea recognised once again, this time as a finalist at the Mumbrella Awards. As technology evolves, audio’s capability is increasing to include world-class ideas like this one. Using voice and audio to enhance an art exhibition has never been done before in Australia. We’re very proud of the idea and the outcome.”

SCA National Head of Creativity ‑ The Studio at SCA, Matt Dickson, said:  At The Studio at SCA, we’re committed to award winning audio creativity and insight led ideation. To be recognised as a finalist in the Mumbrella Awards is an honour and shows how versatile audio can be at solving client challenges. The fact that this project was a collaborative effort with Alkira and Publicis Brisbane makes the nomination even more satisfying.”

While the exhibition has completed, the skill is still live. To hear the skill in action, just say: “Ok Google, talk to Last Seen exhibition” on any Google Assistant enabled device. The exhibition can also be viewed at https://lastseen.com.au/

 The Last Seen case study video can be viewed here:  https://vimeo.com/380422048/8be083be8c

 Last Seen Credits:

 The Studio at SCA

National Head of Creativity, Matt Dickson

Head of the Studio - Brisbane, Jeanna Manifold

Campaign Audio Producer, Andrew Fritsch

Campaign Ideas Manager, Hannah Lucas

Alkira
Partnerships & Integration, Paige Harkness

Publicis Worldwide

Executive Creative Director, Ryan Petie
Creative Team, David Schaak and Kirsten Twigg
Account Management, Kate Hemsley-Hackett

Zenith Media
General Manager, Warwick Taylor