| Philosophy | Most of us can relate to the image of kids looking outside the window letting their mind wander into imaginary worlds as they travel along the road. But the back seat of most family cars today looks quite differently: children sucked into screens, disconnected from what surrounds them. Screen time is constantly increasing, specially among younger generations. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) updated their guidelines for children’s media use, as children desperately need more free time to ignite their imaginations and develop a sense of wonder . Instead of activating their imagination, children 1 are overstimulated by all that extensive screen time. Creative agency ACHTUNG! mcgarrybowen developed ‘Snelweg Sprookjes’ (translated: Road Tales) for Volkswagen Netherlands. An app with location based interactive audiobooks that transform ordinary road objects into magical characters of a story. The main goal of the app is to make children curious about looking outside again as they ride in the car - but also to give parents a good alternative for the use of screens. In the Netherlands Volkswagen is one of the most driven family cars. Thousands of children are spending time on the back seats of cars on a daily basis. Most of this time is filled with a digital screen. With 'Road Tales', Volkswagen wants to bring imagination back to where it has always belonged: the back seat. Mervyn ten Dam - executive creative director ACHTUNG! mcgarrybowen Amsterdam: “With the app we stimulate the imagination of kids and create a fun and interactive experience for the whole family. Through a custom story-engine, the app builds stories in real-time around ordinary highway objects. For example, a story turns a tunnel into a rocket launcher. With this app we want to give children the ability to trigger their creative thinking skills, which are essential to self-discovery.” |
