THE 14TH ANNUAL SHORTY AWARDS

The Shorty Awards honor the best of social media and digital. View this season's finalists!

Industry

See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Auto See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Beauty See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Business to Business See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Consumer Brand See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Education See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Entertainment See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Financial Services See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Fitness, Health, & Wellness
<br>See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Food & Beverage
See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Gaming See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Government & Politics See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Hospitality See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Insurance See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Live Events See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> News & Media See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Non-Profit See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Pets & Animals See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Pharma & Healthcare See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Real Estate See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Restaurants See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Retail & E-Commerce See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Social Activism See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Sports See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Technology See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Television See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Travel & Tourism See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Wine, Beer & Spirits

Strategy & Engagement

See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Brand Partnership See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Call to Action See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Community Management See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Creative Use of Technology See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> CTV/OTT See previous winners and honorees for Insights and Trends here.</a> <a href=https://shortyawards.com/9th-impact/"https://shortyawards.com/category/16th/data-visualization">See previous winners and honorees for Data Visualization here.</a>"> Data & Insights See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Earned Media See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Event & Experiential See previous winners and honorees here.</a>""> Gamification See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Humor See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Innovative Media Buying Strategy See previous winners and honorees here.</a>""> Integration with Traditional Media See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Internal Communications See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> LGBTQ Community Engagement See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Micro-Influencer Strategy See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Multicultural Community Engagement See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Music & Dance See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> On a Shoestring See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Organic Promotion See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Paid & Amplification See previous winner and honorees here.</a>"> Physical and Digital Convergence See previous winner and honorees here.</a>"> Public Service Announcement See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Real Time Response See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> SEO & SEM See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Social Commerce See previous winners and honorees here.</a>"> Storytelling
From the 9th Annual Shorty Impact Awards

Break the Plastic chain_Snapchat_Location based AR

Winner in Extended Reality

Audience Honor in Extended Reality

Objectives

The main objective of this initiative is to tackle the global crisis of plastic pollution by creating an Location based augmented reality (AR) experience that turns globally recognized landmarks into symbols of environmental action. In collaboration with Snap India, the goal is to immerse users in an experience that not only raises awareness but also inspires immediate and meaningful engagement. 

By selecting location of universal significance, the initiative ensures the message resonates deeply, making the issue both relatable and urgent. The ultimate aim is to drive active participation, turning awareness into real, lasting change in the fight against plastic pollution.

 

 

Strategy and Execution

Strategy and Execution

We built our strategy around three key pillars
 

1. Leveraging a Universally Significant Landmark to Amplify the Message : 

We selected the Mahabalipuram Lighthouse, located within the 1200-year-old Mahabalipuram group of monuments, site of global cultural significance.As a modern beacon within this ancient landmark, it powerfully amplifies the urgency of addressing plastic pollution.
 
By using this iconic landmark, we made the issue more relatable and impactful on a global scale.


2. Designing a Transformative Experience:

Our goal was to immerse users in an AR interaction that vividly transformed their surroundings.  By witnessing the environmental damage unfold right before their eyes, we aimed to inspire immediate action.
 

3. Crafting Effective Interaction Design:  

We condensed the concept of breaking the plastic chains (beating plastic pollution) into a simple but effective interactionswiping on the plastic piles to break them, releasing the choking grip of pollution on light house. This intuitive action allowed users to directly engage with the issue, transforming the experience from merely informative to deeply personal and empowering.

This strategic approach was designed to amplify the message, make users witness the problem firsthand, and engage them in an effective interaction to inspire real change.


How the AR Lens Works:

  1. When users pointed their Snapchat camera at the lighthouse, they saw their environment filled with polluted air and the lighthouse choked by plastic waste.This made the severity of plastic pollution feel immediate and real.
     
  2. Users swiped on the plastic chains to break them, clearing the pollution surrounding the lighthouse. This simple gesture symbolized the breaking of the chains of plastic pollution, delivering  powerful message about the significance of individual actions in driving change.
     
  3. As the pollution cleared, the environment was restored right before their eyes. The same location transformed into a lush, green scene, demonstrating how individual actions can inspire real change and positively impact the environment.



Execution Steps:

  1. Digital Environment Creation: We crafted a detailed 3D replica of the lighthouse using 3D modeling tools, which served as the foundation for our AR visuals.
     
  2. Mapping and Anchoring: Snapchat’s Landmarker technology was employed to precisely map and anchor the AR content, ensuring it blended seamlessly with the physical site.
     
  3. High-Quality Visuals and Animations: We created lifelike 3D models, realistic VFX, and carefully crafted animations to deliver a seamless, immersive experience. 
     
  4. Optimization: We fine-tuned the AR content to maintain realism and compressed the immersive environment to under 6MB to ensure seamless experience on mobile device 
     
  5. Distributing the snapcodes for the users to scan and experience the activations 

Key Features:

This approach not only raised awareness but also motivated users to take meaningful action, turning a symbolic landmark into a catalyst for global environmental change.

 

Results

The lens was a resounding success, engaging thousands of users who visually experienced the powerful message of our campaign, resulting in approximately 2.5X more footfall than usual.They didn’t just see the impact of plastic pollution—they felt it and actively participated in overcoming it.

The campaign turned the Mahabalipuram Lighthouse into a rallying point for action, inspiring users to believe they could be part of the solution. This Augmented Reality experience transformed passive awareness into active participation, proving that technology can drive real-world change. 

Media

Entrant Company / Organization Name

Itech Reality Studios, Snapchat X ITRS

Entry Credits