Esch2022 REMIX Opening Wins Gold in Switzerland

The opening ceremony of Esch2022 - European Capital of Culture, which took place in Esch-sur-Alzette and in Esch-Belval on Saturday 26 February 2022, has received the Golden Award of Montreux (Switzerland).

The official opening ceremony of Esch2022, led by the agency battleROYAL Berlin, won the Golden Award in the category Online / Hybrid Events against international competitors, including major corporations and renowned agencies operating all over the world. It is the only award at this year's Golden Awards to have gone to Luxembourg.

The REMIX Opening took place as an innovative hybrid event combining both analogue and digital elements. Its diverse programme could not only be followed live on site, but could also be experienced via an interactive online livestream. The programme included various stage shows, some of which had been developed in cooperation with local artists in the course of the Remix Festival back in autumn 2021. Among them were the dance project Esch2022 Moves, the music project Future Frequencies, a project that helped create the sound of Esch2022 and a space programme in cooperation with the Luxembourg Space Agency (LSA) based in Esch-sur-Alzette, in which 800 pupils from Luxembourg and France had the opportunity to design and submit their vision for the future. As a highlight of the REMIX Opening, the students then virtually launched their hand-drawn space rockets as a sign of peace.

"Around 32,000 people attended the Esch2022 REMIX Opening, including 14,000 people from 50 different countries who joined us via livestream. I am very proud of the entire team for their professional work. This award represents a significant international recognition of the commitment of those involved and it honours both the courage of the conception and the innovative character of the opening ceremony. It once again puts the entire southern region in the international spotlight", said Georges Mischo, President of Esch2022.

Since the launch of Esch2022 at the end of February 2022, a total of over 70,000 guests (in addition to those present at the REMIX Opening) have taken part in the various events and exhibitions throughout the entire region.

All in all, there were over 1,200 dedicated and passionate people behind and on stage who contributed to the success of this major event on 26 February. They included around 500 service providers and employees, more than 350 creative and performance artists, mainly from the southern region, 250 "remixers" (volunteers from the Esch2022 community), around 50 security personnel as well as members of 26 local and seven scout associations.

Their Royal Highnesses the Grand Duke and the Grand Duchess as well as Luxembourg's Prime Minister Xavier Bettel attended the REMIX Opening along with other representatives of the Luxembourg and French governments. Esch2022 has been under the High Patronage of the Grand Duchess since February 2020.

This year, the international Swiss award, which has been honouring "outstanding achievements" in areas such as advertising, digital design and events since 1989, carefully selected companies and their service providers from countries such as Germany, the United States (US), Korea and Brazil from a professional and experienced point of view. The jury consists of various professionals including CEOs, creative and marketing directors of major companies from 24 countries.