Young Europeans Turn History into Film – Now the Jury Takes Over
What Story from the Past still Speaks to You Today?
The Submissions
More than 200 participants aged 13-27 across 19 countries sent in over 100 videos, once the submission period ended on April 1. In an impressive variety of languages (with english subtitles), the submissions address topics such as Communism and dictatorship, war and conflict, borders and migration. Others dealt with deportation and persecution, religion, and memory and remembrance. Identity and family history, as well as local historical sites and monuments, were also widely chosen topics.
Selecting the Winning Entries
Currently, an expert jury is reviewing the submissions. The jury criteria are based on historical reflection, storytelling & creativity, media literacy & ethics, and technical execution. The broad scope of the competition is also reflected in the jury’s setup that consists of historians, educators, and media/film practitioners.
Its members are literary scholar Prof. Dr. Dhurata Shehri (University of Tirana), communication scientist Marcus Bösch (University of Münster), social entrepreneur Dr. Fernande Raine (History Co:Lab), historian Dr. Marek Mutor (Platform of European Memory and Conscience), and Steven Stegers, Executive Director of EuroClio.
They will select three jury prizes and nominate a Top 30 shortlist. Starting mid-June, the Top 30 videos will compete in a public vote on EUSTORY’s Instagram account in the categories “Most Liked”, “Most Commented”, and “Most Shared”. The Top Three that spark the most interaction online will each receive one of the Audience Awards.
All winners will receive cash prizes. For selected winners, a special prize awaits: They will be invited to the EUSTORY Past Forward Festival from September 7 – 11, 2026, in Hamburg, Germany, and to present their work at an awards ceremony during the festival.
What is the Competition About?
Roots & Reels connects history, storytelling, and film. The past is not just dates in a textbook. It lives in family stories and everyday conversations, in the streets, monuments, and landscapes around us, in the words we use, and in what is remembered or left out. At the same time, our social media feeds are full of images and videos about history: sometimes inspiring, sometimes nostalgic, sometimes misleading, or manipulative.
Roots & Reels was created to slow down this flood for a moment and – rather than just consume – to ask: How can we work with sources and still tell creative, emotional stories? Whose voices are we listening to and whose are missing? Why does it matter today?
Initiated by EUSTORY, Roots & Reels is organized by the network’s Albanian partner IDMC from Tirana and is supported by Körber-Stiftung.