Demoscene accepted as UNESCO cultural heritage in Germany

Beautiful times. I especially loved swapping - that is you got a list of people and their addresses from a magazine and you saved on disks your favourite demos and zines (preferable those nobody else had) and then you added some random stuff for example label off your favourite drink, wrote some poems, maybe added a dried flower and so on and then you also added postage stamps. Then you were hoping that whoever received it on the other side liked it and he or she would have sent you something else. Sometimes you would just just pass on the disks you received and just added your name to a txt file or some funny looking directory. There was also a trick to put a glue over your stamps and it was the custom that the person would send you those stamps back so you could then dissolve the postage stamp and reuse them :-) The internet somewhat killed this unfortunately. Decades later I still remember the feeling of a postman holding packages in his hands from various places in the world and the excitement, what am I going to find? I miss that.

I&#x27;m a (retired? infinitely procrastinating?) demoscener and to be frank I&#x27;ve never understood this effort. What does it help anyone that some bureacrats somewhere put the demoscene on the same list as folk dances, saunas, and &quot;the Gastronomic meal of the French&quot;?<p>I mean sure, it&#x27;s impressive that they pulled it off - I wouldn&#x27;t expect whoever decides these things to understand much about computer art subcultures, but I don&#x27;t know what the benefit is, to anyone.<p>EDIT: I just realized that <i>of course</i> the answer is, like anything demosceners do, &quot;because we can&quot;. What was I thinking?

If they intend to maintain an archive of all the demos ever created then I will volunteer one of my old 128Mb USB drives to mirror it.

This brings back memories of visiting the Computer game museum in Berlin. It’s a small museum dedicated to early computer games and also has preserved a number of early demos. Worth a visit if you ever find yourself with a couple hours of free time there. Oh they also have a working giant Atari and NES controller.<p><a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.computerspielemuseum.de" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.computerspielemuseum.de</a><p><a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.tripadvisor.com&#x2F;Attraction_Review-g187323-d2035268-Reviews-Computerspielemuseum-Berlin.html" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.tripadvisor.com&#x2F;Attraction_Review-g187323-d20352...</a>

Second Reality by Future Crew <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.youtube.com&#x2F;watch?v=KTjnt_WSJu8" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.youtube.com&#x2F;watch?v=KTjnt_WSJu8</a> ( It is considered to be one of the best demos created during the early 1990s on the PC)

This news comes right at the moment I am rendering demoscenes 4kb intro in 8K60 quality on YouTube :)<p><a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.youtube.com&#x2F;watch?v=z2bE1opaaJ0&amp;list=PLbRiR5PpVynYGvZ4LWtfSy7uutszKJRvo" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.youtube.com&#x2F;watch?v=z2bE1opaaJ0&amp;list=PLbRiR5PpVy...</a>

I always wondered why demo scene was so culturally impactful in Europe but not in the US. I wonder if it’s due to the fact that Amiga was a lot more popular in Europe than US.

This comment section is missing something absolutely essential. Let&#x27;s fix that right now:<p>AMIGAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

Having experienced the Amiga and PC demoscenes when they were happening, this is one of those statements that comes as a surprise, but then, after a little consideration, makes perfect sense.<p>It is celebrating a cultural movement during a moment in time.

I&#x27;ve enjoyed my time in the C64 and later the PC demoscene and I&#x27;m amazed it&#x27;s still going pretty strong. Perhaps not on the level it was at during what was arguably its peak in the mid-90s, but still.<p>It has certainly shaped a fairly large group of people currently working in our industry, even if they were only tangentially aware of the scene (perhaps with cracked games as a gateway drug, as it was in my case).<p>Kudos for getting this organized.

The bit of international significance: &quot;As the previous decision in Finland helped convince the experts in Germany, today’s decision is a huge tailwind for the ongoing applications in other countries like France, Switzerland, and Poland. And the more countries will have listed the Demoscene, the more likely an international joint application for the Demoscene to be recognized as humanity’s cultural heritage becomes.&quot;

Really excited to see this. Being part of the scene was absolutely fundamental to finding passion in tech and understanding how creative the process is at the core.

Blown away by all the positive comments and stories relating to our initiative, thank you all for the good vibes and thoughtful comments, and for everybody being part or being inspired by the scene over the decades!<p>And as always it&#x27;s a team effort: <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;twitter.com&#x2F;Dedux&#x2F;status&#x2F;1374040818810548228?s=20" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;twitter.com&#x2F;Dedux&#x2F;status&#x2F;1374040818810548228?s=20</a> &amp; see also <a href="http:&#x2F;&#x2F;demoscene-the-art-of-coding.net&#x2F;supporters&#x2F;" rel="nofollow">http:&#x2F;&#x2F;demoscene-the-art-of-coding.net&#x2F;supporters&#x2F;</a> It will take some more years to get from a country level to an international application. So we are still looking for more (ex)-sceners and supporters helping to file applications in more countries - so if that resonates with you, don´t hesitate to get in touch or join our Discord. <a href="http:&#x2F;&#x2F;demoscene-the-art-of-coding.net&#x2F;demosceners&#x2F;" rel="nofollow">http:&#x2F;&#x2F;demoscene-the-art-of-coding.net&#x2F;demosceners&#x2F;</a> Thank you!

I worry about anything heritage-&#x2F;tourism-related being deeply conservative and possibly resulting in things getting fixed down or watered down, or otherwise ceasing to evolve&#x2F;getting tied up with national&#x2F;international bureaucratic apparatuses. But the people involved seem to be happy from what little I&#x27;ve seen (as an outsider), so it&#x27;s probably ok here?

The UNESCO listing is a pretty big tent so this feels right. It’s not a Taj Mahal or Sydney Opera House but only a few things are.

As a past and sometimes current demoscener, this warms my heart to see our art form recognized in this way.<p>It&#x27;s long been frustrating to see curations of digital art that conspicuously exclude the scene. And now the little subculture I participate in is suddenly internationally recognized!<p>I truly hope that this means we&#x27;ll start seeing curated digital art shows that are displays of the depth, breadth, and history of the scene.<p>As a young wannabe technologist who grew up in very rural America. The scene was one of not only the first online scenes I encountered, but also some of the first people I regularly interacted with internationally...irrevocably bursting the insular bubble it&#x27;s so easy to fall into in rural America.

<a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.youtube.com&#x2F;watch?v=jY5Vrc5G0lk" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.youtube.com&#x2F;watch?v=jY5Vrc5G0lk</a> -&gt; Debris, winner of the demo competition at Breakpoint 2007 in Bingen, Germany.

Farbrausch!

I believe this may have been the grandaddy of demos in Europe:<p>Sodan &amp; Magician 42 - TechTech - Amiga Demo <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;youtu.be&#x2F;mB5CujcTN8A" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;youtu.be&#x2F;mB5CujcTN8A</a>

Ha, amazing timing, I was just talking about this a few days ago on that other thread about the c64 Mind Is Born demo <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=26511266" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;news.ycombinator.com&#x2F;item?id=26511266</a>

Great! I love the scene. The art, and fun learning. Technical acumen coupled with art can speak to tech in a liberating and empowering way.<p>And new tricks on old hardware. I always muse over what current gear could really do.

This really made my day. I’ve marveled at the skill of demoscene folks for a long time, surely in the class of great artists and worth preserving and encouraging.

I love computer demos! Is there any good page &#x2F; book &#x2F; videos on how to make effects such as sinus scrollers, vector graphics and effects?

Sadly all my CPC&#x2F;Amiga demos are lost to time.

This is wonderful! It was a huge part of me when growing up, and I still bond with others when we discover our common past.

An NFT opportunity for the scammers out there?

There seem to be a fair few people who are part of the demoscene here, so I suppose this is as good a place as any to ask:<p>What is the demoscene&#x27;s take on NFTs?<p>No horse in the race, just interested to hear what the general attitude is.

&gt; <i>Today on the suggestion of the national Unesco expert committee, the Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs decided to accept the Demoscene as German intangible cultural heritage. The decision acknowledges the long and living tradition the Demoscene has in Germany, with Revision, Breakpoint, and Evoke among other demoparties shaping the landscape of major international gatherings of the demoscene for decades.</i><p>Ah yes, the experts who arbitrary decide such matters based on politics and tourist revenue estimations.<p>So has Currywürst been a part of German culture for decades, but apparently it is not included, perhaps because it&#x27;s fastfood. — our overlords move in mysterious ways.