The farvel project is completed.

With farvel, Jennifer Beitel, Markus Traber and Lilli Berger have spent two years developing virtual 3D memory spaces and staging various events in Virtual Space. The team conducted research during the funding period up to and including September 2022 with the help of start-up grants from the Berlin University of the Arts and the Film University Babelsberg Konrad Wolf. Two companies emerged from the research results and start-up experiences:

Markus Traber and Jennifer Beitel with www.ternaty.com

Lilli Berger with www.vyvyt.com

P.S. All rooms, including Mandy's memory room, will continue to be available under farvel.space and will be jointly managed by us.

Publications

spiegel magazin
© Der Spiegel
Artikel | DER SPIEGEL

In this article, Spiegel explores the question of why young entrepreneurs deal with death. Among other things, the 3D memory room from farvel was of particular interest. This can be used in many ways for mourning, separation and farewells. Even a memorial service for companies or a funeral service is conceivable.

taz tageszeitung
© taz
Article | TAZ

In an interview with the TAZ, Lilli Berger introduces the farvel memory rooms. On this day, Mandy, a palliative care patient, publishes her personal farvel memory room. Together with her followers, this space comes to life in the form of dear messages and comments. And when she leaves, this space of farewell and remembrance will remain.

The viewer can see the key visual of "Gedankenrauschen". The logo is embedded on top of a photo of a waterfall scenery. The logo is separated into a title line with the word "Gedankenrauschen" and a sub-heading "Gedanken über die Digitalisierung". The title is written completely in uppercase and a sans serif font, colored white. The sub-heading below is also a sans serif font and colored white.
© Gedankenrauschen
Interview | Gedankenrauschen

farvel is guest of "Gedankenrauschen", a project of the Zentrum Gesellschaftliche Verantwortung (ZGV) of the Evangelische Kirche in Hessia and Nassau (EKHN), supported by the Evangelische Kirchen in Germany (EKD). Over the course of a year, one conversation about digitization will be published each month.

The viewer can see the font logo of feinschwarz.net. The logo is separated into a title line with the word "feinschwarz.net" and a sub-heading "Theologisches Feuilleton". The title is written in a serif font, while the "feinschwarz." part is colored black and the "net" part is colored cyan and separated by a vertical line. The sub-heading is written completely uppercase in a sans serif font in black color.
© feinschwarz.net
Article | Feinschwarz.Net

In an interview with Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Beck, Lilli Berger presents the virtual 3D remembrance space "farvel.space" in the theological feuilleton feinschwarz.net. She takes up current developments and open questions of a contemporary mourning culture. farvel wants to enable a feeling of community and an effect of closeness their virtual space.

deutsche welle
© Deutsche Welle
Article | Deutsche Welle

For the first time, farvel is reported in Russian: Mourning in the digital age: how to say goodbye to a loved one from afar? First the pandemic, now the war have prevented many from saying goodbye to deceased loved ones. What solutions do new technologies offer?

republica22 keyvisual
© re:publica
Conference | re:publica panel

Live from re:publica 22. in the panel "Ashes to dust. Changes in the culture of burial and remembrance", farvel discussed future scenarios around the topic of death and mourning in conversation with experts. Can interpersonal closeness be made possible on virtual platforms? Is burial in a cemetery still in keeping with the times?

220502 eternity
© eternity The Magazine
Article | Eternity The Magazine

The start-up farvel wants to give funeral orators and funeral homes a new digital service with a virtual 3D memory room. "Our goal is to enable the funeral industry to make a lateral entry into digitization and thus transport an old, venerable craft into the 21st century," Lilli Berger tells the trade magazine for the funeral industry eternity on page 32f.

Thumbnail trau dich reden carolin reimann 1400x1400
© Dare to Talk
Podcast | Dare to talk

For Lilli, accepting death means allowing life to happen. She has that in common with Carolin Reimann, because with her podcast Dare to Talk she opens up a space for the topic of ease in dealing with incurable diseases, dying, death and mourning. Of course, the two also talked about spaces. Lilli gave an insight into the development of farvel.space.

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© SWR
Broadcasting | SWR

After home schooling, home office, is virtual mourning now coming? We were guests at SWR and were part of the exciting question of why the need for a virtual space for farewell and remembrance is more important today than ever and why it works so well on the internet. Whether QR codes on graves, Deep Fake through Artificial Intelligence or Virtual Reality in the Metaverse: It's all about storytelling and sharing.

csm Logo Finalisten Babelsberg Podcast nurTitelundUntertitel copy 4f1ab44c7a
© Dritte Klappe
Podcast | Dritte Klappe

How can a space be created for grief? Together with our partners from Wer du Warst in the podcast Dritte Klappe of the Film University Babelsberg we explore the question of why death tech is going through the roof? We also talk about how barrier-free farewells, detached from space and time, can work in virtual 3D space and what advantages digital mourning ceremonies bring with them.

211104 website presseseite
© Weizenbaum Institut
Podcast | Weizenbaum Institut

With this start-up project, we are also breaking new ground in terms of our business model. Voices for the Networked Society is the podcast series of the research group "Data-based Business Model Innovations". In the podcast of the Weizenbaum Instituts Ana Burgueno Hopf talks to us about the creation and use of digital data in the funeral industry and whether we are also a data-based business model innovation with farvel.

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© t3n
ARTICLE | T3N

In summer, we accompanied Mewes, who designed an individual virtual farewell room for his father. It was supposed to be a very special place, his father's favourite pub. Family and friends displayed a total of 55 photos, videos, letters and voice messages there, which every visitor to the room could look at for a month. In a comprehensive article, t3n explores the question of whether death tech startups are making digital grieving easier.

211105 website presseseite
© Filmuniversität Babelsberg
FUNDING | Film University Babelsberg

We have made it. We are the team that will receive an EXIST start-up grant at Babelsberg Film University for the next twelve months. We are incredibly happy that the paths of our former degree programmes (Digital Media Culture and Creative Technologies) have crossed with our start-up project. In an exclusive article by the Film University Babelsberg, we report on the unique selling points of our start-up project.

210513 website presseseite11
© radioeins
Broadcasting | RBB

Aren't we a little late with our idea? We believe that we are addressing a general problem, which has only been made obvious by the Corona pandemic. Because of long distances, health or even financial reasons, we cannot say goodbye to a loved one the way we would like to. We faced this and other critical questions in an interview with radioeins conducted during re:publica 21 .

211104 website presseseite 172
© WDR
Broadcasting | WDR

Why did we choose a virtual 3D environment in the context of mourning? We think that the playful aspect brings a certain lightness with this topic. This is valuable because we have forgotten how to deal with dying or even grieving persons. We gave a little insight in an interview with WDR as part of re:publica 21.

210513 website presseseite4 1
© re:publica 21
CONGRESS | MAIN PROGRAMME

The end of a loved one is more difficult than ever at this time. We often can neither say goodbye to people nor allow human closeness. Physical spaces are exchanged for virtual ones. The clip END AND BEGINNING for the re:publica 21 asks whether this could be the beginning of a new mourning culture in an increasingly digital society. 

210513 website presseseite 1
© Spotify Studios
PODCAST | SPOTIFY ORIGINAL

Have you heard of the promession method? The dead body is transformed into humus within six to 18 months. But what if the body becomes compost and no longer needs to be buried in the cemetery, where could new places of remembrance be created? Guest on the Spotify Original Podcast Man lernt nie aus sprechen wir 8 Minuten mit Vreni Frost über digitalen Abschied und alternative Bestattungsformen.

210513 website presseseite2
© Social Cosmos
PODCAST | DIGITAL MINDFULNESS

What do mindfulness and death have to do with each other? We were guests of the social media expert, biologist and meditation trainer Rini Pegka of Social Cosmos. In her podcast Digital Happiness we talked about our virtual places of farewell, remembrance and exchange.

210513 website presseseite3
© Tod und Tee
PODCAST | VIRTUAL FAREWELL AND GRIEF

We ask ourselves the question: Is it possible to say goodbye digitally? We were guests of the grief counsellor Kira Littwin. In her podcast Tod und Tee we talk about virtual mourning and virtual farewells. We explain what led us to work on a digital solution for funerals and memorial rooms.

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© Bundesverband Bestattungsbedarf
ARTICLE | FUNERAL NEEDS

The need for human connection in bereavement is greater than ever. Rituals are essential to understand the loss of a loved one. For it is only when we exchange stories, share our grief and reminisce that the deceased person comes back to life and eases our grief. So how can we create closeness where there is none? A report on our virtual farewell rooms in the (02/2021) Netzwärme issue of the magazine Bestattung (S. 8). 

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