Mixed Reality Cuban Disapora Project is Selected as BAFTA Student Awards Finalist – Frost Institute for Data Science & Computing

Mixed Reality Cuban Disapora Project is Selected as BAFTA…

Congratulations to Noel Nunez! His mixed reality project The Cuban Freedom Flights: A Mixed Reality Experience has been selected as a finalist for the 2025 BAFTA Student Awards. Noel works as a Senior Transitional Guide in the Center for Academic Navigation & Success. The submission for BAFTA was the Capstone project that completed Noel’s master’s degree in Interactive Media from the School of Communication. A trailer for the project can be seen HERE, or at the bottom of the page.

The BAFTA Student Awards are an integral part of BAFTA North America’s year-round Learning, Inclusion, and Talent programs and serve as an international celebration of the next generation of creative talent in film, games, and immersive storytelling. The 15 finalists for the 2025 BAFTA Student Awards were announced on Thursday, May 29. These student projects were voted on by BAFTA members from over a record breaking 1,034 film, games, and immersive submissions from 154 schools across 39 countries.

Winners will be announced on Friday June 13th, 2025, during a live ceremony at The Maybourne Beverly Hills.

Project Title: The Cuban Freedom Flights: A Mixed Reality Experience

Project Description:

The Cuban Freedom Flights is an immersive mixed reality experience that takes users back to the 1965–1973 Cuban refugee flights to the U.S. This project uses pass-through virtual reality to tell the story of the largest airborne refugee operation in American history, which helped over 300,000 Cubans find freedom from an oppressive regime.

The experience is divided into three main sections: History, Gallery, and Stories. In the History section, users can learn about the Cuban Freedom Flights and their impact on America. The Gallery offers an engaging view of historical photographs, giving users the feeling of being there in the moment. The Stories section shares the personal accounts of passengers through animations, interactions, and replicated artifacts, offering a deeper connection to their journeys.

This project aims to combine historical storytelling with interactive technology, providing an engaging way to learn about this important chapter in history.