Antwerp Police Win Award for Hate Crime Awareness Video
Politiezone Antwerpen (Antwerp Police Zone) has won an award at the 27th edition of Video Experience Day for an internal training video designed to educate officers on recognizing and responding to hate crimes. The ceremony took place on Tuesday, June 9, 2026, at Kinepolis Brussels, one of Belgium’s most prominent corporate video events.
Context
Antwerp, Belgium’s second-largest city and one of Europe’s most diverse ports, has faced persistent challenges related to discrimination, racism, antisemitism, and LGBTQ+-targeted hate crimes. Politiezone Antwerpen — the largest police force in Belgium with over 3,000 personnel — has made combating hate crimes a strategic priority in recent years, investing in innovative training methods and community outreach.
According to Het Laatste Nieuws, the award-winning video uses realistic scenarios to train police officers in recognizing hate crimes, correctly handling victims, and properly processing reports. The jury praised the video for its “unique imagery that makes you think” and noted it could be used more broadly than just internally.
Key Developments
The Video Experience Day, organized by AP Hogeschool and Trends Z, featured 36 nominated videos across multiple categories including Live Action, Animation, and AI-Integrated Video. The Antwerp police entry competed against three strong candidates in its category.
Kristof De Busser, Head of Diversity and Inclusion at Politiezone Antwerpen, said: “At Antwerp Police Zone, hate crimes are a real priority for the coming years. We were looking for an original and unique way to bring that to the attention of our police officers, something atypical within a police culture. We believe we succeeded with this video.”
De Busser also noted that communities in Antwerp have responded very positively to how the force addresses this sensitive subject. The jury confirmed that the video has resonated well in community meetings, proving its message extends beyond the police force itself.
Isabelle Joossen of Stormbrein, the Antwerp-based graphic agency that produced the video, emphasized the role of emotional impact and sound design. “We tried to focus on emotion,” Joossen said. “An important part is also the sound design. I want to mention Studio Helsinki, which collaborated on the production. That helped to let a sensitive subject land in the right way.”
Broader Anti-Hate Crime Initiatives
The award is the latest milestone in a broader, multi-year effort by Antwerp police to tackle hate crimes. In November 2025, the force hosted an international CEPOL training program that brought together 26 European specialists from 19 countries. During that event, the force introduced VR-based training simulations where officers practice responding to hate crime scenarios — among the first such programs in Europe.
As VRT NWS reported, the VR training is mandatory. Officers who fail must undergo additional coaching or risk losing their weapon-carrying privileges. The simulations are data-driven, focusing on the most common hate crimes in Antwerp: racist, antisemitic, and LGBTQ+-targeted incidents.
In December 2024, the force launched a public awareness campaign to encourage hate crime reporting, addressing common barriers such as shame, fear of not being believed, and normalization of abuse. The force has also maintained a visible presence at Antwerp Pride as a signal against hate crimes targeting the LGBTQ+ community.
Analysis
The award validates a significant cultural shift within the Antwerp police force. As De Busser noted, the video represents “something atypical within a police culture” — a move toward more emotionally engaging, modern training methods in a traditionally conservative institution.
The jury’s suggestion that the video “can be used more broadly than just internally” raises the possibility that the training material could be adapted for public awareness campaigns or shared with other police zones in Belgium and across Europe. This would align with Antwerp’s emerging role as a European leader in hate crime response, particularly following the CEPOL training event.
What’s Next
The award winners also had a chance at additional recognition, including a broadcast on Trends Z and the Brightfish Storytelling Award, where the winning video is shown for a week in a Kinepolis cinema complex. Whether the Antwerp police video will be made publicly available remains an open question, though the jury’s recommendation suggests broader distribution may be considered.
For now, the award cements Antwerp police’s commitment to innovative hate crime training — and sends a clear message that combating discrimination remains a top priority for the force.