09/06/2026
🤝 Collaboration at the Heart of REVIVE
Since last October, the REVIVE project has reached a pivotal milestone through the dedicated fieldwork of NowHere Media, StoryLab, ISPC CNR Istituto di Scienze del Patrimonio Culturale, and our local partners Parco Palmieri and Kowethas: The Cornish Language Fellowship . Spanning from the sun-drenched streets of Grecìa Salentina to the rugged landscapes of Cornwall, this journey has been about more than just data—it has been about sitting down with the people who keep the Griko and Cornish identities alive.
🎨 Co-Creation: Designing the Future of Heritage
From Martignano, Martano and Zollino, to Penzance, Probus, and Redruth, partners held intensive on-site co-creation workshops. The goal was to ensure the communities themselves define what their stories are and how they are told.
These sessions delved into the core values, sacred places, and living narratives that make Cornish and Griko identities thrive today. We asked the community representatives to guide us through the "main themes" of their reality, ensuring that the Extended Reality (XR) experiences—which will debut at our final onsite exhibitions in Cornwall and Puglia—are authentic reflections of their heritage.
👓 Step Inside the Heritage
Through the use of VR headsets and immersive technology, these experiences will allow visitors to step directly into Cornish and Griko heritage. We are creating digital re-enactments of historical moments and everyday situations that represent the pulse of these cultures. It isn’t just a history lesson; it is an invitation to live these moments.
🏗️ From Ideas to User Journeys
The process has been a high-intensity design marathon:
-Narrative Consolidation: Early workshops paved the way for defining the core stories.
-Partners, local co-creators and citizen scientists met face-to-face to build the technical and social layers of each output.
✨ Local Legends & Symbolic Returns
The communities have breathed life into the creative direction:
-In Grecìa Salentina: The community chose the 'Sciacuddhi'—a mischievous spirit from local folklore—as the guiding figure for their experience. NHM’s visual artist worked closely with co-creators to refine sketches of this character. Meanwhile, partners have been busy scanning the architectural soul of the 'Casa a Corte' and filming 360° re-enactments to safeguard bring these communal spaces.
-In Cornwall: A powerful symbol of revival has emerged: the Chough. While originally intended as a background feature, continuous dialogue revealed that these national birds should take centre stage as our narrators. Having been deemed extinct as a breeding bird in Cornwall after 1973, their return to the Lizard Peninsula in 2001 serves as a perfect metaphor for the revitalisation of Kernewek.
🚀 What’s Next?
All of this collective knowledge is currently being woven into the final user journeys. We will then begin developing the XR experience in July 2026. Cinematic output will kickstart in summer 2026 as well, which will be produced in collaboration with local producers in each community, who have already started working on it.
Stay tuned to see the first glimpses of these immersive worlds!
