Fabrizio Galeazzi

The carrying and use of knives by young people represents significant public and political concerns in the United Kingdom and educational interventions have the potential to promote behavioural change in relation to knife crime behaviours. Here, we first describe the creation of a novel virtual reality immersive film – RELOADED – designed to educate young people about the dangers of carrying knives. Co-created with secondary-school students, RELOADED explores how one victim’s story can enable stronger emotional connections and better understandings about knife crime in young people. Next, we conducted a preliminary qualitative assessment of engagement with RELOADED among students ( n = 16) and teachers and professionals ( n = 6) in a school environment, with a view to understanding whether RELOADED can be deployed to improve attitudes towards knife crime in young people. Thematic analysis of interview data identified five inter-connected themes relating to engagement with the environment, the role of the individual, the importance of support networks, the inevitability of knife crime, and the significance of a true story. Our findings underscore the potential of VR and immersive storytelling in fostering understanding among young people concerning complex social issues, such as knife crime.

Introduction: Reviving Kusunda is a project that explores the utility of immersive storytelling for the revitalisation of an endangered indigenous culture and language in Nepal called Kusunda. As part of this project, we compared the impact of a virtual reality (VR) experience (entitled Kusunda: Speak to Awaken) and a 2D companion film on audience engagement and emotional connections with the personal stories portrayed in both formats.Methods: Data were collected through three focus groups conducted in the United Kingdom (n = 15) and three in Nepal (n = 15), as well completion of quantitative surveys by participants in the United Kingdom that were preceded by screenings of both formats (N = 100).Results: The qualitative and quantitative results indicated the importance of integrating both VR and 2D film to maximize audience engagement. Specifically, while viewing the 2D film as a group appeared to promote group identity and wider access, the VR format was considered more effective for immersing oneself within the environment and developing an emotional connection, building on an understanding of how members of the Kusunda community live. Similarly, the quantitative results showed that participants found both formats to be highly informative and in terms of knowledge gain, although the VR format was more effective than the 2D format in terms entertainment and enjoyment, and emotional engagement.Discussion: Overall, these results suggest that using a multi-pronged approach that leverages the benefits of both VR and 2D film can be effective in attempts to preserve endangered languages and heritage.

In this article, we discuss the experimental application of iterative co-design, community-based and place-centred approaches in the creation of 3D immersive experiences of places that have been badly damaged or destroyed after natural catastrophic events. We take as our case study the community of Senerchia, hit and partially destroyed by the 1980 Irpinia earthquake in Italy. The main purpose of this paper is to analyse and discuss the co-creation process we undertook with residents of the town for the making of an immersive documentary Italia Terremotata which explores life before, during and after the earthquake. Our approach is based on design-thinking and aims to define an ethical framework for the creation of reflexive and multi-vocal 3D immersive storytelling systems that consider ‘vulnerability’ and ‘empathy’ as central design values of the iterative prototyping and co-creation cycle.

This paper describes the work undertaken as part of the ‘Digital Documentation of Ksar Said’ Project. This project, funded by the British Council, combined education, history, and heritage for the digital preservation of tangible and intangible aspects of heritage associated with the 19^th century Said Palace (Ksar Said) in Tunis. We produced an interactive 3D model of Ksar Said and developed learning resources to build Tunisian students’ critical engagement with their heritage through inquiry learning activities within the 3D model. We used a user-centred approach, based on pre-assessment (i.e., co-creation of contents), mid-term evaluation (i.e., feedback on contents and preliminary design of virtual activities), and post-assessment design (i.e., user trial). Our results demonstrate the potential of this novel approach to virtual learning and inform future co-design, evaluation and implementation choices for improving the generative power of three dimensional virtual replication of heritage sites in the cultural heritage sector.

Archaeology is collaborative, ongoing, and iterative. Our workflows are not unidirectional, but rather we work back and forth between the field, labs, and dissemination. With the advent of digital ...