Center of Jewish Studies

Torre de Moncorvo is a municipality in the district of Bragança, north of Portugal. This town, which dates back to the 13th century, holds in its streets the history and heritage of its past Jewish community, commonly known as Marranos. The building that once was a Jewish place of worship in the Middle Ages now houses the Center of Jewish Studies of Maria Assunção Carqueja Rodrigues and Adriano Vasco Rodrigues.
The Center of Jewish Studies aims to teach visitors the history and culture of the local Jewish community, both before and after they were forced to convert to Christianity. To bring history to life in an immersive and compelling experience, Unloop developed several interactive installations within the Center.

A video projection, mapped to walled tridimensional pyramids, tell the story of Judeus Marranos through visual language. With the Star of David as a leitmotif, this story starts at the genesis of Judaism, represented by the 12 Tribes of Israel, the menorah and the Tablet of Stone. It follows the arrival and establishment of Jews in Moncorvo, where they took roots, and subsequent persecution and forced conversion by the Inquisition. The Jewish iconography morphs constantly, even becoming barely recognizable at times, to simbolize how this Jewish community had to hide their identity and practice their religion in secret in order to survive.
At last, the Star of David returns, clearly visible but represented in varied aesthetics, to represent today's freedom of religion and Torre de Moncorvo, and the town's pride of its Jewish heritage.

STORYBOARD AND KEY VISUALS FOR VIDEO MAPPING

VIDEO MAPPING INSTALLATION PROCESS

All the interactive experiences were designed to humanize victims of persecution and inspire empathy in the participants. Rather than just display information to be passively absorbed by the visitors, these installations invite them to perform an action to uncover its secrets: peeping or eavesdropping through the "windows to the past" to meet an undercover Jewish family, grabbing everyday objects of Jewish tradition, seating down and listening to Jewish rumors, among other activities. We target simultaneously the senses of sight, hearing and touch, which helps visitors to process the story being told much faster and in a more visceral way.

A plethora of ancient records pertaining this Jewish community, such as identification documents, were scanned and can be consulted on the digital mural, bringing to light the faces of this little-known chapter of Portuguese history. By preserving and displaying the identities of past Marranos Jews, we save them from being erased again from the collective memory.

Not only we can learn more about the Judeus Marranos at the Center of Jewish Studies, but also in the streets of Torre de Moncorvo. We developed a companion app which guides visitors through the Jewish route: this interactive map shows points of interest and a QR code scanner to unlock information and audio guides.
The user can switch between today's map or the town's map from the Middle Ages, making it easier to visualize the everyday lives of the historical Jewish community.

MECHANICS:
1. Get ready for unexpected discoveries!
2. Explore the small city in the north of Portugal,
3. Travel through the time,
4. And unveil the hidden history of the Torre de Moncorvo!

MONCORVO JUDAICO APP is available for both Android and iOS

DIRECTION – Helder da Rocha Pereira
CREATIVE DIRECTION – Rafael Silva
3D PRODUCTION & MOTION DESIGN – Rafael Silva, Alexandre Carvalho, Nazariy Voloshchuck, Marta Amorim
DESIGN – Rafael Silva, Arina Zhumasheva
DEVELOPMENT – Maurício Ferreira
INSTALLATION & SUPPORT – Fernando Madaleno