The event was initiated by Vira Karpinska, moderator of the Docudays UA film club at the Lviv Municipal Library. While working on the advocacy project “Integration of Juvenile Probation Clients into the Sociocultural Life of the Community”, implemented in 2024, she observed that many librarians held certain biases and faced challenges in working with young people. Vira realized that addressing these issues could become a growth point for the community. Therefore, together with Lina Babych, coordinator of film clubs at probation centers and penitentiary institutions within the Network, Vira organized the event “Film Club as a Space for Resocialization: New Directions for Cooperation between Probation Institutions and Libraries.”
Participants of the event doing an exercise after the screening
The event brought together 40 librarians and probation officers from the Lviv region. Participants learned more about activities of film clubs, watched and discussed Niccolò Salvato’s documentary Near Light, studied methodological materials developed within Vira Karpinska’s advocacy project, and planned joint initiatives for their audiences.
“This meeting was an important step toward deeper understanding and partnership – we shared what we have already achieved and demonstrated the opportunities for cooperation between libraries and probation units in the Lviv region. I hope we managed to dispel many stereotypes and inspire participants to launch new initiatives, because our collaboration is crucial for the future of young people who need support in their resocialization. I believe that, after this meeting, even more successful and meaningful projects will come into being,” shared Vira Karpinska.
The meeting proved to be a productive platform for dialogue, where participants not only discussed challenges but also identified ways of working together. The organizers are convinced that, in the near future, communities across the Lviv region will see more initiatives that connect probation services and libraries, particularly through the use of documentary films on human rights.
Lina Babych
“We demonstrated how the film clubs from the DOCU/CLUB Network can bring together institutions whose work, at first glance, might have little in common. I hope that the Lviv region made the first step toward spreading this positive experience of cooperation between libraries and probation services. It is very important to highlight such remarkable examples from the work of our film clubs, as they contribute to building a safer society,” emphasized Lina Babych.
The development of the DOCU/CLUB Network is funded by the Embassy of Sweden in Ukraine, the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) and Fondation de France.
The opinions, conclusions, or recommendations are those of the authors and compilers of this publication and do not necessarily reflect the views of the governments or charitable organizations of these countries. The authors and compilers are solely responsible for the content of this publication.
