With a series of five successful screenings across the cities of Tbilisi, Kutaisi and Kvareli, the project “Let’s Talk About Democracy: DemDoc for Youth” in collaboration with the Media Development Foundation (MDF) in Georgia has been leading to constructive debates on the state of democracy in the country. The project offers students from schools and universities the chance to get important perspectives on the political struggles faced by populations in other countries.

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Film Selection

MDF, in accordance with their mission of promoting fundamental human rights and encouraging critical thinking, selected three films relating to democracy within THE WHY extensive catalogue of critically acclaimed and fact-based documentaries. The first of the films used in the screenings, Mai Khoi and the Dissidents, follows the eponymous protagonist's turn to activism, under the threat of retaliation by the authoritarian Vietnamese regime. Putin’s Kiss, the second film chosen, narrates the effects of the Russian’s propaganda apparatus on the youth of the country, while For God Tsar and the Fatherland displays an extreme demonstration of patriotism in a Russian village.

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Important Discussions

After each film, the participants had the opportunity to discuss their impressions and inscribe the topic of the documentary within a Georgian context. Some of the attendees could for instance relate to the need of leaving the country for political reasons, while continuing to fight for the rights of the people, as shown in the film Mai Khoi and the Dissidents.

However, the most intense reactions were to be heard when the films were involving neighbouring country Russia. After watching the film Putin’s Kiss, one participant highlighted the importance of resistance against totalitarian systems: “Uprooting civic activism is not acceptable. This is what Russia tries to do. Society must be more active, struggle always makes sense”. This became the anchor point to a discussion about the differences and similarities between the two former soviet countries, and the potential threat of Russia’s negative influence on the youth of Georgia.

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‍Relevant Themes

On this topic, the film For God Tsar and the Fatherland made a lasting impression on the attendees. This was probably reinforced by the presence of its director Nino Kirtadze, who mentioned the particularly challenging conditions she had to face while making the documentary in Russia some fifteen years ago. Once again, the students could understand the importance of such narratives in today’s context, with a young man expressing how “the film was so relevant to today’s situation, [he] thought that it was made yesterday”.

Another attendee emphasized how essential it is for the youth to get this knowledge on how democracy plays out in different contexts, in order to learn and eventually gain greater freedom. As evidence of the sensitivity of the topic in a country still divided on the question, a group of pro-Russian participants manifested their disagreement, asserting that “democracy was not for every country”. This comment turned into an opportunity for the other attendees to explain why such an understanding of democracy could be problematic, resulting in a positive and constructive debate on the importance of protecting democratic values.  

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Positive Outcome

These conversations were all crucial in a country like Georgia that is currently facing numerous challenges pertaining to democracy, especially when it comes to the freedom of the media and a constant information war with Russian propaganda. The focus of the debates considered the participant’s critical thinking on these notions, and their individual roles in building democracy. The project was very well received by all the attendees, who all expressed a desire to continue these types of screenings and discussions on a wider scale.

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