We begin introducing the jury of the 23rd International Human Rights Documentary Film Festival Docudays UA — starting with the line-up for the special “RIGHTS NOW!” programme.
This award recognizes creative documentary films that explore and analyze the contemporary world and make a significant contribution to discussions on human dignity, freedom, and equality. Up to ten films from across the festival’s programmes traditionally compete for it. This year, the winners will be selected by Yevhen Hlibovytsky, Lesia Lytvynova, and Peter Pomerantsev.
“The jury for the RIGHTS NOW! special award this year brings together individuals who engage with different dimensions of contemporary reality — from strategic thinking about societal transformations to firsthand experience of war, humanitarian work, and the study of information influence,” said Anastasiya Bahalika, Director of the Human Rights Department at Docudays NGO. “For us, it was important that the films be evaluated by professionals who deal daily with questions of responsibility, solidarity, truth, and human dignity not only in theory but also in practice. This diversity of experience allows for a broader perspective on the stories on screen — as part of a wider conversation about how society navigates complex processes, searches for reference points, and strives to preserve its humanity in times of profound instability.”
Co-founder and CEO of the Frontier Institute that conceptualizes Ukraine’s strategic challenges; member of the Supervisory Board of Ukraine’s Public Broadcasting Company “Suspilne,” and lecturer at the Ukrainian Catholic University. He began his career in journalism, working for the publications “Post-Postup” and “Kievskie Vedomosti,” as well as at Promin radio and the television channels “1+1” and “First National” (“Pershyi Natsionalnyi”). He also co-developed the Channel 5 concept and co-founded Hromadske TV.
A former OSCE expert on media development in Central Asia and the Caucasus, Hlibovytskyi founded the analytical company pro.mova in 2007, which studies values and long-term trends, and is currently involved in shaping strategic programs for cities and the state. In 2024, he was included in NV magazine’s list of the 30 most influential opinion leaders in Ukraine.
A Ukrainian volunteer, civil activist, veteran of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and a film and television director.
Before 2014, she directed documentary projects for the TV channels STB and Inter. With the beginning of the Russian-Ukrainian war, she left her television career. Lytvynova focused on her volunteer work, becoming a co-founder and head of the charitable foundation “Svoi”, which provides support to people affected by Russian aggression. From the first days of the full-scale invasion, Lesia voluntarily joined the Armed Forces of Ukraine and served in an engineering-sapper platoon of the 207th Battalion of the 241st Territorial Defense Brigade. After being wounded near Bakhmut in September 2023, she was demobilized and returned to work at the foundation.
A British writer and journalist of Ukrainian origin, one of the leading researchers of contemporary propaganda, disinformation, and information warfare. A senior fellow at the SNF Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University and a co-director of the Arena programme, which studies disinformation and digital polarization. The author of the internationally acclaimed books Nothing Is True and Everything Is Possible and This Is Not Propaganda, he published his latest work, How to Win an Information War: The Propagandist Who Outwitted Hitler, in 2024. A member of the Royal Society of Literature, the UK’s oldest and one of its most prestigious literary associations. Pomerantsev is also a co-founder of the international project The Reckoning Project: Ukraine Testifies, which documents war crimes and addresses issues of accountability and justice. A former documentary filmmaker, he now creates documentary projects and podcasts for BBC Radio 4 and The Atlantic.
