WDP Library hosted a family film festival and discussion
Contact: Bryan Keith Younts
Young Adult and Family Programming Coordinator
West Davidson Public Library
(336)853-4800
Bryan.Younts@davidsoncountync.gov
LEXINGTON — West Davidson Public Library hosted a Summer Family Film Festival made possible by a special grant. Libraries Transforming Communities: Focus on Small and Rural Libraries is an initiative from the American Library Association (ALA) that provided funds and training for equipment and planning of this program. The films chosen were movies based off classic children’s stories with important lessons about kindness.
“We selected ‘Paddington,’ ‘Paddington 2,’ and two different movies based off The Story of Ferdinand,” said Young Adult and Family Programming Coordinator, Bryan Keith Younts. “They are all entertaining movies, but they also contain important lessons about kindness and acceptance.”
West Davidson Public Library staff took these opportunities to lead conversations about those lessons. While folks were a bit hesitant to talk much about the first film, a system to encourage the audience to be more responsive was implemented for the second film and resulted in better responses thereafter.
“Before and after the first movie, we discussed how the plight of children fleeing the Holocaust and the Blitz during World War II is thought to have inspired the original Paddington books. One audience member said the right thing to do for someone in Paddington’s situation, which was similar to those children’s, was to take him in and give him help,” said Younts.
He continued, “During our discussion of the second film we utilized a variation of a technique from the grant training to get more responses in the conversation. By the end of it, we all agreed that when people are kind to others, it encourages them to be kind themselves in turn, and that has been the whole point of this program. We wanted to watch good movies and learn to be kind to each other. Hopefully we did a good job.”
Attendance of the third movie was not quite what was expected, possibly due to it falling during the first week of school in Davidson County. Even so, the festival was considered a success. Those attending received free copies of the books that inspired the films. Additionally, food donations were gathered from patrons and staff for the West Davidson Food Pantry. Also, another festival is planned for the Fall.
If you are interested in giving any feedback or asking any questions about the program, please contact Bryan Keith Younts at 336-853-4800 or Bryan.Younts@davidsoncountync.gov, or visit https://www.facebook.com/westdavidsonpubliclibrarync for more information.
Since 2014, ALA’s Libraries Transforming Communities initiative has re-imagined the role libraries play in supporting communities. Libraries of all types have utilized free dialogue and deliberation training and resources to lead community and campus forums; take part in anti-violence activities; provide a space for residents to come together and discuss challenging topics; and have productive conversations with civic leaders, library trustees and staff.
“Libraries Transforming Communities: Focus on Small and Rural Libraries is an initiative of the American Library Association (ALA) in collaboration with the Association for Rural and Small Libraries (ARSL).”
