Cinema Forum: Riding “The Wave”

Could it happen to us? That was the question hanging in the air on 23 April 2026, when young people gathered in “Vaizdų palėpė” at the Adomas Mickevičius Library in Vilnius for our Cinema Forum screening of “The Wave”.

The film follows a high school teacher who, faced with students convinced that dictatorship could never return, launches a classroom experiment. What starts as a lesson quickly grows into a movement with its own name, rules, salute, and a powerful sense of belonging, until it spirals out of control.

After the screening, we turned the lights back on and the conversation began. We talked about how strongly a group can shape our behaviour, and why the feeling of unity and belonging can be so attractive, especially for those who feel unseen. We discussed how easy it is to go along with the crowd, how quickly “us” can turn against “them”, and how hard it can be to stand up and say no when everyone around you says yes. Most importantly, we asked ourselves how we can recognise manipulation early, keep thinking critically, and make our own choices, even under pressure.

The film is based on a real experiment from 1967, which made the discussion feel even more real. Thank you to everyone who came, watched, and shared their thoughts so openly!

This event was part of “Future Shapers”, an Erasmus+ Youth Participation project.