Lecture by art therapist Mirosława Skraban-Piechota from the Mental Health Center in Tarnowskie Góra and screening of the film “Suicide Room. Hater”/Affirmation Festival “Live Stronger...?” 2026

The theme of this year's edition of the Affirmation Festival “To Live Stronger...?” Hate is a ubiquitous phenomenon nowadays that almost everyone has to face in everyday life. It affects children and young people the most, which is why it is so important to provide them with tools so that they can defend themselves against it and deal with its consequences.

In the age of social media, it is very easy to hate, because you do not have to say offensive words to the other person directly in the eye, you can hide behind a phone screen and be seemingly anonymous. The hate that appears on the web can therefore be even more dangerous, it is not always known who is behind it and unflattering content spreads quickly, almost everyone has access to it.

If young people who are victims of hate do not find adequate support, they can resort to alcohol and psychoactive drugs, which become for them a form of escape from reality. Injuries often cannot be forgotten, and their consequences have to be dealt with many times throughout life. Loneliness or reduced self-esteem appear, but often there may be a psychological breakdown or addiction to narcotic drugs.

During this year's edition of the Affirmation Festival “LIVE HARDER...?” we offer an exhibition, workshops, lectures and videos that address the topic of hate. The sessions will be preceded by lectures by specialists who will help to understand the issues presented in the film or animation. All this in order to spread knowledge, educate, help understand this difficult phenomenon and realize that kindness costs nothing, and one negative comment more than once sets off a wave of hate that can have serious consequences.

Tomek, a law student at the University of Warsaw, is caught plagiarizing and expelled from the university. However, he decides to hide this fact from the world and continues to receive financial assistance from the Krasucki state - the parents of Gabi, a childhood friend. When the deception comes to light, the compromised boy loses the trust and kindness of his benefactors. Filled with anger and regret, separated from Gabi, with whom he has secretly had a crush on for years, Tomek plans revenge on the Krasucki. The opportunity arises when he gets a job in an advertising agency, and with it access to the latest technologies and secrets of the capital's elite. Under the guise of professional duties, Tomek begins to spy on the Krasucki, who are actively involved in the political campaign of the candidate for president of the capital — Paweł Rudnicki. Soon, the plan of the Internet hater begins to take on more and more real forms, and the path to its implementation leads through the virtual world of a popular computer game.

2020 | Poland | dir. J. Komas | 130 min | thriller | 15+ | EN

Coordinators: Katarzyna Filak, Aleksandra Jasiurkowska Admission to all events is free (registration is required)

Registration for events for schools and kindergartens is valid at 32 285 27 34 w.15 or 515 762,441 (registrations are accepted from 27 October).

Event co-financed by the Tarnowskie Góry Town Hall