Commonwealth Club: Traces' Documentary Film Screening and Q&A

Join us for a special screening of the documentary Traces, featuring Ukrainian women survivors of wartime sexual violence and torture resulting from Russia’s invasion of their country. Traces is a feature documentary film directed by Alisa Kovalenko and Marysia Nikitiuk. It follows Ukrainian women who, after surviving conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) and torture during Russia’s war, refuse to remain silent. At its center is Iryna Dovhan, a former captive turned activist and head of SEMA Ukraine, who documents the testimonies of survivors across de-occupied territories. Through her guidance, the film presents a collective portrait of trauma, resilience and hope, showing how survivors transform pain into power. The film highlights survivors who, through mutual support and collective action, reclaim agency, challenge stigma, and insist on justice. Personal experiences shared by women showcase a broader strategy of war: sexual violence used deliberately as a weapon to intimidate, destabilize, assert control over occupied territories, and ultimately to break Ukrainians as a nation. Both women and men, including Ukrainian POWs, have been targeted by the Russian forces, highlighting the systematic nature of these crimes and their long-lasting impact on individuals and communities. The title captures this multilayered impact—from the visible destruction of lives and communities to the invisible marks left on the human psyche: physical, psychological, and social. More than a record of war crimes, the film is a testament to solidarity and agency—survivors reclaim their voices, challenge stigma, and insist on justice. By bearing witness and refusing to remain silent, these women—guided by Iryna—create a powerful movement that illuminates the stakes of the ongoing war and asserts the vital importance of memory, accountability, and social transformation. Following the screening, stay for a Q&A about the issues raised in the film. About the Speakers Alisa Kovalenko is an award-winning Ukrainian documentary filmmaker, based in Kyiv. She studied documentary film directing at the Karpenko-Kary National University in Kyiv and at the Andrzej Wajda School in Warsaw. Her first two feature-length documentaries, Alisa in Warland (IDFA 2015) and Home Games (Sheffield Doc/Fest 2018) were both screened at over 100 festivals, winning multiple awards. Alisa’s third film, We Will Not Fade Away, a teenage adventure documentary set in war-torn Donbas, premiered at the Berlinale 2023, won 20 international awards and was named Best Ukrainian Documentary 2023 by the Ukrainian Film Academy. After Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Alisa joined a volunteer combat unit associated with the Armed Forces of Ukraine and fought on the frontline for months, before returning to filmmaking. From this existential experience she has drawn a personal documentary, My Dear Theo (CPH:DOX 2025). Among the awards the film has received are: Best Human Rights Documentary (Dokufest), Audience Award (Nuremberg International Human Rights Film Festival), and Best Documentary in the Central and Eastern Europe Competition Section (Astra Film Festival). Alisa Kovalenko is also a former captive and survivor of CRSV in captivity in 2014 in the Donbas region controlled by Russian and pro-Russian military forces. In 2019, she became a member of SEMA Ukraine, an NGO of women survivors of conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine since 2014. Since then, she has been actively involved in human rights and advocacy activities related to CRSV in the Russian-Ukrainian war. Her personal experience and human rights activism led her to work on the documentary film Traces, which documents war crimes and amplifies the voices of survivors. Natalia Libet is a producer and a co-founder of the women-led production company 2Brave Productions. Experienced in co-production and finance, she has produced award-winning features, including Kateryna Gorno…