BOOK & MOVIE JOURNAL Workshop Registration

WORKSHOP BOOK & MOVIE JOURNAL: THE ART OF DWELLING IN STORIES

This workshop was held on March 14, 2026.
You can purchase the recording here

YOU WILL RECEIVE THE LINK TO VIEW THE RECORDING AND THE HANDOUTS PREPARED BY THE INSTRUCTOR WITHIN 24 HOURS OF YOUR ORDER.

Workshop led by Debora Lambruschini

A journal is not just a simple archive, but the most valuable ally for every reader... and viewer! A blank space that becomes a map of our imagination. It is the fundamental tool for retaining the echo of a story, the power of writing, of a shot, and for observing, over time, how our taste and sensibility evolve through stories.

In this new edition of the workshop, we will explore the infinite potential of the Book & Movie Journal. For the first time, we will combine literary and cinematographic analysis in a single, valuable notebook, learning to create a constant dialogue between the written page and the screen. And why not, our notebook can become the ideal container for all our cultural experiences, whether it's reading a book, watching a movie, or even a play or an exhibition!

Through practical examples and a revamped "toolbox," Debora Lambruschini will guide us in constructing an effective yet deeply personal journal, capable of transforming cultural enjoyment into an active, conscious, and exquisitely analog experience.

DETAILED PROGRAM

1. THE METHOD: BUILDING AN EFFECTIVE JOURNAL

Why keep a journal? It's not just about memory, but a critical method. We will analyze how this tool is indispensable for both the simple enthusiast and the wordsmith professional.
Types and forms: from essential register summaries (for those who love order and speed) to the richness of narrative diaries. We will see how to choose the format best suited to your time and space needs.
The living structure: we will learn how to set up pages to be functional yet welcoming, balancing technical data and personal reflections.

2. THE "TOOLBOX": SEASONAL AND PERSONAL SECTIONS

We will brainstorm specific sections to make the journal a unique object:
Monthly recap and seasonality: how to take stock of your reading and viewing journey, creating narrative balances that mark time.
Analog moments: ideas and inspiration to disconnect from digital and rediscover the pleasure of pen on paper, collage, and slow reflection.
Organizing wish lists and sharing moments: wish lists, Book Club tracking, sections dedicated to specific genres and literary forms.
The index of stories: an organized section that allows you to quickly find a title within the notebook, transforming it into a true consultable archive.
The critical archive: how to integrate notes from articles, reviews, and essays to nourish our literary and cinematographic culture.

3. THE MOVIE JOURNAL: TRACING THE IMAGE

Why is it useful to keep track of films and TV series? We will explore how to "read" a cinematographic work:
From screen to paper: noting critical insights, memorable shots, and quotes.
Connections and visions: creating links between different films, directors, and movements, also managing lists of upcoming releases and "classics to rediscover."

4. THE CURIOUS GAZE: TRACING CULTURAL EXPERIENCE

The journal as a travel companion outside the home: how to note impressions after an art exhibition, a festival - even literary! - or a live event.
The ticket that becomes memory: preserving tickets, brochures, or postcards without cluttering the notebook.
Noting the emotion: how to fix on paper a color palette, a wall quote, or the feeling experienced in front of a work.
Cross-cutting connections: how to link an exhibition to a book we are reading or a film we have just seen (creating that cultural network that makes the journal a living tool).

5. JOURNEYS BETWEEN PAPER AND FILM: THE HAMNET CASE

We will immediately put what we have learned into practice by working on an exceptional case study, where the most refined literature meets auteur cinema:

The novel: analysis of Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell. We will explore the power of her language in telling of grief, motherhood, and the birth of Shakespeare's genius.
The film: the gaze of Chloé Zhao. How does the visual sensitivity of the director (Oscar winner for Nomadland) translate O'Farrell's rarefied and domestic atmospheres?
Journaling Workshop we will complete together the pages dedicated to this "double encounter," learning to structure the critical comparison between the two works in our notebook.

The workshop is organized in collaboration with Debora Lambruschini: literary critic, editor, copywriter, cultural event organizer, content creator, and press officer, Debora teaches writing and literature courses, specializing in English and North American culture.

She co-directs the writing and reading school Officina del racconto,
collaborates with magazines including the websites criticaletteraria.org and osservatoriocattedrale.com, has conceived and coordinates a reading group and a film club, both online, and an in-person reading group. She cares for words, her own and others', in targeted writing and reading projects. And, needless to say, she has a passion for the stationery world and cannot do without a book journal to keep track of readings, interviews, ideas, and research underlying her editorial work.