THOUSAND OAKS, CA - California Lutheran University will hold its fifth annual French film festival, a series of free screenings, from Sept. 7 through 30.
The Tournées Festival: French Films on the CLU Campus will feature five movies, which will all start at 7:15 p.m. in Preus-Brandt Forum. They explore the themes of integrity, compassion and diversity. All films are subtitled in English.
“L’Heure d’été (Summer Hours)” - Wednesday, Sept. 7
In this 2009 family drama written and directed by Olivier Assayas and starring Juliette Binoche, two brothers and a sister witness the disappearance of their childhood memories when they must relinquish the family belongings to ensure their deceased mother’s succession.
“Entre les Murs (The Class)” - Friday, Sept. 9
Winner of the 2008 Palme d’Or at Cannes and directed by Laurent Cantet, the film is based on the best-selling book by teacher François Bégaudeau, who plays himself. As he attempts to teach the French language to his multi-ethnic students, Bégaudeau offers the opportunity and the threat of modern cultural assimilation.
“Welcome” - Friday, Sept. 16
A study of a budding friendship and a look at the perils illegal immigrants face, Philippe Lioret’s 2009 film centers on Bilal, a young Iraqi Kurd who is stuck in Calais, and Simon, a recently divorced swimming teacher. Desperate to join his girlfriend in London, Bilal vows to swim across the English Channel if he must.
“Roman de Gare (Crossed Tracks)” - Friday, Sept. 23
In this 2007 film directed by Claude Lelouch, a successful crime novelist is in search of inspiration. A notorious serial killer escapes from prison. A professor disappears. A hairdresser finds herself abandoned on the side of a road by her fiancé, and a passer-by offers to help her. Is there anything to link these apparently unconnected events?
“Séraphine” - Friday, Sept. 30
Winner of seven César Awards, Yolande Moreau is unforgettable as a real-life naïve artist in the title role of Martin Provost’s 2008 film. Moreau plays the painter as no one’s fool and, in several scenes marked by silence, conveys Séraphine’s mental state as utterly inscrutable.
Presented by the French program in CLU’s Department of Languages and Cultures, the free festival is made possible with the support of the French Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, the Centre National de la Cinématographie, the Florence Gould Foundation, the Grand Marnier Foundation and highbrow entertainment.
Preus-Brandt Forum is located south of Olsen Road between Mountclef Boulevard and Campus Drive. For more information, contact Karen Renick of the French Department at renick@callutheran.edu or go to http://www.callutheran.edu.
