Break out your berets–French art house cinema is returning to campus of Cape Fear Community College this weekend.
The college presents the Tournées French Film Festival, a collection of seven films, tonight through Saturday in the Union Station auditorium, 411 N. Front St. All films are free and open to the public.
This is the second consecutive year CFCC has been able to stage the screenings, courtesy of funding from FACE (French American Cultural Exchange) Foundation, a college spokeswoman said. This year, the CFCC Foundation has also provided some financial backing to show one of the seven films.
In partnership with the Cultural Services of the French Embassy, FACE aims to bring French films to more than 450 colleges and universities–and approximately 500,000 people–nationwide through nearly $200,000 in Tournées Film Festival grants.
As with last year, CFCC was one of two community college in the country selected for the grant. Of the 50 recipients for the 2016 festival, six are in North Carolina, according to FACE’s website. In addition to CFCC, UNC-Chapel Hill, N.C. State University, UNC-Charlotte, UNC-Greensboro and Guilford College in Greensboro received money for Tournées.
“We are thrilled to bring to Wilmington some of France’s most critically acclaimed feature films as examples of the rich cinematographic tradition in France,” CFCC French instructor Caroline Hudson said.
This year’s offerings include documentaries–“Because I was a Painter,” about art made in Nazi war camps and Werner Herzog’s 3D visual stunner, “The Cave of Forgotten Dreams”–as well as coming-of-age drama “Girlhood” and “Mood Indigo,” a whimsical love story from the mind of Michel Gondry, the creative force behind Academy Award-winning “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.”
The Tournées Film Festival schedule is as follows:
- Thursday, 2 p.m. –“The Cave of Forgotten Dreams” (G)
- Thursday, 6 p.m. –“Because I was a Painter” (unrated)
- Friday, 2 p.m. –“Daybreak” (unrated; contains some violence)
- Friday, 6 p.m. –“Girlhood” (unrated)
- Saturday, 2 p.m. –“Augustine” (unrated; contains some violence and adult content)
- Saturday, 5 p.m. –“Mood Indigo” (unrated)
- Saturday, 8 p.m. –“The Connection” (R)
All films are in French with English subtitles. Click here for more information.
Hilary Snow is a reporter at Port City Daily. Reach her at hilary.s@portcitydaily.com.
