The award-winning “Le Havre” will be screened Feb. 19 at 6 p.m. in the Agnes Doody Auditorium at Swan Hall.
The movie is a heartwarming tale about an African boy who arrives by cargo ship in the French port city of Le Havre and befriends an aging shoe shiner who welcomes him into his home. Drama unfolds as the man’s wife is hospitalized and he struggles to cope with her decline.
The second film, “Bedwin Hacker,” directed by Nadia El Fani, will be shown Feb. 27 at 5 p.m. in Hardge Forum at the Multi-Cultural Center.
In this film, a woman from a Tunisian village hacks into airwaves in North Africa and France to publicize political messages, prompting action from French intelligence officers. The film strives to challenge stereotypes about Arab women and show the modernity and beauty of Tunisia.
“The screening of “Bedwin Hacker” will kick off URI’s International Women’s Day events,” said Leslie Kealhofer-Kemp, professor of French. “It is an excellent opportunity to celebrate the work of innovative women filmmakers like Nadia El Fani.”
Both films are free and open to the public and are subtitled in English. Refreshments and discussion will follow.
Sponsors are: the Film/Media Program at the Harrington School of Communication & Media; the College of Arts and Sciences Dean’s Office; the Department of Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures; and Gender and Women’s Studies.
For more information, please contact Kealhofer-Kemp, professor of French, at lkealhofer@uri.edu.
This news release was written by Sylvia Bogusz, who is studying Communication Studies and Italian at URI and interning in the University’s Department of Marketing and Communications.