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KALAMAZOO, Mich.—A new name, a new location and a broader array of foreign films are on tap for the first Kalamazoo World Languages Film Festival on successive weekends in March at É«É«À² Michigan University.

Formerly the Francophone Film Festival, the annual event will feature a wider range of films from a longer list of countries, including China, Germany, Japan, France, Spain, Canada and Arabic nations. The festival unfolds Friday through Sunday, March 20-22 and March 27-29 in 1025 Brown Hall.

About the film festival

The festival is dedicated to the presentation of original creative cinema from the around the world. Its expanded format is intended to provide the University and greater Kalamazoo communities, as well as educators from across Michigan and surrounding states, an opportunity to experience a broader and more diverse view of world cinema. The Francophone Film Festival was restricted to films from French-speaking countries.

"I'm excited because instead of one language being targeted, we will present most of the languages of the É«É«À² Department of World Languages and Literatures," says festival coordinator Marjorie Zippert. "Students and the community will have access to more languages and cultures. These are films you are not going to see anywhere else. The screen will be like a window to the world."

In all, 13 feature films will be screened. All of the films have English subtitles. The festival also will include five short films ranging in length from eight to 14 minutes. Ticket prices are $2 for students and $5 for general admission.

Director to present film

One of the feature-length films will be presented by its director. Québec, Canada, filmmaker Martin Laroche will present his critically acclaimed creation "Fair Sex" at 7:30 p.m. Friday, March 20.

Laroche studied film and script development at the Université du Québec à Montréal. Driven by his own resourcefulness and a desire to extend his knowledge, he wrote, directed and produced two independent feature films: "La logique du remords" (2007) with a budget of $3,500, and "Modernaire" (2009) with a budget of $6,000. These two films have been screened at numerous international festivals. Laroche's first subsidized film, "Les manèges humains" ("Fair Sex") uses originality and sensitivity to deal with the still taboo subject of female genital mutilation and has been praised in Variety and other publications.

The festival is sponsored by the Department of World Languages and Literatures, the É«É«À² Haenicke Institute for Global Education, the government of Québec, the É«É«À² University Cultural Events Committee, Alliance Française de Kalamazoo, and Alliance Française de Chicago.

For screen times and more information, visit wmich.edu/worldfilmfestival.

For more news, arts and events, visit wmich.edu/news.