É«É«À²

KALAMAZOO, Mich.—Ten feature films from around the globe will be screened on successive weekends this month as part of the second annual Kalamazoo World Languages Film Festival.

Formerly the Francophone Film Festival, the annual cinematic extravaganza bringing together disparate corners of the world takes place Friday through Sunday, March 18-20 and March 25-27 at the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema. Ticket prices range from $4 for students to $8 for general admission.

the world's original cinema

The festival is dedicated to the presentation of the world's original creative cinema. Its format was expanded last year and 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.

"We are excited to announce that even more languages will be represented this year," says Marjorie Zippert, festival coordinator. Languages to be represented include Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Spanish, Russian and even Latin. Films will come from Egypt, Tunisia, China, Québec, Congo, Germany, Italy, Japan, Argentina and Russia.

director to present film

A high point of the festival will be the presentation of the 2014 French-language film "Félix and Meira" and an appearance by its award-winning director, Maxime Giroux of Montreal. The film won Best Canadian Feature Film honors at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival and was selected as the Canadian entry for Best Foreign Language Film at the 88th Academy Awards.

It tells the story of Meira, a young wife and Hassidic Jew, who is not allowed to listen to secular music. Her life changes when she meets the free-spirited Félix, a gentile in her neighborhood. Giroux will present his film at 6 p.m. Friday, March 18. It also will be shown at 4 p.m. Friday, March 25.

Other film highlights include the crime thriller "Victoria" in German and English. It tells the story of Victoria, a young woman from Madrid, who meets four local Berliners outside a nightclub, who promise to show her a good time. But these lads have gotten themselves into hot water and owe someone a dangerous favor that must be repaid that evening. "Victoria" will be shown at 5:30 p.m. Sunday, March 20.

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.

Films will start promptly at the time listed and will not be preceded by movie trailers or ads.

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