Annual Global Flicks film festival kicks off Feb. 1 at College of DuPage
College of DuPage will host its annual Global Flicks series featuring six award-winning international films in their original languages with English captions. The films will be shown at 1:30 and 7:30 p.m. Wednesdays, Feb. 1 to March 8.
The series is co-sponsored by COD's Field Studies/Study Abroad/Global Education department and McAninch Art Center. All screenings take place in the MAC's Belushi Performance Hall on the Glen Ellyn campus, 425 Fawell Blvd., unless otherwise noted. Moderated discussions led by COD faculty will follow each screening.
• "The Duke" (Great Britain) on Feb. 1
Directed by Roger Mitchell
Based on the amazing true story of the theft of Goya's painting "Duke of Wellington" from The National Gallery in 1961, the film follows 60-year-old art thief Kempton Bunton sending ransom notes saying that he will return the painting if the government invests more in care for the elderly. An uplifting true story about a good man who set out to change the world and save his marriage. (95 minutes)
• "Parallel Mothers" (Spain) on Feb. 8
Directed by Pedro Almodóvar
Two women meet at a hospital as they are giving birth - both single and pregnant by accident. Janis is middle-aged with no regrets, Ana an adolescent scared and traumatized. They exchange few words but create a sincere connection as they walk the hospital corridor. Janis and Ana re-convene as their lives become tangled with different experiences of motherhood and loss. (120 minutes)
• "Servant of the People" (Ukraine) on Feb. 15
Directed by Aleksey Kiryuschenko
Volodymyr Zelenskyy stars as a history teacher whose rant about the shameful state of Ukrainian politics goes viral, resulting in his sudden rise to fame and an upset victory in the presidential election. Zelenskyy is dragged through the rigmarole of being a world leader but fundamentally is a good person. This TV sitcom was created and produced by Zelenskyy before he took office as President of Ukraine. (100 minutes)
• "One Child Nation" (China) on Feb. 22 at Playhouse Theatre
Directed by Nanfu Wang and Jialing Zhang
After becoming a mother, a filmmaker uncovers the untold history of China's one-child policy that was in effect from 1979 to 2015 and the social experiment's devastating impacts upon generations of parents and children. Director Nanfu Wang confronts China's history as well as her own. (83 minutes)
• "Shakuntala Devi" (India) on March 1 at Playhouse Theatre
Directed by Anu Menon
Shakuntala Devi is best known for her ability to perform lengthy calculations swiftly in her head in a matter of seconds. Told from the perspective of her daughter, Devi was not formally educated and didn't excel in cognitive tests, but was a mathematical prodigy and author. A journey to become ‘The Human Computer,' this film shares the struggles and aspirations of Shakuntala Devi. (127 minutes)
• "Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom" (Bhutan) on March 8
Directed by Pawo Choyning Dorji
Ugyen, a young teacher in modern Bhutan, shirks his duties while planning to go to Australia to become a singer. His superiors send him to the most remote school in the world, a glacial Himalayan village called Lunana, to complete his service. He finds himself exiled with no electricity, no textbooks, not even a blackboard. Though poor, the villagers extend a warm welcome but he faces the daunting task of teaching without supplies. He wants to quit and go home, but begins to learn of the hardship in the lives of the beautiful children he teaches, and is transformed through the amazing spiritual strength of the villagers. (110 minutes)
Learn more about Global Flicks at www.atthemac.org/global-flicks/.