IFS_091807

	APPLY REQUEST INFORMATION CONTACT US DIRECTORY HOME SEARCH

Home > News > Current News > Press Release

International Film Series continues 12th year of art-house cinema in Ripon

Sept. 18, 2007

RIPON, Wis. – There comes a moment during the Oscars when the nominees for Best Foreign Language Film are announced, during which time many people rush for the bathroom or replenish the chip bowl. Sometimes we’re just not interested, but in Central Wisconsin, it’s more a matter of access; there’s simply no “art house” where film buffs can see limited-release foreign movies on a big screen. Right?

Wrong. The Ripon College International Film Series (IFS), halfway through its 12th year, screens 14 foreign films each semester, each of them free and open to the public. Because the series is associated with a class, in this case “Survey of World Cinema,” the films are classified as an educational service to the community.

Horror buff? Bong Joon's film The Host (South Korea, 2006) is one of the best-reviewed monster movies of all time and it's here Nov. 11. A taut human drama more your style? German director Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck's The Lives of Others took home the Academy Award for Best Foreign Film last year and already hit Ripon's big screen.

“We’re very proud of this program,” says Marty Farrell, professor of Politics and Government, and coordinator of the Global Studies program. “You don’t find many small towns with such access to foreign cinema.”

Dean Katahira, a Chemistry professor, helped get the idea off the ground in 1993 at the suggestion of a student. Since then, more films have been added as well as a Summer Film Series. If you count the summer series, more than 325 films have been shown since the series began.

No concessions are available during screenings, but attendees are welcome to bring their own soda, candy, etc. “as long as they clean up after themselves,” Farrell says. Alcohol is prohibited, as are electronic devices such as cell phones, cameras, laptops or PDAs. Screenings take place at 7 p.m. on Sundays in the Bear Auditorium of Farr Hall. For more information, visit www.ripon.edu/academics/globalstudies/ifs.html. The schedule for the remainder of this semester follows.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

September 23: Moolaadé (Senegal/Burkino Faso, et al., 2004, Ousmane Sambene; 124 min., Bambara and French with English subtitles, unrated.) The father of African filmmakers directly confronts the custom of female genital mutilation. As the women of a remote village rebel against this traditional practice, they ignite a fierce struggle between opposing forces in contemporary Africa.

September 30: Children of Men (Japan/UK/USA, 2006, Alfonso Cuaron; 109 min., Serbo-Croatian, German, Italian, Romanian, English and Spanish with English subtitles; R). In 2027, in a chaotic world in which humans can no longer procreate, a former activist agrees to help transport a miraculously pregnant woman to a sanctuary at sea, where her child's birth may help scientists save the future of humankind.

October 7: Volver (Spain, 2006, Pedro Almodóvar; 121 min., Spanish with English subtitles, R). After her death, a mother returns to her hometown in order to deal with unfinished business, including caring for an aging aunt. When the aunt dies, the situation changes and the past returns (volver) in a twist of mystery and suspense.

October 21: Red Road (UK/Denmark, 2006, Andrea Arnold; 113 min., English, unrated). Jackie works as a security officer who monitors surveillance cameras. One day a man appears on her monitor, a man she thought she would never see again, a man she never wanted to see again. Now she has no choice: she is compelled to confront him.

October 28: Still Life [Sanxia Haoren] (China/Hongkong, 2006, Jia Zhangke; 108 min., Mandarin with English subtitles, unrated). Two couples are reunited against the backdrop of the massive Three Gorges Dam, which has submerged their former hometown. Progress requires new beginnings, for relationships as well as for cities.

November 4: Babel (France/USA/Mexico, 2006, Alejandro González Iñárritu; 143 min., English, Arabic, French, Spanish, Japanese, Japanese Sign Language, and Berber with English subtitles, R). Tragedy strikes a couple vacationing in Morocco, touching off 4 interlocking stories all connected by a single object. They converge at the end to reveal the complex and tragic story of the lives of humanity around the world.

November 11: The Host [Gwoemul] (South Korea, 2006, Bong Joon – ho; 119 min., Korean and English with English subtitles, R). A monster suddenly appears from the depths of the Han River and carries off a girl. Her family agonizes over their loss, but when they find out she is still alive, they resolve to save her.

November 18: The Aura (Argentina/France/Spain, 2005, Fabián Bielinsky; 134 min., Spanish with English subtitles, unrated). A quiet, cynical taxidermist believes he is capable of committing the perfect crime. After a hunting trip away from his home, an accident gives him the chance he has been waiting for in this, the final film of this celebrated director.

November 25: The Wind That Shakes the Barley (Ireland/UK/Germany/
Italy/Spain/France, 2006, Ken Loach; 127 min., English and Irish Gaelic with English subtitles, unrated). In 1920, two brothers fight side by side to oust the British from Ireland. When one faction of the freedom – fighters accepts a treaty that is regarded as a sellout by the others, a civil war ensues, pitting Irishmen against Irishmen, brothers against brothers.

December 2: Catch a Fire (France/UK/South Africa/USA, 2006, Phillip Noyce; 101 min., English, Afrikaans and Zulu with English subtitles, PG – 13). In the country's turbulent and divided times in the 1980s, Patrick Chamusso is an oil refinery foreman and soccer coach who is apolitical until he and his wife Precious are jailed. Patrick is stunned into action against the country's oppressive apartheid system, even as police Colonel Nic Vos further insinuates himself into the Chamussos' lives.

About Ripon College
Ripon College, founded in 1851, prepares students of diverse interests for lives of productive, socially responsible citizenship. Ripon’s liberal arts curriculum and residential campus create an intimate learning community in which students experience a richly personalized education. Ripon has consistently been recognized as a “best value” and “Best 366 College” by The Princeton Review, a “Best Buy in College Education” by Barron’s, a “Best Liberal-Arts College” by Washington Monthly, and is listed among the 160 best schools in the nation by Colleges of Distinction.