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International Film Festival 2022

The department sponsors an international film festival every February. We encourage students and interested members of the CSRA community to attend.

All films will be screened in their original language with English subtitles. There will also be a brief faculty-led discussion before and after each film. All students receiving ICE Credit are required to stay for these discussions. All films contain adult themes and are intended for a mature audience. All films are either Not Rated (NR) or Rated R.

For more information contact the IFF Director, Dr. Timothy Ashton at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 803-641-3204.

Please remember: Facemasks are required in all campus buildings. No food is permitted in the auditorium, and the use of electronic devices is prohibited.

Admission: Free

Each film is an ICE Event.

In the Aisles

In the Aisles (2018)

Wednesday, February 9

Doors open @ 6:00—Film begins @ 6:30 

Penland 106 

Directed by Thomas Stuber

In den Gängen (In the Aisles) tells the story of the shy and reclusive Christian, who after losing his job takes a new position working for a wholesale market. Bruno, from the Beverage aisle, takes Christian under his wing and quickly becomes a fatherly friend to him. Bruno shows Christian the ropes and patiently teaches him how to operate the fork lift. In the aisles, Christian meets "Sweets"-Marion, and is instantly smitten by her mysterious charm. The coffee machine becomes their regular meeting point and the two start to get to know each other. But Marion is married and Christian's feelings for her seem to remain unrequited, especially when Marion does not return to work one day. Christian slowly becomes a member of the wholesale market family and his days of driving fork lifts and stacking shelves mean much more to him than meets the eye.

Black Girl

Black Girl (1966

Wednesday, February 16

Doors open @ 6:00—Film begins @ 6:30 

Penland 106 

Directed by Ousmane Sembène

La noire de.. (Black Girl) is a 1966 French-Senegalese film written and directed by Ousmane Sembène, starring Mbissine Thérèse Diop. The film centers on Diouana, a young Senegalese woman who moves from Dakar, Senegal, to Antibes, France, to work for a French couple. In France, Diouana hopes to continue her former job as a nanny, and anticipates a new cosmopolitan lifestyle. However, upon her arrival, Diouana experiences harsh treatment from the couple, who force her to work as a servant. She becomes increasingly aware of her constrained and alienated situation and starts to question her life in France. This was the director's first feature-length film. It is often recognized as the first Sub-Saharan African film by an African filmmaker to receive international attention.

South from Granada

South from Granada (2003)

Wednesday, February 23

Doors open @ 6:00—Film begins @ 6:30 

Penland 106 

Directed by Fernando Colomo

Al sur de Granada (South from Granada) is a film based on the memoirs of Gerald Brenan, a member of England's famous Bloomsbury Group. It is the story of Brenan as a demobbed Englishman who immerses himself in the lives and culture of a small Spanish town shortly after WWI. Soon, he becomes the center of the town’s attention as his maid attempts to set him up with her marriageable daughter. Gerald must sort out his feelings and face down the machinations of the town's women, who map a future for him that he doesn't want. He eventually has a love affair with one of Aiken’s very own literary figures, Gamel Woolsey! Throughout his long life, Brenan was an adventurer and traveler who had the enviable ability to absorb and vividly relate his worldly experiences.

RECOMMENDED ON-LINE RESOURCES AND APPS

DICTIONARY   

 

GRAMMAR

  • Royal Grammar School High Wycombe’s (UK) excellent and attractive Languages Onlinesite has a wide range of Hot Potato and Spell master exercises for all levels.
  • You may appreciate the accuracy, humour and comprehensiveness of the well-established Tex’s French Grammar site, from the University of Texas, USA. The site includes mp3 files exemplifying grammatical structures.
  • Didier Accord (USA) has a mine of interactive exercises for beginners through to advanced level.
  • Bescherelle (Fr) has verb tense guides for reference, but also interactive dictations, a few games and some interactive grammar “quizzes”. Good for intermediate and above.
  • Le point du FLE (Fr) is not only a long-established links site by Hélène Weinachter, but also has its own interactive grammar exercises. Good for general advanced grammar revision.
  • RealFrenchPlus.net (UK) is from Chris Dawson at Manchester Metropolitan University. It is the Realfrench site pitched at high school level. There are grammar notes, exercises and games, plus vocabulary sections too.
  • Ortholud (Fr) is aimed at primary French children, but this section has useful grammar revision exercises for intermediate/advanced level learners of FLE.
  • The French About (USA) site by Laura Lawless has lots of explanations with accompanying exercises.
  • There are useful, graded exercises at the ABCFrançais (Fr) site.

LISTENING, READING AND WRITING.

  • Bonjour de France (Fr) has a large number of interactive tasks and lesson ideas, searchable under various headings including grammar, comprehension, worksheets and games.
  • ielanguages.com (Fr) has podcasts with gap fill exercises. All generously offered free by Jennifer, an American expat in France.
  • Text to Speech (USA) is one of several sites which allow students to type in text and hear it back in French. This is a great help if you are preparing for oral presentations or conversations. Make sure your spelling and accents are all correct!
  • The Languages Online (Aus) site has a lot of material, some interactive with good sound, some to be printed off.
  • Français Extra (UK) has various activities including listening tasks with virtual characters.
  • French Games (UK) has simple games such as pelmanism and hangman for beginners and near beginners. A wide range of basic topics is covered.
  • The About (USA) site has good advanced listening resources.
  • PubsTV (Fr) has archived TV commercials from around the world.
  • Europe 1 (Fr) has podcasts for advanced listening.
  • RFI(Fr) has radio extracts in easier French for learners along with interactive exercises.
  • Euronews has TV news clips with transcripts (perhaps more for advanced learners but still great exposure to the target language).
  • France 24 has archived video clips from the news.
  • France 2 has its own TV news clips to watch and listen to.
  • La Réclame has French adverts along with others from around the world.
  • The GABFLE (Fr) blog has good listening material.
  • Frenchtastic (USA) has a collection of Hot Potato exercises covering simple vocabulary themes. There are also downloadable lessons – (it’s free, but you need a Word Press logon).
  • French Podcast has archived listening material and lessons for the MP3 generation.
  • DailyFrenchPod (UK) has a selection of podcasts, spoken at a slow pace. (A subscription is needed to access the full site).
  • 20 Minutes Video Portal (Ch) has a searchable archive of news reports from Switzerland.
  • PodcastFrancaisFacile has podcast lessons.
  • TF1(Fr), a major French TV company, has archived news clips you can stream, as well as live news, weather forecasts and so on. There is a good search facility.
  • Carmen Vera Pérez (Sp) has produced a fabulous range of hotpot activities for various levels. Great practice site!

RECOMMENDED IPHONE AND IPAD APPS

 

  • With the lite version of iTooch bases du français you get to trial 12 chapters of the full program (78 chapters). The 5000+ activities are organized into grammar, conjugation, spelling and vocabulary with explanations and inbuilt support. The program is written entirely in French.
  • With the app Learn French with the news, two French media outlets, RFI and TV5 Monde, offer audio and video content on two levels: Beginner: Bilingual audio detective series, completed with a quiz. Advanced: Three blocks of audio sound and video accompanied by scripts and listening exercises. Thanks to a network called Open Feint and Facebook connections, the application also allows you to communicate and exchange ideas with other users.
  • Téléloisirs – watch various French TV channels and programs.
  • France24 – watch both French and International news live.
  • With the La conjugaison app you can check the conjugation of over 9,000 French verbs in all tenses and moods.
  • Duolingo - You have fun while you learn, leveling up and competing with friends. You have the opportunity to translate real-world texts in the language you are learning.
  • French gender is a useful tool for any beginner student of the French language, and a helpful one for intermediate study. Easy to use, with clear instructions, its intuitive interface will have you mastering the gender of nouns in no time.
  • Use the French word of the day app to improve your French vocabulary (verbs, nouns, adjectives, adverbs).
  •  Musée du Louvre - Twice as many artworks for your enjoyment, with a selection of masterpieces from the museum
  • 100 Fromages de France  - the title says it all!

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