Friday, December 14, 2012

New Cineclub provides opportunity to watch foreign-language films


By Megan Hafner
Cardinal Staff

A new movie club at Saint Mary’s University called Cineclub offers students, as well as SMU community members, the opportunity to view films created in either Latin America or Spain. 

This movie watching experience is unique because the movies are played in their country’s official language with English subtitles shown on the screen. Most of the films are in Spanish, but not all since most of Latin America includes Spanish-speaking countries. 

Dr. Kyle Black, SMU professor of Spanish who created Cineclub, said that “foreign films are a great way, especially for students studying Spanish, to hear the language being spoken and see what life can be like in another country 
without traveling there.” 

So far this year, Cineclub has watched films from Chile, Argentina, Spain and Brazil. Dr. Black also said that he “wants students to be able to view cultural films that lead away from the common Hollywood style and let students be able to appreciate the artistic side of the film industry.” 

Some of the films that will be shown next semester include Amador (2010), a Spanish film about a woman who cares for an elderly man and the secrets they share; Paraiso Travel (2008), which is about two young lovers traveling from Columbia to New York to gain a fortune; The Take (2004), a film about ceramic floors factory workers in Argentinian Patagonia; and a many other movies. 

Cineclub meets Thursday nights at 7:00 p.m. in the World Room in SMU’s Hendrickson Building. 

Dr. Black hopes to further the development of Cineclub by showing films every other week. In the future, he said he hopes to show films with an immigration theme.

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