School of Languages and Cultures presents French Film Festival
Purdue University’s French Department and the School of Languages and Cultures invite students, faculty and the Greater Lafayette community to a French Film Festival, in partnership with Villa Albertine and the French Embassy in the United States.
Three films will be screened in fall 2026, and three more in spring 2027.
French and Francophone food will be served. All films start at 6:30 p.m. (doors open at 6 p.m.) in Stanley Coulter Hall, Room 239.
This fall’s lineup includes:
Arco
Tuesday, Oct. 27, at 6:30 p.m. | Stanley Coulter Hall, Room 239
Presented by Emma BenHadj, lecturer of French
Directed by Ugo Bienvenu, Arco (France, 2025, 82 min.) follows a young boy from the future who time travels and accidentally lands in 2075, where natural disasters are forcing people to live in protective bubbles. There he meets Iris and her robot caretaker, who help him find his way home.
Nominated for an Oscar in 2026, Arco is a commentary on climate change and the importance of raising children with awareness, as they hold the future of the planet in their hands.
That Summer in Paris (Le Rendez-vous de l’été)
Tuesday, Nov. 10, at 6:30 p.m. | Stanley Coulter Hall, Room 239
Presented by Jessica Sturm, chair of the French Department
In That Summer in Paris (Valentine Cadic, 2025, 77 min.), a young woman reeling from a breakup tries to reconnect with her family while attending the Olympic Games in Paris, where nothing goes as planned despite her best intentions.
Set against the backdrop of the Paris Summer Games, the film evokes a sense of belonging and a yearning for something that never really existed in the first place.
Breathless (À bout de souffle)
Tuesday, Dec. 1, at 6:30 p.m. | Stanley Coulter Hall, Room 239
Presented by Emma BenHadj, lecturer of French
Directed by renowned filmmaker Jean-Luc Godard, Breathless (France, 1960, 90 min.) follows a petty thug on the run from the police and hiding out in Paris, where his American girlfriend is torn between supporting him and focusing on her career in journalism.
A staple of the French New Wave, Breathless challenges the codes of traditional gangster films with handheld cameras, erratic editing and incongruous dialogue.