French culture will once again fill the screen this month in Moscow.  

WSU and the University of Idaho will host their fifth annual Palouse French Film Festival.

A film will be shown at the Kenworthy Performing Arts Centre in downtown Moscow every Tuesday in October. Movies all start at 7 p.m. and are free to students and $4 for the public. Passes for the entire festival are available for $15.

“The most exciting thing is just how much my students and also people that I know in the community look forward to each year’s festival,” said Sarah Nelson, associate professor of French in the modern languages and cultures department at the University of Idaho, and one of the creators of the program.

The films to be shown are as follows:

“Intouchables” (“The Intouchables”) (2011) on October 7 (with an opening reception at 6 p.m.)

“Intouchables” follows the story of a quadriplegic millionaire who hires an unlikely candidate as his personal aide.

“Renoir” (“Renoir”) (2012) on October 14

In “Renoir,” the son of impressionist painter Pierre-Auguste, Jean Renoir returns home after being wounded in WWI.

“J’ai tué ma mère” (“I Killed My Mother”) (2009) on October 21

The story of an unstable relationship between a teenager and his mother unfolds as he must navigate through adolescence.

“Elle s’en va” (“On My Way”) (2013) on October 28 (with a closing reception at 6:30 p.m.)

Former beauty queen, Bettie, is left alone in her early sixties and must deal with financial problems. She takes off on a road trip and along the way finds an old friend, estranged family members, and maybe even love.

More information about each film can be found at kenworthy.org/calendar/2014-10/

“The Palouse French Film Festival brings another form of not just entertainment but education,” said Christine Gilmore, executive director of the Kenworthy Performing Arts Centre.

Nelson said she also loves seeing students make connections to the films in class and see how different things relate to French culture.

Although she said she loves all of the films in this year’s lineup, she is most excited for the final one, which she said offers a good view of real life in France.

“It’s nicely told,” she said. She originally saw the movie on a flight overseas.

The first film will follow an opening reception, beginning at 6 p.m. and the final film will follow a closing reception for the festival, which begins at 6:30 p.m.

Both receptions will have French teas, breads, and wine for those 21 and older. A faculty member from either of the universities will introduce each film in English.

“It’s trying to show people here how French people live,” said Sabine Davis, clinical associate professor of French in the Department of Foreign Languages and Cultures at WSU. She said film selection committee tries to pick movies that are representative of French culture.  

The committee meets during the summer and watches movies that are popular in France and are relatively current, she said. The movies this year have no theme but cover a range of topics.

The committee is made of Nelson and Davis as well as Insook Webber, French instructor at WSU, and Romain Chareyron, clinical assistant professor of French at WSU.

The goal of the festival is to spread French culture, Davis said.

The program has been successful in the past and is expected to attract more than 1,000 viewers in total throughout the month, she said.

The festival has been held in the Kenworthy since it began in 2010. This was a better option than switching between the two universities each year, Gilmore said.

The Kenworthy also provides candy and popcorn to purchase, which add to a real theater experience, she said. The theatre was chosen because it has the space to do the opening and closing receptions, Gilmore said.

The film festival is an opportunity not just for students but for the community as well, she said.

“It was a way to combine not just the university students but the community as well,” she said. It is an event that encourages the community to come together, she said.

The Kenworthy expects 80 to150 people at each film, and the record attendance is 230 people at one show, Gilmore said.