In collaboration with the Cannon Valley Elder Collegium, Carleton College is pleased to announce the first annual Northfield Summer Film Festival, running for four consecutive Tuesday evenings beginning July 10 and running through July 31. The theme of the series is "awakenings" and featured films include "Groundhog Day," "After Life," "The Crying Game," and "Local Hero." Screenings will be presented each Tuesday evening at 7:30 p.m. in the Weitz Center for Creativity Cinema and are free and open to the public.
Featured films include:
Tuesday, July 10, 7:30 p.m.—"Groundhog Day" (1993, directed by Harold Ramis), with an introduction by Eric Nelson. An arrogant, self-centered TV weatherman travels to Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, for the annual Groundhog Day festival, only to discover that he is condemned to repeat that experience, the same day in the same town, endlessly.
Tuesday, July 17, 7:30 p.m.—"After Life" (1998, directed by Hirokazu Koreeda), with an introduction by Phyllis Larson. In this Japanese film newly deceased persons work with counselors to identify one memory that they will take with them into eternity; they then recreate that memory on film and go to the “heaven” they’ve made for themselves.
Tuesday, July 24, 7:30 p.m.—"The Crying Game" (1992, directed by Neil Jordan), with an introduction by Jim McDonnell. Fergus, a member of the IRA, befriends a kidnapped British soldier and promises to look after his girlfriend. After the soldier’s death, Fergus and the girl become intimate, leading to an unexpected discovery and a wrenching choice.
Tuesday, July 31, 7:30 p.m.—"Local Hero" (1983, directed by Bill Forsyth), with an introduction by Eric Nelson. A powerful American oil company attempts to buy a beach coast village in Scotland to build a refinery. To the dismay of the company and the village, an eccentric old man who owns the beach refuses to put a price on his way of life.
For those interested in further discussion of the films being screened, the Cannon Valley Elder Collegium will present a series of seminars on the Wednesday morning following each screening. These seminars will take place from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. The fee for the seminar series is $25 and advance registration is required. For more information and to register, contact CVEC Executive Director Ed Lufkin at (507) 663-9022 or email him at edwardlufkin4@gmail.com.
Presenters include Eric Nelson, Professor of English, Emeritus at St. Olaf College; Phyllis Larson, Professor of Japanese and Asian Studies at St. Olaf College; and Jim McDonnell, Class of 1941 Professor of English and the Liberal Arts, Emeritus at Carleton College.
In the spirit of “life-long learning,” the Cannon Valley Elder Collegium (CVEC) provides high quality academic experiences in the humanities for students over age fifty (retired or not). The faculty members of the Collegium, predominantly retirees themselves, include emeriti faculty from area colleges and retired public school teachers. For more information about the CVEC, visit online at www.cvec.org.
The Weitz Center for Creativity is located at 320 E. Third Street in Northfield.