Global Lens 2008 touring film series comes to Bates

The Global Lens 2008 film series, a touring program of 10 narrative feature films from Latin America, the Middle East, Africa, Europe and Asia, opens at Bates College tonight with the 2006 Croatian drama All for Free at 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 10, in Room 105 of the Olin Arts Center, 75 Russell St.

The Bates College Museum of Art presents the series in cooperation with the college’s Multicultural Center. The public is welcome to all of the films at no charge. For more information, please call 207-786-6158.

The series is assembled and distributed by the Global Film Initiative, a U.S.–based nonprofit organization promoting independent filmmaking in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East. Founded in 2002 with the mission of promoting cross-cultural understanding through cinema, each year the initiative not only presents the film series but awards grants to deserving filmmakers from around the world. For more information, please visit the initiative’s Web site.

All for Free, directed by Antonio Nui?, is the story of Goran. After his friends are killed in a bizarre barroom argument, Goran devises an unusual plan to deal with the loss: he will sell his house, buy a mobile tavern and travel from town to town, giving away free drinks to everyone he meets.

But for everyone except Goran, the idea is strangely suspicious, and a bit absurd. Nui?’s darkly humorous tale of loss and reconciliation is a metaphor for Bosnia’s gradual rediscovery of its shared humanity, lost during the war.

The Global Lens series, now in its fifth year, premiered at the Museum of Modern Art in New York in January and is traveling around the country to more than 40 locations. Read more about the films and view the series trailer and individual film trailers.

All of the Bates screenings begin at 7 p.m. Here’s the rest of the series:

The Bet Collector (Philippines, 2006), Thursday, Oct. 23, Olin 104.

Bunny Chow (South Africa, 2006), Monday, Oct. 27, Olin 104.

The Custodian (Argentina, 2006), Thursday, Oct. 30, Olin 105.

The Fish Fall in Love (Iran, 2006), Wednesday, Nov. 5, Olin 104.

Kept & Dreamless (Argentina, 2005), Thursday, Nov. 6, Olin 105.

The Kite (Lebanon, 2004), Wednesday, Nov. 12, Olin 104.

Let the Wind Blow (India, 2004), Wednesday, Nov. 19, Olin 104.

Luxury Car (China, 2006), Wednesday, Dec. 3, Olin 105.

Opera Jawa (Indonesia, 2006), Thursday, Dec. 4, Olin 105.