Festival de la Francophonie • Film Screening: Tales of the Francophone Midwest

Come close this year’s edition of Festival de la Francophonie with a family-friendly screening of Brian Hawkins’ animated shorts recounting Missouri French folktales.

Hawkins’ shorts are complemented by Québécois director André Gladu’s documentary short C’est pu comme ça anymore about the Francophone community of La Vieille Mine (Old Mines, MO).

The screenings will be followed by a conversation with the directors and a reception featuring a complimentary tasting of bouillon, a traditional Missouri French dish.

Children’s activities facilitated by the Alliance’s Youth Programs instructors will be available throughout the event.

Doors at 6:00 p.m. Program at 6:30. Please enter via 54 W Chicago Ave. Non-alcoholic options will be available.

Merci à nos mécènes / Thank You to Our Sponsors!

This program is made possible through the generous financial support of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie, the Association internationale des études québéçoises, the Délégation du Québec à Chicago, and Jim Peterson & Kat Beaulieu.

About the Shorts

Les Vouèsins

La vieille femme qui lave (3 minutes) - short inspired by Robert Lewis of Old Mines’ childhood memories of his great-aunt Euphrosine Politte, including a recording of Missouri French fiddlers Charlie Pashia and Joe Politte playing La Vieille femme qui lave (The Irish Washerwoman) and Chinese Breakdown
Chasse Galerite (6 minutes) - Chasse Galerite is a passionate hunter whose untamed desire often leads him into trouble; set in the Illinois Country in the late 17th century, this humorous and imaginative folktale—cherished by Missouri’s French Creole community—is told in the local dialect by one of its last native speakers
Chasse Galerite pis Giveron Cyrilla (3 minutes) - another Chasse Galerite story, shared by Cyrilla Boyer
Les Vouèsins (15 minutes) - adaptation of a story about the devil and the Old Mines community’s folk hero, P’tsit Jean

About the Directors

Brian by Michael McCaffrey, 2020

Brian Hawkins (b. 1987 in Kansas City, Missouri) is a visual artist whose work is concerned with the patchwork of memories, historical narratives, and fiction that help us form a deeper understanding of ourselves and our place in the world. He has produced a series of intricate, cut-paper animations which draw inspiration from the music, folklore, and history of his native state.

André Gladu

André Gladu, born in 1945 in Ottowa, is a Québécois film producer, director, and screenwriter of Franco-Ontarian origin. His work includes the monumental ethnographic series entitled Le Son des français de l’Amérique, which he co-directed with Michel Brault. The series is part of UNESCO’s Memory of the World Programme.