The French and Spanish departments are both offering free film series that are open to all students. The film series aim to improve language skills and expose students to the cultures of France and Spain.

The French films are shown monthly in Allen Auditorium in the Arts and Science building, and the Spanish films are shown in Strickland Hall Room 206.

The films vary in genre, including dark fantasy, comedy and animated drama. Showings are free and open to the public.

Lornaida McCune, a Ph.D student and organizer of the Spanish series, said the series was started as a way to expand learning a language beyond the classroom.

“I felt that we were not doing enough as a Spanish department to offer possibilities for students to practice their Spanish outside the classroom,” she said in an email.

Elizabeth Ramey, the organizer of the French series, said the films expose students to aspects of culture that are often glossed over in the teaching of the language.

“Sometimes when you are teaching verbs and vocab you don’t really have time to teach the culture, which is really unfortunate,” she said. “This is a great way to get in daily life food, tradition, songs and cultural mores.”

Many instructors in the romance languages & literatures department use the film showings as extra credit opportunities or even make the films requirements for their classes. McCune said she selected two films in the Spanish series specifically because of their relevance to a Spanish Literature class taught by professor Michael Ugarte.

“It’s a good way to encounter culture and hear native speaking in context,” French teaching assistant Louise Allen said.

Allen encourages her students to attend because it exposes the students to the natural patterns of speech.

McCune said even the Spanish series organizers have learned something from the films.

“It honestly has been a lot of fun and we all have learned a lot about the culture of the countries where these films are made as well as their historical settings,” she said.

The French series began fall semester of last year, but the Spanish film series is new this year.

Ramey, a graduate student in French literature and French 1100 instructor, said the French series was inspired by the movie nights that she held as a high school French teacher.

She said the reaction to the films has been positive. The first film in the French series, “Au Revoir Les Enfants,” which was shown Sep. 12, had over 50 students in attendance.

Among the films in the Spanish series is “Pan’s Labyrinth,” which is set during the Spanish Civil War and follows a young girl’s interaction with a dark fantasy world and an evil stepfather.

One of the highlights of the French series is the 2007 film “Persepolis.” The film, which was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Animated Film, tells the story of a young Iranian girl fleeing her country following the Islamic Revolution in 1979. It is an adaptation of an autobiographical graphic novel published in 2000.

“French films are so wonderful,” Ramey said. “France is really known for producing fabulous films.”

The series will continue throughout the semester, and a new series will begin in the spring. The next film in the French series, “Les Visiteurs,” plays 7 p.m. Tuesday in Allen Auditorium.