It’s April in Paris (via Melbourne) As French Film Festival Starts at Foosaner

UPDATE: The April 18 outdoor screening of “The Triplets of Belleville” has been relocated to the Foosaner Art Museum’s Harris Auditorium. Doors open at 8 p.m. Seating is limited, so patrons will be admitted on a first come, first serve basis!

MELBOURNE, FLA. — Enjoy the films, foods and festivities of April in Paris without ever leaving Brevard County when the Foosaner Art Museum launches its French Film Festival starting April 4 with a screening of Jean Cocteau’s 1946 film noir classic, “Beauty and the Beast.”

The free film, presented at 8:30 p.m. outdoors at the Eau Gallie Square in partnership with Brevard Parks and Recreation and the Eau Gallie Arts District, kicks off two weeks of fine French cinema, from decades-old classics to modern animation, documentaries to dramas. The themes investigated by the 2014 festival will include the quest for beauty and artistic identity.

The opening “April in Paris” event also features entertainment, French food, art activities for children and shopping as the museum celebrates the start of its second film festival.

Enjoy live gypsy jazz in the Foosaner Art Museum galleries, play a game of petanque (think bocce ball meets horseshoes), do some shopping at nearby galleries and shops, and indulge in a pop-up French cafe featuring tantalizing French fare and libations, including wine by-the-glass from Green Turtle Market; espresso, coffee and children’s drinks by Cosmic Café; fresh crepes by The Crepe Company; and organic bistro fare by Two Chicks and a Pot.

Merchants and artists will also sell French-inspired gifts.

The film festival continues for the next two weeks with screenings in the Foosaner Art Museum’s Harris Auditorium:

• April 5 at 2 p.m.: “Renoir”
• April 11 at 7 p.m.: “Louise Bourgeois: The Spider, The Mistress and The Tangerine”
• April 12 at 2 p.m.: “The Extraordinary Voyage” and “A Trip to the Moon”

These films are followed by lectures from Florida Tech faculty and staff.

The festival concludes April 18 with an 8 p.m. showing of “The Triplets of Belleville in Eau Gallie Square, followed by a moustache-themed after-party at Intracoastal Brewing Company.

Opening- and closing-night films in Eau Gallie Square are free. Admission to films shown in the Harris Auditorium is $5 per ticket. Tickets will be available at the front door of the Harris Auditorium. Concessions will also be available.

Find the full film festival schedule, as well as information about lectures, event partners and more, by going to http://411.fit.edu/filmfest/ or calling Foosaner Art Museum at (321) 674-8915.

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