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Drama,

Preview screening of The Class

Preview screening of The Class

Riveting, Palme d'Or-winning look at a modern-day French classroom.

Based on François Bégaudeau's book Entre les murs, director Laurent Cantet's The Class is a riveting look at a modern-day French classroom as seen through the eyes of its teacher, François Marin (played by Bégaudeau himself). The film unfolds over the course of a school year, during which time we come to connect with Marin's students, who hail from varying economic and ethnic backgrounds.

The students are brilliantly portrayed by a talented cast of newcomers; naturalistic, charming and energised, their performances drive the film, and give it its heart. With the assistance of Bégaudeau and his cast, Cantet has created a rich, multilayered examination of French culture as told within the microcosm of the classroom, and he was the deserved recipient of the Palme d'Or at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival.

Preview screening of The Class
Saturday February 21, 2009 at 6:20pm
BFI Southbank
Belvedere Road
London, England SE1 8XT