This weekend is the 19th Annual French Film Festival. Film lovers from all around the world have made their way to Richmond to see films and attend discussions with filmmakers. The French Film Festival, held in Carytown’s Byrd Theatre, has been recognized by the French government as the largest French film festival in the United States.

Full day passes were $115, so my roommate and I could only afford to attend one showing. We chose “Océans” by Jacques Perrin, which was opened with a short, “Prunelle et Mélodie,” by Perrin’s son, Mathieu Simonet. You may have heard of them; they’re kind of a big deal.

We chose well. It turned out that the actresses in “Prunelle et Mélodie” were also the poster girls for the festival that we’ve all been seeing around town and in magazines this month. It was cool to see the story behind the poster. The film, about an hour long, was about two girls, one blind and one deaf, who long to see/hear the ocean and experience it for the first time. I loved it. During the question-and-answer with the director, someone asked (in French) to explain the meaning of the title. The host/translator explained that in English the girls names, Prunelle and Melodie, have no meaning. In French, the word Prunelle (the name of the blind girl) has to do with the eyes and Melodie (the name of the deaf girl) is, well, self explanatory.

“Océans”, a documentary, was so beautiful that I found myself doubting its reality at times. After I found out that it took over four years to finish the film and that the final budget was $66 million, I was able to understand why it was so well done. Apparently it took them three years to get the two minute scene that we see at the North Pole. The film was made up of mostly images and very little narration. I can’t really describe it. Apparently you can purchase it on Amazon France and see for yourself.

I’m so glad I had the opportunity to attend even just these two films. I will definitely be saving up for next year’s festival.