Upcoming April Programming at FIAF Announced

The French Institute Alliance Française (FIAF), will present an amazing and diversified spectrum of events this April, several of which celebrate Earth Month. This month's programming features powerful films dedicated to climate change, a solo exhibition by the acclaimed French artist Inès Longevial with her most recent portraits, a discussion in French about the restoration of Notre-Dame, a wine tasting and discussion celebrating Rosé Champagne and the highly anticipated return of TILT Kids Festival, including an excerpt from Broadway's spectacular new adaptation of The Little Prince.

A full schedule of events follows. All times are ET.

TILT Kids Festival 2022

Saturday, April 30-Sunday, May 1, 2022
In Person at FIAF

Fun for all ages, this year, the TILT Kids Festival is back in person and dedicated to the natural world! Join us for an adventurous weekend of music, movement, and visual art with artists whose work connects us to plants, animals, and most of all, each other.

Our sixth edition features a world music concert by People of the Earth, a program with the spectacular new Broadway hit The Little Prince, a performance by festival favorite Broken Box Mime Theater, and creative workshops with artist Roxane Revon and florist Agnès de Villarson. Throughout the weekend, join illustrator Emma Giuliani to add your favorite sea animal to the TILT Aquatic Wonderland.

Drawing Workshop: Sprouting Colors with Roxane Revon

Saturday, April 30, 2022 at 11am
FIAF Skyroom
Ages 7 & up • 45 minutes • In English

Kids will find inspiration in the unique formations of sprouted potatoes to create their own artistic designs, learning how their lives are closely interwoven with the plant world, in this drawing workshop led by visual artist Roxane Revon.

Roxane's drawings use the thin sprawling roots of vegetables as a basis for her compositions. Building on these organic lines with bright colors, she playfully reminds us how closely connected we are to nature. Create your own drawing-a reflection of how deeply intertwined everything is.

Concert: People of Earth

Saturday, April 30, 2022 at 2pm
FIAF Florence Gould Hall
Ages 6 & up • 45 minutes

Bring your dancing shoes for a celebration of music and culture with powerhouse band People of Earth in a colorful and joyful exploration of world music!

Performing a mix of tunes from the Americas and the Caribbean, these artists will take kids and adults alike on a musical journey across multiple cultures. The fun interactive concert teaches kids how different backgrounds can make music truly magical and the universal language of the world.

Performers
Ashira Mothersil, Vocals
Raul Rios, Trumpet and Vocals
Ahmed Alom, Piano and Vocals
Ian Stewar, Bass
Gabriel Globus-Hoenich, Percussion

Interactive Performance Broken Box Mime Theater

Destination: Nature
Saturday, April 30, 2022 at 4pm
FIAF Skyroom
Ages 4 & up • 45 minutes

Broken Box Mime Theater returns to TILT with their newest show for families, Destination: Nature. Using their signature participatory style, kids will jump up to mime from their seats while stretching their imaginations.

In homage to French great Marcel Marceau, each child will mime their favorite animals, bringing the wonders of our natural world into the FIAF Skyroom. Destination: Nature will be narrated in English by a speaking host to guide even the youngest theatergoers.

The hour-long collection of stories told through movement and music includes a tale of sibling love, a chameleon on his lunch break, and a winding trip on the Metro that ties it all together.

Performance and Workshop

Broadway's The Little Prince

Sunday, May 1, 2022

Performance: 10:30am
FIAF Florence Gould Hall

Workshop: 11:30am
FIAF Haskell Library
Ages 5 & up • 40 minutes each

"What is essential is invisible to the eye." - Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince

See an excerpt from Broadway's spectacular new adaptation of The Little Prince to experience the enduring wisdom of Saint-Exupéry's beloved tale. Journey through different planets and rediscover the message of unity and preservation within this magical story.

Then, stay for a workshop where you build your own crown to become the prince or princess of your dreams! Participants are invited to wear their creations for the rest of the day and turn their weekend into a real-life fairy tale.

Floral Workshop
The Little Florist

with Agnès de Villarson
Sunday, May 1, 2022 at 2pm & 2:45pm
FIAF Gallery
Ages 4 & up • 30 minutes

Celebrate May 1st with a playful workshop! Kids are invited to enjoy the start of the spring season by creating their own flower compositions with French florist Agnès de Villarson. Using fresh local and seasonal flowers, kids will have fun with all the colors of nature and go home with their own beautiful floral arrangement.

Interactive Art Project

Aquatic Wonderland
with Emma Giuliani
Saturday, April 30-Sunday, May 1, 2022
10am-5pm
FIAF Tinker Auditorium
Ages 6 & up

Let's have fun in the sun on a day "At the Sea!" Artist Emma Giuliani invites kids to imagine their own ocean world and create illustrations inspired by her new book (At the Sea). Draw your favorite underwater animal or make a collage of an imaginary one.

By adding their own touches to this collaborative piece, young artists will create an aquatic wonderland together. Stop by the FIAF Tinker Auditorium throughout the TILT Kids Festival weekend to contribute to this group project!

CinéSalon for the Climate

To coincide with Earth Day (April 22), CinéSalon for the Climate will showcase recent French films that look at the beauty and fragility of the environment, the impact of our destruction, and how activism and improved production practices can help reverse the damage before it is too late.

The series opens on April 5 with a special screening of The Velvet Queen, in partnership with New York WILD Film Festival, followed by a reception. It will continue with the US and NY premieres of Animal (Cyril Dion, 2021), Above Water (Aïssa Maïga, 2021), and, in partnership with Fondation Cartier pour l'art contemporain, Bernie Krause, A Life with The Great Animal Orchestra (Vincent Tricon, 2021). Together, these films shine an important light on the intricate relationship between all living beings and the environment, and our responsibility for the future.

Full listings follow in chronological order.

Ice and the Sky (La Glace et le ciel)

Dir. Luc Jacquet, 2014, France, 90 min, DCP, color
In French with English subtitles
In Person: Tuesday, April 5 at 4pm
FIAF Florence Gould Hall

From Oscar®-winning director Luc Jacquet (March of the Penguins) comes a stirring portrait of French glaciologist, Claude Lorius, whose groundbreaking research in Antarctica was the first clear evidence of human impact on climate change.

The Velvet Queen (La Panthère des neiges)

Dir. Marie Amiguet, Vincent Munier, 2021, France, 92 min, DCP, color
In French with English subtitles
In Person: Tuesday, April 5 at 7pm
FIAF Florence Gould Hall

Part of New York WILD Film Festival 2022
Followed by a Q&A with Luke Hunter and Steve Winter, moderated by Natalie Cash
Includes a reception with wine, beer, and hors d'oeuvres

In the heart of the Tibetan highlands, multi-award-winning nature photographer Vincent Munier guides writer Sylvain Tesson on his quest to document the infamously elusive snow leopard.

A "Best in Festival" award-winner at the New York WILD Film Festival, the film will open FIAF's April CinéSalon series which is dedicated to environmental conservation and climate change action.

US Premiere: Animal

Dir. Cyril Dion, 2020, France, 105 min, DCP, color
In English and in French with English subtitles
In Person: Tuesday, April 12 at 4pm and 7:30pm
FIAF Florence Gould Hall

Cinema for the Climate, Cannes Film Festival 2021

French activist and filmmaker Cyril Dion (Tomorrow) and the primatologist Jane Goodall invite two teenagers on an extraordinary quest. 16-year-old Bella and Vipulan are convinced their very future is in danger. They decided to tackle the root of the problem: our relationship with other living creatures.

US Premiere: Above Water (Marcher sur l'eau)

Dir. Aïssa Maïga, 2020, France, Niger, 89 min, DCP, color
In Peul and French with English subtitles
In Person: Tuesday, April 19 at 4pm and 7:30pm
FIAF Florence Gould Hall

Cinema for the Climate, Cannes Film Festival 2021

In Tatis, Niger, Houlaye, 12 years-old, walks several kilometers each day to fetch water for her family. It is abundant during the rainy season, but impossible to find during the dry season. However, two hundred meters below the surface, there is a water source that goes far beyond their imagination.

Hello World! (Bonjour le monde !)

Dir. Anne-Lise Koehler & Éric Serre, 2019, France, 67 min, DCP, color
In French with English subtitles
In Person: Tuesday, April 26 at 4pm
FIAF Florence Gould Hall

Made with papier-mâché puppets animated in stop motion and hand-crafted sculptures set in beautifully painted backgrounds, this delightful and delicate film introduces all audiences to a fragile ecosystem through the lives of ten animals.

NY Premiere: Bernie Krause, A Life with The Great Animal Orchestra (Bernie Krause, Une vie avec Le Grand Orchestre des Animaux)

Dir. Vincent Tricon, 2021, France, 37 min, DCP, color
In English with French subtitles
In Person: Tuesday, April 26 at 7:30pm
FIAF Florence Gould Hall

Followed by a Q&A with director Vincent Tricon

Produced by Fondation Cartier, this first documentary by French filmmaker Vincent Tricon tells the story of Bernie Krause, a "soundscape ecologist" who, for more than fifty years, has traveled the world recording the sounds of animals in their natural habitats.

Virtual Talks

Rendez-Vous LIVE:
The Restoration of Notre-Dame

Wednesday, April 20, 2022
6:30pm ET
LIVE Online • In French

The tragic fire that nearly destroyed Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris and the heroic effort to restore one of France's most historic landmarks remains an important topic of conversation around the world three years later.

In a series curated to help FIAF students practice French, Rendez-Vous LIVE will welcome National Geographic journalist Robert Kunzig in discussion with Jérémie Patrier-Leitus, Director of Communication at Notre-Dame, about the restoration's progress. The virtual conversation will also look at the ongoing ecological challenges of historic preservation in time for Earth Month.

Duration: 45 min conversation; 15 min Q&A

Exhibition

Inès Longevial

Tomorrow is your lucky day

Opening Reception
Thursday, April 14
6-8pm

On view April 14-May 27, 2022
FIAF Gallery

Curated by Lola Siena Koutoudi

In a highly-anticipated FIAF debut, acclaimed French artist Inès Longevial will be featured in a solo exhibition of her most recent portraits. Known for her intricate use of light and color to depict wide emotions in her self portraits, her new series uses vibrant pinks, purples, and greens to shape her subjects' features, presenting a new combination of hues with each canvas.

Longevial's exploration of color comes to full fruition in paintings which are deeply intimate, with warm colors accentuating the curves of every face and body. With thick strokes of paint and wide panes of color, Longevial instills her portraits with an otherworldly quality.

View entire program here!