The French Film Festival ended its series of movie screenings with the film “Gagarine” on Thursday at the Multicultural Center.
“Gagarine” is about a red brick housing project called Cite Gagarine on the outskirts of Paris on the verge of being demolished—the main character Youri, a 16-year-old, dreams of becoming an astronaut. When he learns of the plans for the community home about to be destroyed, he embarks on a mission along with his friends Diana and Houssam to save Gagarine, transforming the estate into his own “starship” before it disappears into space forever.
Humanities and speech professor Denis Pra introduced attendees to Art Architecture professor Patricio Gallegos to answer questions. He explained facts about the film and talked about the current state of the former site of the Cite Gagarine, which is now demolished. Demolition started in 2019 and took 16 months.
speaks after the screening of “Gagarine” at the Multicultural Center in Woodland
Hills, Calif., on April 20, 2023. Photo by Owen Meza.
Pra explained why this movie was picked as the last of the festival.
“The reason we picked this one is because it is Multicultural Day today, and the movie is really talking about this community with people coming from many places in the world, so it made sense to show this movie today,” Pra said.
Festival attendee Louis Barbato shared her thoughts on the film.
“It was very emotional without a doubt,” Barbato said. “Even though this is Paris, it corresponds very well to people all over the world who are in exile, who find a place or are being displaced, and it’s very sad. ”
Barbato also explained her favorite part of the film involved a dog.
“The dog is just so lonely and by itself and yet giving comfort, it was just a little detail,” Barbato said.
Festival attendee Nicole Bolster shared her thoughts on a character in the film named Youri.
“I enjoyed how Youri kept a close eye on his community,” Bolster said. “And then ultimately, at the end, when he thought he was all alone, the community came back to rescue him and make sure that he knew that he was a part of the family or part of the community that was there.”
