INTERNATIONAL LENS, a film series with a global perspective, provides a forum to promote conversation among Vanderbilt’s diverse students, faculty, staff, and the greater Nashville community. International Lens endeavors to transcend geographic, linguistic, ethnic, religious, and political boundaries by encouraging conversation and greater cross-cultural understanding through cinema.
The series is organized by the Department of Cinema & Media Arts in collaboration with College of Arts and Science, Dean of Students offices, and other departments, centers, and programs across the University.
There is no charge for admission.
Films are screened in Sarratt Cinema at 7:30 p.m. unless otherwise noted.
FALL 2025 Schedule of Films
The Settlers
Thursday, September 11
Presented by Lutz Koepnick, Max Kade Foundation Chair in German Studies and Professor of Cinema & Media Arts
Chile (2024) Dir: Felipe Gálvez
At the turn of the 20th century, three horsemen embark on an expedition across the Tierra del Fuego archipelago at the behest of a wealthy landowner: a reckless British lieutenant, an American mercenary, and a Mestizo marksman who later comes to realize their true mission is to “remove” the indigenous population. At once explicit and yet mysterious and elliptical, the film dramatically recreates some of the story behind the exploitation and colonization of Tierra del Fuego by European commercial interests and the Santiago political establishment. Spanish with English subtitles. 97 min.
The Seer and the Unseen
Thursday, September 25
Iceland, USA (2019) Dir: Sara Dosa
An Icelandic grandmother fights to save a threatened landscape believed to be home to a community of elves – invisible spirits of nature that over half of Iceland believes in – before it is to be razed by a road construction project. A magically real fable about invisible elves, financial collapse, and the surprising power of belief, this documentary explores the invisible forces – be they elves or capitalism – that shape our visible worlds and transform our natural landscapes. Icelandic, English. 80 min.
No Straight Lines: The Rise of Queer Comics
Thursday, October 2
Presented by Ryan King, Librarian for English, Theatre, and CAL
USA (2021) Dir: Vivian Kleiman
A lively look at five LGBTQ+ comic book artists whose careers go from the underground scene to the cover of Time Magazine and the international stage. This film showcases the evolution of the comic book alongside the history of the LGBTQ+ rights movement. A mash-up of art, comedy, and politics that is sure to make you laugh, while also making you think about the milestones of queer representation and the challenges the community has encountered and overcome along the way. It is a warm-hearted tribute to all the artists among us, those who paint the world so that we can better understand it. English. 78 min.
Screening in association with the 2025 Nashville Comic Arts Festival.
A Rising Fury
Thursday, October 16
Ukraine (2022) Dir: Lesya Kalynska, Ruslan Batytskyi
This documentary chronicles the lives of two passionate Ukrainian idealists from Kyiv’s Revolution of Dignity protest movement in 2013 through the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022. What begins as a hopeful protest evolves into an unrelenting fight for survival as their country is plunged into war. Against the backdrop of Russia’s annexation of Crimea and invasion of Donbas in 2014, the couple navigates the harrowing realities of war, exposing a long-laid covert operation behind Russia’s invasion and shedding light on the events that brought us to this current moment in history. A testament to love, courage, and the human spirit in the face of unthinkable adversity. Ukrainian with English subtitles. 82 min.
Filmmakers Lesya Kalynska and Ruslan Batytskyi will be virtually in attendance for a Q&A following the screening.
Sister Midnight
Thursday, October 23
India, UK, Sweden (2025) Dir: Karan Kandhari
In this genre-bending dark comedy, a newly arranged marriage sees an oddball couple shoved together, alone and awkward, into a small Mumbai shack with paper-thin walls. Uma does her best to cope with the heat, her nosy neighbors, a complete lack of domestic skills, and her bumbling spouse. But as it all begins to take its toll on her, Uma is lured into the mysterious nocturnal world of Mumbai until one night she discovers strange new feral impulses that land her in unlikely situations and leave her transformed. Hindi with English subtitles. 110 min.
Sleep
Thursday, October 30
Presented by Bohyeong Kim, Assistant Professor of Communication Studies
South Korea (2023) Dir: Jason Yu
Hyun-su and Soo-jin are newlyweds whose domestic bliss is disrupted when Hyun-su begins talking in his sleep, ominously stating “Someone’s inside.” He then begins sleepwalking, behaving very strangely and unlike himself. Afraid and overwhelmed with anxiety that he may hurt himself or their young family, Soo-jin can barely sleep. The couple desperately seeks out treatment from a sleep clinic and later a shaman, but Hyun-su’s sleepwalking only intensifies, and Soo-jin becomes more and more restless every time night falls, for fear that her husband will harm their newborn. Korean with English subtitles. 95 min.
Screening in collaboration with the Korean Graduate Students and Scholars Association (KSSA) at Vanderbilt
Partner Screening with Belcourt Theatre
Thursday, November 6
Screening at the Belcourt Theatre in collaboration with International Lens (Movie to be announced closer to this date)
Black Dog
Thursday, November 13
China (2024) Dir: Guan Hu
Emerging from a long stretch in prison for his part in a murder, Er Lang returns to his hometown on the edge of the Gobi Desert in Northwest China that teeters between desolation and demolition. He strikes up an unlikely connection with a black dog while working for a local patrol team clearing the town of stray dogs before the 2008 Olympic Games. These two lonely souls embark on a new journey together, giving Lang respite from his other woes: an alcoholic father haunting the remnants of a soon-to-be-demolished zoo, and a local kingpin seeking amends for his dead nephew. Mandarin with English subtitles. 116 min.
Films are 7:30pm in Sarratt Cinema unless otherwise noted
In order to keep our community safe, please do not attend any of our screenings if you are feeling unwell.