Italian Film Festival

'Food' is the theme for annual 3-day event at Sottile Theatre

Though hotly debated by Francophiles, who consider the very notion a declaration of war, there are those who insist the Italians, the Medicis, specifically, taught the French how to cook.

Giovanna De Luca, an associate professor of Italian at the College of Charleston, prefers a diplomatic approach.

She celebrates the simple glories of Italian cuisine, minus the inflammatory claims, with the fourth annual Italian Film Festival, aka Taste of Italy, running Nov. 5-7 at the Sottile Theatre, 44 George St., downtown Charleston.

"The theme of the festival is food," says De Luca, who also teaches classes in cinema and literature. "All the movies have something to do with eating. The first, 'Focaccia Blues,' is a true story about how a local eatery in the Puglia region put a McDonald's out of business. It's about the tension between local and global forces and the ways in which we define our identity."

The director, Nico Cirasola, will be at a question-and-answer session after the screening.

"Cirasola's idea of 'convivium,' the way in which diverse people gather together at table and share experiences and points of view, sparked my interest in organizing a film festival with food as its theme."

Free and open to the public, this year's festival is subtitled "An Exploration of the Unifying Power of Food and Cinema."

And it offers the victuals to prove it. Sponsored by Slow Food Charleston, Thursday's opening night reception, 5:30-6:30 p.m., features food from local restaurants Al Di La, FIG, EVO Pizzeria, Monza, Trattoria Lucca and Wild Olive.

This culinary array comes courtesy of Carol Addlestone, director of the local chapter of Slow Food, a group established in Italy in 1989 to "counteract the breakdown of local traditions and offer a healthy and economically sound alternative to fast food and corporatization."

De Luca knows well the magic of food and film. Many a delectable movie has been made at the gustatory gates, not least "Babette's Feast," "Big Night," "Eat Drink Man Woman," "The Scent of Green Papaya," "Like Water for Chocolate" and "Who's Killing the Great Chefs of Europe?"

"Language learning is always more interesting, even fun, when it's combined with exposure to aspects of Italian culture," says De Luca.

"For my film students, this is an essential component of their studies," she says. "What better way to share the culture of Italy than to expose them to great movies made there? What's more, when I put together a film festival, the movies and all the other accoutrements -- lectures, food, social interaction -- can be shared with the community."

In addition to a retrospective on the work Italian director Gianni Amelio, the festival offers a number of local premieres. De Luca says three of the movies in the program, "Focaccia Blues," "La Grande Abbuffata" and "Il Pranzo di Ferragosto," are new to southeastern filmgoers, while the last two on the bill of fare, "Lezioni Di Cioccolato" and "Terra Madre," are making their North American debuts.

Watch the previews to upcoming movies