The Shepherdstown Film Society is pleased to announce its fall, 2012 series. This season continues the partnership with the Scarborough Society of Shepherd University. This partnership gives the Shepherdstown Film Society the financial support it needs to maintain its commitment to show free films for Shepherd students and faculty and the Shepherdstown community.

Six films will be presented, starting on Aug. 31 and running through Nov. 30. Four films comprise the fall comedy theme. Two films are presented in conjunction with the Shepherd University Appalachian Heritage Writer-in-Residence program.

Except for Monday, Sept. 24, all films will be shown on Fridays. All showings are at 7 p.m. in Shepherd University’s Reynolds Hall. As with all the Society’s films, admission will be free and each showing will be followed by a discussion. An opening night reception at the War Memorial Building will kick off the series from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 31.

More information on each film can be found on the Society’s website www.shepherdstownfilmsociety.org.

The film schedule will be as follows: Aug. 31: “The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert”; Sept. 14: “Shower”; Sept. 24: “Winter’s Bone”; Oct. 5: “Micmacs”; Nov, 16: “The Purple Rose of Cairo”; and Nov. 30: “Coal Miner’s Daughter”.

Details of the films follow below, in the order in which the films are being shown:

Aug. 31: “The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert” (Australia, 1994, 104 minutes, directed by Stephan Elliott). This is a buddy picture and this is a road picture, but with a twist. The buddies are drag queens on the road from Sydney to Alice Springs, Australia. They travel in a bus they have named Priscilla. Think of Bob Hope and Bing Crosby with a Technicolor wardrobe. Rated R for sexuality and language.

Sept. 14: “Shower” (China, 1999, 92 minutes, directed by Yang Zhang). A traditional Chinese bathhouse is the setting for this story of family relations and cultural traditions. A father and two sons must deal with a motley assortment of customers, modernization in Beijing and family tensions while keeping their business afloat. Rated PG-13 for language and nudity. Post-film discussion led by Dr. Rachel Ritterbusch, Chair, Department of English and Modern Languages at Shepherd University.

Sept. 24: “Winter’s Bone” (USA, 2010, 100 minutes, directed by Debra Granik). The hard scrabble hill country of southern Missouri is the setting for this story of a young woman’s fight to keep her family safe and intact. She must overcome the consequences of her feckless, absent father’s criminality and the hostile community that surrounds her. The film won the Grand Jury Prize at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival and received four Oscar nominations. Rated R for drug material, language and violence. This is a special presentation in conjunction with Shepherd University’s Appalachian Heritage Writer in Residence Program. Post-film discussion led by Dr. Amy DeWitt, Assistant Professor of Sociology and Geography at Shepherd University.

Oct/ 5: “Micmacs” (France, 2009, 105 minutes, directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet). Writer and director Jean-Pierre Jeunet brings his mix of comedy and magical realism to tell a tale of the weak overcoming the strong. A collection of literal down-and-outs (they live under ground) help a new recruit seek revenge on armament manufacturers for causing the death of his father. Jeunet told an interviewer that Micmac translates to shenanigans and there are plenty of shenanigans in this film.Rated R for some sexuality and brief violence.

Nov. 16: “The Purple Rose of Cairo” (USA, 1985, 82 minutes, directed by Woody Allen). A hapless Depression Era woman finds escape from her husband, her job and her dreary life at the movies. While she watches a film called “The Purple Rose of Cairo,” one of the actors spots her in the audience and walks out of the film and into her life. Naturally, complications ensue. Rated PG.

Nov. 30: “Coal Miner’s Daughter” (USA, 1980, 125 minutes, directed by Michael Apted). This biopic follows the arc of the life of Loretta Lynn from the hollows of eastern Kentucky on a bumpy ride to the heights of fame in country music. Sissy Spacek and Tommy Lee Jones play Loretta and her husband Mooney Lynn. Sissy Spacek won an Oscar for Best Actress and the film received six other Oscar nominations. Rated PG. This is a special presentation as a supplement to Shepherd University’s Appalachian Heritage Writer in Residence Program. Post-film discussion led by Adam Booth, Music Assistant at Shepherd University.

For further information about the Society and its films, visit their website or contact Lisa Welch at 304-876-1837 (email lmwelch@frontiernet.net) or Mina Goodrich at 304-876-2159.