The first Latin American Film Series screening of the Fall 2009 Semester goes Thursday night, 7 p.m. at the Lethbridge Public Library.

The Year My Parents Went on Vacation is a 2006 film directed by Brazilian filmmaker C. Hamburger. At 105 minutes in duration, this film is presented in Portuguese with English subtitles.

The setting is 1970, Brazil. The military dictatorship has forced Mauro's parents into hiding. Scared, they leave their son in an Italian and Jewish neighborhood of São Paulo to be cared for by his grandfather, promising to return in time to watch Brazil defend the World Cup soccer championship.

In this coming of age story, Mauro's adjustment to life without his parents is tempered by his excitement for the Brazilian national team, making for an interesting combination of political and cultural dimensions of Brazilian life in the midst of a defining moment in Brazil's history.

A discussion session with Dr. Brent Devos of the University of Lethbridge's Department of Modern Languages will follow.

Admission for this event is free. The Latin American Film Series is supported by the University of Lethbridge's President's Office and the Office of the Dean of Arts and Sciences.