MUN Cinema Series brings curated film list to Cineplex for another semester

Since 1991 Noreen Golfman has been bringing thoughtfully curated lineups of films to theatres in St. John’s at the MUN Cinema Series.

Starting at the now-decommissioned Reid Theatre, eventually moving to the Engineering theatre, and now residing at Cineplex Theatre in the Avalon Mall, MUN Cinema Series offers weekly screenings at affordable price points to students and community members.

Currently, the series screens selections at 7pm on Wednesday evenings. Student/senior admission is $10, and general admission is $12, though tickets are first-come first-serve, so be sure to arrive early!

Golfman told the Muse that she tries to diversify each semester’s lineup as much as possible, taking great care during the film selection process.

“I’m looking for films with strong stories for adults,” she said.

“I will rarely get anything that has much CGI. My crowd – and that’s young and old and everything in between – are interested in the stuff that wins awards, a TIFF or Cannes or Venice, where you get critical audiences.”

Golfman defines a critical audience as “people who really understand the history of cinema, love movies, understand the directors, are story-driven, character-driven.” 

Focusing on quality rather than theme, and prioritizing Canadian indie, these are the types of films Golfman seeks for the series’ programming. 

She also prioritizes keeping film accessible for students despite rising costs of theatre rentals and licensing fees. Golfman said that she hopes she’s not forced to raise the prices anytime soon, and she’s “not interested in profit margins, [she’s] interested in breaking even.”

Here are the remaining Fall Semester screenings:

October 22 – Jane Austen Wrecked My Life (2024)

A lonely author on a Writer’s retreat in England with a Jane Austen obsession becomes entangled in a tumultuous love triangle with an old friend and a charming professor who hates her favourite author.

October 29 – DJ Ahmet (2024)

A 15 year old boy living in rural Northeren Macedonia experiences coming-of-age in a remote, traditional community, finding salvation from grief and isolation through creating music. 

November 12 – On Swift Horses (2024)

Starring familiar faces such as Jacob Elordi and Daisy Edgar-Jones, On Swift Horses details married couple Muriel and Lee’s quiet life following the Korean war which gets upended when a rowdy brother-in-law unexpectedly returns home, disrupting their domestic utopia with gambling, sex, and secrets.

December 3 – The Divine Sarah Bernhardt (2024)

This biopic offers viewers a fantastical rendering of the French actress Sarah Bernhardt’s spectacular rise to frame, and legacy as one of the first “celebrity” actresses. The film focuses on her lavish life, her leg amputation at 70 years old, and the lasted impact she had on friends, her community, and the film industry.

December 10 – Eleanor the Great (2025)

ScarJo’s feature-length directorial debut, this film follows senior citizen Eleanor Morgenstein as she wanders to NYC searching for family following the death of her best friend. When relatives-by-blood falter as a new support system, Eleanor finds herself becoming friends with a group of Holocaust survivors, deceptively presenting her deceased friend’s story as her own.