1. MFL DVD Resource TOPIC: WORK

2. Amelie Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s ‘fantasy-realist’ film follows a woman, who discovers her true vocation in life. Excerpt from the film: 09:18 > 10.45 We are introduced to Amelie’s workplace

3. Amelie Make a list of 10-15 jobs in French and then find 3 qualities you need for each job. E.g. likes travelling, hardworking, good with their hands, smart. For each person introduced in this clip find three adjectives to describe them. Is there a common adjective to describe all of them? What do you see as the key differences between a French and English café? How relevant is the café itself as opposed to the people in it? Which would you prefer to work in and why?

4. Write a job advert for a vacancy at the café. Describe clearly what sort of qualities you are looking for in the applicant and what the job would entail. Write an application for the job. In pairs, prepare and conduct the interview. Do you think Amelie enjoys or ‘fits into’ her workplace? Why? At the end of the scene a beggar says “I never work on Sundays” – what is the effect of this comment on how work and money are seen? Amelie

5. Couscous This film is set amongst the North African community in the Mediterranean port of Sète. Excerpt from the film: 05:30 > 06:43 Slimane’s boss informs him that he has cut his hours.

6. Couscous What sort of job do these men do? Which of the men is the boss? What makes you think that? Slimane’s boss informs him that he has cut his hours. In pairs, write the script for a short role-play between a boss and an employee. The boss must inform the employee of a cut in hours incorporating some connectives into their dialogue.

7. Couscous What types of jobs interest you, and what are your plans? Are you hopeful about the current job market? Do you plan to work for yourself or for a company? What influences your thinking on this?

8. Bienvenue chez les Ch’tis A French comedy in which a postmaster in Southern France gets transferred to a remote region in Northern France. Excerpt from the film: 06:30 > 09:26 Philippe is celebrating his move to the Côte d’Azur when he’s called to his office as an HR inspector comes to check his application form.

9. A postmaster in Southern France tries to make life easier for his depressive wife by getting a transfer to the Cote d’Azur using dubious means. Put yourself in the position of a disabled person who has not been offered a job due to their disability and write a letter of complaint to HR. OR a non-disabled person who hasn’t got the job because a disabled person got the job instead. Prepare a role-play for an interview. Write up questions and answers to a job interview. Include issues relating to disabilities or other work issues such as discrimination. Bienvenue chez les Ch’tis

10. Pretending to be disabled is an unusual tactic. What is being attempted here is seen as ‘shameful’. Write what Philippe felt just after he stood up to shake hands. How does the director try to make this scene funny? Is it successful?

11. Entre Les Murs -The Class A semi-autobiographical account of François Marin’s experiences as a French language and literature teacher in a middle school in the 20th arrondissement of Paris. Excerpt from the film: 01:56 > 03:37 On arrival at school on the first day of term, teachers introduce themselves in the staff room, mentioning their subject and how long they have been at the school.

12. Entre Les Murs -The Class With the sound off, describe what is going on in this scene. Where and who are these people and what might they be talking about? One of the teachers mentions that he used to work in the suburbs, and that he is happy he is now in the city. What adjectives would you use to describe the suburbs and more urban settings in the UK? How do you think it might be different in Paris?

13. You are just starting your first day as a teacher at this school. Choose five adjectives to describe yourself to your new colleagues. Later on that evening you describe two of your new colleagues to friends. What impression do you have of them? On arrival at school on the first day of term, teachers introduce themselves in the staff room, mentioning their subject and how long they have been at the school. What impressions do we get of their perceptions of the school, where they work and the way they see their jobs? Entre Les Murs -The Class

14. Les Choristes Set in a correctional house for ‘wayward boys’, the film charts the progress of new music teacher Clement Mathieu and his attempts to instil a little love and hope into his challenging students. Excerpt from the film: 17:48 > 18:41 The teacher reflects on his first day and wonders what he's doing there.

15. Les Choristes List the future job aspirations of the children. Do you think they're realistic? Why do you think they all aspire to have such ‘fabulous’ jobs? How does the children’s list of jobs make the supervisor feel about his own? What does he say that suggests he is unhappy at this school?

16. Les Choristes Plan an interview with an actor on the topic of work, using a variety of question words. Use the future tense to express your opinions and questions. What did you want to be when you were that age? What do you want to be now and how has that changed? What do you see yourself doing ten years time?