A new breed of videos is coming to Penn State. Starting tonight, the Palmer Museum of Art will present its Come as You Are film series at 7 p.m. Thursdays and at 1 p.m. Sundays in the Palmer Lipcon Auditorium.

Following the flurry of holiday blockbuster films, these free movies will deal with less conventional subject matters, including African-American issues and artist biographies.

William Kelly, head of the integrative arts department, said these movies bring diversity issues to the forefront. By providing international films not readily available in Centre County, they are filling an essential role, he said.

"Campus diversity groups need an outlet to express their unique cultures," Kelly said.

This theme-based film series started about two years ago, said Robin Seymour, Palmer Museum spokeswoman and membership coordinator. Seymour said these independent and international films focus on relevant themes at Penn State. From January to March, the Come as You Are film series will concentrate on African and African-American movies. Among the selections are Hyenas, a video about an African village's battle with poverty, and Long Night's Journey into Day, a movie centered on post-Apartheid South Africa.

The second half of the series will center on the interesting lives of artists. Films such as Pollock and Bird could help audiences better understand the motivation behind artistic endeavors. Dana Kletchka, the museum educator at Palmer Museum of Art, said a designated committee of graduate students and faculty members carefully chose these videos.

This group selects films that coincide with exhibits and programs at the museum and the Center for the Performing Arts. In doing so, Kletchka said students will get a better grasp of a foreign culture. These films tend to draw varied viewers. Kletchka said audiences typically consist of 40 to 70 people, ranging from older to the very young age groups.

The audiences are often as diverse as the films, she added.

"They are all coming for the same thing: to see a good film," she said. "Best of all, there is no sticky popcorn stuff on the floor, no lines, no admission."

Seymour hopes that the Come as You Are series will spur interest in the museum itself.

"Museums are fighting a perception that they are only for certain people," she said. "But you don't need a degree in art to enjoy these movies. We want people to come as they are."