A Chinese karaoke bar escort tries to hide her shameful job and relationship with her boss from her long-estranged father. A Philippine family matriarch, running a small convenience store out of her home, makes ends meet by collecting bets for an illegal numbers game. Some fun-loving friends take a road trip to South Africa's largest music festival.

Think of Walker Art Center's annual Global Lens film series as the equivalent of the historic first photo of Earth taken during the Apollo 10 mission. It's an attempt to convey in a deep and emotional way a new awareness of our vast yet interconnected world.

The program, running through May 18, features 10 filmmakers from four continents. Their works address border tensions between Lebanon and Israel, Pakistan and India, but also interpersonal drama between lovers, class conflict and family ordeals. All films are shown in their native language with English subtitles. Highlights include:

• "The Custodian," a psychological drama about a politician's bodyguard on the verge of a stress-induced breakdown. (Argentina, 7 p.m. today)

• "Kept and Dreamless," a comic drama concerning a 9-year-old girl who cares for her drug-addled mother with the aid of her off-kilter neighbors. (Argentina, 7 p.m. today)

• "Let the Wind Blow," a story of youth about two teenaged best friends who consider their futures on the gritty streets of Mumbai in the shadow of nuclear hostility between Pakistan and India. (India, 2 p.m. Saturday)

• "All for Free," a dark comedy about loss. When three of his friends are killed in a bar fight, a man converts a mobile home into a traveling tavern, offering drinks to passersby at no charge. (Croatia, 7 p.m. Saturday)

• "Bunny Chow," a raucous road movie about three Johannesburg comedians with complicated professional and love lives on their way to a rock music festival. (South Africa, 7 p.m. May 17)

Each film will receive a repeat screening. For a complete schedule, visit www.walkerart.org.