Three films inspired by seminal graphic novels comprise the Mondavi Center’s second and final film series of the year. First up is American Splendor on March 8, followed by Ghost World and Persepolis.

According to the Mondavi Center, the graphic novel has come into its own as a respected art form in the last 25 years, supplying readers with the traditional novel’s beginning, middle and end, juxtaposed against the raw visual aesthetic of classic comic books.

American Splendor is a biopic about Harvey Pekar and partly an adaptation of his autobiographical American Splendor comic books. The film stars Paul Giamatti as Pekar and includes footage of the cantankerous Pekar himself.

New Line Cinema describes the 2003 film as “the story of a little-known, working-class everyman, and first-class curmudgeon ... who finds love, family and a creative voice through the underground comic books he creates, but still can’t manage to find the quicker supermarket checkout line.”

Robert Pulcini directed the film, which received a number of awards, including a grand jury prize as best dramatic film in the 2003 Sundance Film Festival. The film is rated R and runs for 101 minutes.

More information on the other films:

• April 5 — Ghost World, directed by Terry Zwigoff (2001), rated R, 111 minutes, English. A live action take on the graphic novel of the same name, chronicling with humor and irony the life of seemingly average characters, all with the proverbial deck stacked against them.

• April 19 — Persepolis, directed by Vincent Parannaud and Marjane Satrapi (2007), rated PG-13, 96 minutes. The English version of the beautifully animated French film about growing up in prerevolutionary and revolutionary Iran, with voicings by Sean Penn and Gena Rowlands.

AT A GLANCE

WHAT: Graphic Novel Theme

• American Splendor, March 8

• Ghost World, April 5

• Persepolis, April 19

TIME: 6 p.m.

WHERE: Vanderhoef Studio Theatre, Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts

ADMISSION: Adults $10, students $5. A $27 pass is available for all three films.