Why the Tribeca Film Festival matters to independent filmmakers: its history in lower Manhattan, its short film programs and how to get noticed there.
Every spring, New York City hosts one of the finest showcases of international independent filmmaking in the world. Once again, all eyes are on the Triangle Below Canal Street. Close to 300,000 people could flood the downtown district this month to welcome a fresh film season at the 2006 Tribeca Film Festival, the largest growing film festival in North America, founded by veteran actor Robert De Niro and producer Jane Rosenthal. The 13-day event grew out of a post September 11 effort to revitalize lower Manhattan and encourage the celebration of New York’s unique spirit through independent cinema and visual arts. The festival is entering its fifth year and will introduce a large slate of new films and filmmakers from countries spanning the globe. Several US films, in addition to foreign submissions, will premiere at this year’s event.
Tribeca is known for its feature-length narrative and documentary competitions but also attracts high quality shorts competitors. One of this year’s most notable short film entries is Carmichael and Shane, a seven-minute mock documentary that took top honors, February, at Australia’s 2006 Tropfest – one of the largest short film festivals in the world. The film tells the story of a father who is forced to pick one of his twin sons as a favorite and was directed by Alex Weinress and Rob Carlton. Carlton also starred in the film. Other noteworthy entries for Tribeca 2006 include Walker Payne, a dramatic feature, directed by Matt Williams, set in a 1950’s coal mining town, starring Jason Patric (Narc), Sam Shepard (Black Hawk Down) and Drea de Matteo (The Sopranos), and American Cannibal: The Road to Reality, a documentary directed by Perry Grebin and Michael Nigro, which deals with America’s obsession with reality television and manufactured celebrity.
From the beginning, the Tribeca Film Institute has sought to redefine the film festival experience and has seen a high rate of success with its namesake. In past years, the festival’s free open-air “Tribeca Drive-In” has attracted crowds to the Hudson waterfront, the Tribeca Family Festival annually draws hundreds of children and parents to the area for a star-studded, kid-friendly street fair and, this year, over 900 screenings will take place around lower Manhattan over the course of the festival, in addition to filmmaker Q&As and script readings.
The Tribeca Film Festival has also become an important event for facilitating connections between filmmakers of color and industry representatives through its Tribeca All Access Connects (TAA) program. Approximately 30 competitors from under-represented groups are selected to participate. Programming runs for five days during the festival, with meetings and panels scheduled for participating filmmakers and screenwriters who will present their scripts and documentary proposals to agents, producers and potential investors. The TAA Creative Promise Award will grant prizes worth $10,000 and $5,000 to filmmakers who demonstrate outstanding talent in their categories.
Though thoroughly independent in nature, the Tribeca Film Festival has attracted the attention of the mainstream. “It’s taken shape as a great place for the industry as well as for the consumer,” says festival spokesperson Tammie Rosen. This evolution was especially evident in 2005, when Tribeca exhibited some of the most exciting and critically lauded filmmaking of the past few years. This includes Transamerica, which premiered at last year’s festival and garnered widespread critical acclaim for its vision and Oscar-nominated lead performance by Felicity Huffman. The short films also faired well – Cashback, 2005’s Best Narrative Short, in addition to The Life of Kevin Carter, Best Documentary Short, were also nominated for 2006 Academy Awards. Tribeca looks to continue its tradition of excellence with this year’s line-up which will undoubtedly feature the diversity, intensity and imagination we’ve come to expect from the festival – one that is rapidly becoming a New York City institution.
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