Tribeca Film Festival

April 25, 2008 – 2:43 pm

After the tragic events of 9/11 downtown Manhattan has certainly suffered. Businesses like real estate and retail lost a lot of their profits, and it took the collective efforts of the City and different individuals to bring people back to the lower part of the island. Among those individuals is one of the greatest actors of our time Robert De Niro. Now, if you think that the analogy is too much of a stretch, than you are not quiet familiar with the history of the Tribeca Film Festival. It was founded by Jane Rosenthal and Robert De Niro in 2002 to help restore the vitality of the Triangle Below Canal.

Of course this was not the only reason for the birth of the Tribeca Film Festival, but the statistics are undeniable. The revenues for local merchants were over $ 10 million in the first year of the festival and over $50 million in the second. Thanks to the film festival Tribeca is now the epicenter for both aspiring and well-known directors and actors, and every year between 23 April and 4 May more than 300 000 people visit the film festival and enjoy the variety of over a thousand screenings.

In the past six years different highly anticipated movies had their world premiers at the Tribeca Film Festival, and some of them are United 93 and Mission Impossible III. Movie goers of all ages and interests can find something to enjoy during the festival. The variety of genres runs from documentaries and feature films to animated and family-friendly films. One of the past highlights of the Family Festival was the Dream Works animated feature Over the Hedge.  The movie chosen for this year’s opening night premier on 23 April is the comedy Baby Mama, featuring Tina Fey, Amy Poehler and Sigourney Weaver. Another world premier expected to draw the public’s attention is Speed Racer. The much talked about movie for its revolutionary visual effects. The third premier of the Tribeca Film Festival 2008 will be Redbelt. An action movie about a Jiu-jitsu master who series of events take from teaching to stepping into the fighting ring.

For those who never experienced the magic of the moving pictures in Tribeca here is some information about the structure of the festival. It consists of nine different sections with choices for every taste: World Narrative Feature Competition, World Documentary Feature Competition, Spotlight Section, Encounters Section, Discovery Section, Showcase Section, Midnight Section, Restored/Rediscovered Section, and Shorts Section. If you decide to go to choose screenings this year, you can browse the movies by section, by schedule, by specific director or country, or even by interest with more than seventy choices. Tickets can be very conveniently purchased online and printed out. If you decide to pick them up, you can do so at the Main Box Offices, 15 Laight Street, 11am-7pm or at the AMC 19th Street East Box Office, 890 Broadway from 3pm to 8pm. Regardless of you taste for movies, the Tribeca Film Festival is a must!