“He and Jane[Rosenthal] both are so passionate about the festival. I couldn’t do it without them” said Ms. Schafer in an interview from her office last week.
Mr. De Niro and Ms. Rosenthal have used their celebrity status and connections as a catalyst to create a world-renowned film festival in a fraction of the time as other events of similar size and scope. Part of the festival’s charm is its wide appeal to both industry insiders and the local community who are attracted to the family friendly free events and a diverse selection of movies.
“We wanted to do a lot of free events, and give people a lot of access this year, because people are having a hard time. So we wanted them to experience Tribeca, regardless of how they’re feeling pinched by the economy” explained Ms. Schafer.
These free community events and screenings will be a fixture in lower Manhattan over the next two weekends. The Tribeca Drive-In series runs three nights in a row starting Thursday, April 23, at the scenic World Financial Center Plaza, situated on the edge of the Hudson River.
Thursday’s theme is Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, complete with a pizza party, face painting, and a screening of the 1990 film. Friday will be a tribute to the film Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Saturday will feature the Harlem-born young hip hopper P-Star (Priscilla Star), with a live concert and screening of the documentary profiling her rise to a major record label contract. All three nights’ events start at 6:30 p.m., with the film screenings beginning at dusk.
The following Saturday, May 2, is the Tribeca Family Festival street fair from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m, and a few blocks away will be the ESPN co-sponsored Sports Day, with appearances by professional athletes, mascots, and demonstrations.
While there’s plenty of light entertainment options, the festival is also a treasure trove for serious film fans. With over 500 total screenings of over 130 films narrowed down from a field of nearly 5,000 total submissions, the breadth of options is exciting for anyone who likes movies.
“The film line-up is so strong,” confirmed Ms. Schafer, clearly excited for the culmination of her team’s work to select only the best of the best to make the festival as meaningful as possible. “Our mission is to bring communities together through film,” she said.
Sure there will be plenty of red carpets, glitz, and celebrities. Though another Tribeca strength is highlighting a variety of cultures, and issues of global relevance such as human rights and the environment.
“We very much see the festival being a reflection of the city itself and the different communities that come out to the films … Tribeca does not shy away from talking about issues, whatever they may be. We’re lucky that we’re in New York. People here are not scared to learn about an issue, talk about an issue, fight for issues. And they find what they want at Tribeca. There’s a lot of heavy hitting films.”
With so much to choose from, she offered some advice for first-timers and novices to get the most out of the festival.
“People complain about Tribeca, that there’s too much, and they don’t understand what they should see. I’d say go to anything. You don’t even have to spend money. We do a lot of stuff for free. You can sort of dip your toe in Tribeca, and I think you’ll get a lot of pay-off, because the films are really great. It’s not all about celebrity films or all about hard documentaries. There’s a ton of stuff at the festival.”
To learn more about the festival, visit www.tribecafilm.com/festival. Please also see Foreign Film Highlights at the Tribeca Film Festival for reviews of four noteworthy foreign films premiering at the festival.
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