The Tribeca Film Festival is currently underway, showcasing a diverse array of movies, documentaries, and shorts from both emerging and established filmmakers. Founded in 2002 by Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal, and Craig Hatkoff, the festival was originally created to revitalize the Tribeca neighborhood in Manhattan following the 9/11 attacks. Today, it has grown into a prominent event in the industry, known for its wide-ranging programming that includes screenings, panel discussions, and interactive experiences.
This year’s lineup features a mix of world premieres, innovative storytelling, and tributes to cinematic legends, reflecting the festival’s commitment to celebrating the art of storytelling and fostering a vibrant community of creators and audiences.
With so much great programming, we’ve compiled a list of some of the most highly-anticipated films to keep your eye on.
Back in his glory days, Bernard Rozyski, better known as “Bang Bang,” was a beloved prizefighter boxer riding high on his success. These days he’s angry and closed off, living in his grungy house in a blue-collar Detroit neighborhood. When Bang Bang’s estranged daughter unexpectedly drops her troublemaking teenage son off at his doorstep, it gives the bitter old man a chance at personal redemption as he trains the potential-laden kid in the ring. Problems arise when the former champ’s past demons have other plans, forcing Bang Bang to confront everything he’s tried so hard to suppress.
Screenings:
Following the death of her family dog, Emma (Margaret Cho) finds herself at a crossroads where grief and release play together: a midlife awakening is now in full throttle, and those closest to Emma feel the impact, including her best friend Stan (Jesse Tyler Ferguson) and her rambunctious daughter Maggie (Alice Lee). To make matters more complicated and ripe for comedic mishaps, Emma’s estranged ex-husband Andy (Kenneth Choi) returns to the city from Singapore down on his professional luck and aiming to rekindle things with his lost love.
Screenings:
It should be the best party of the year: Karmapalooza, a massive music festival. When a group of college friends score tickets to the event, they set out on a road trip, packed into a minivan stashed with all the booze and weed they need. But a vehicular mishap forces them to spend the night inside an isolated Airbnb, which seems cool enough — after all, where better to party hard than in someone else’s house? Not so fast. Being stuck indoors together causes their internal rifts and shared past to surface. Even worse, an uninvited guest joins the party and decides they need to pay for their transgressions by murdering them in extremely gory ways tied to their specific sins.
Screenings:
When two couples, Abby and Benjamin, and David and recently-converted-to-Judaism Meg, return home for Shabbat dinner, an unexpected shadow looms over their night — an accidental death (or is it murder?) threatens to unravel the whole evening. Over the course of one night during this anything-but-typical New York City shabbos, their family get-together takes a turn for the worse…
Screenings:
A young girl’s brother returns from war with a most disturbing souvenir.
Screenings:
In this intimate and revealing documentary, legendary tennis star Roger Federer shares his decision to retire after an illustrious career that spanned decades. Filmmakers Asif Kapadia and Joe Sabia capture Federer’s final days on the court as he prepares for his last tournament, the 2022 Laver Cup, offering a rare glimpse into the life and mind of one of the greatest athletes of all time. Through candid interviews with Federer, his wife Mirka and his chief rivals Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray, the film provides a fascinating portrait of a man grappling with the end of an era.
Screenings:
Flighty and unpredictable Ricky (Michael Angarano) is kicked out of his convalescent home following the death of his father and surprises his best friend, Glenn (Michael Cera), by forcing him on a road trip across California. Unbeknownst to him, Glenn is about to start a family with his wife Rosie (Kristen Stewart) and is sick of Ricky’s inability to grow out of their past shenanigans. In the worn yellow seats of Glenn’s old college car, the two men reckon with the mistakes of their past and the questions lurking in their future.
Screenings:
Summer vacation is usually the time for kids to let loose, but for fourteen-year-old Griffin Nafly, it’s time to get down to the serious business of putting on his dramatic new play: an ambitious cross between Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf and American Beauty. However, when his tween collaborators get distracted by more trivial pursuits like boys and camp, Griffin’s attention drifts toward Brad, the zoned-out handyman working at his house. Increasingly smitten and seeking a kindred spirit in Brad due to his failed career as a New York-based performance artist, Griffin finds himself embarking on an unforgettable summer.
Screenings:
Hailing from a family of circus performers, gymnast Angela Nikolau found escape from a broken home by turning Moscow’s urban skyline into her own personal trapeze, establishing herself as an elite among the few women rooftoppers and a growing online sensation. When longtime rooftopping superstar Vanya Beerkus asks Angela to collaborate on a photoshoot atop China’s highest construction site, the tentative pair find themselves on a whirlwind adventure, scaling the world’s tallest skyscrapers, finding the true meaning of trust and falling deeper in love with each new adventure. But as the COVID-19 pandemic sets in and sponsorship opportunities dry up, the young couple find both their livelihoods and relationship at their breaking points. With the pending opening of the world’s newest super-skyscraper, Malaysia’s Merdeka 118, Angela and Vanya must cast aside growing doubts and fraying trust and face their most daunting challenge yet, leading to an emotionally unforgettable climax that must be seen to be believed.
Screenings:
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