March 21, 2007–Tribeca Film Festival, presented by American Express along with the Tribeca Film Institute, today announced the selected projects for Tribeca All Access (TAA), a program designed to help foster relationships between film industry executives and filmmakers from traditionally underrepresented communities. Tribeca All Access will present 32 new projects at the five-day event, which runs April 2529 during this years Tribeca Film Festival, held from April 25May 6.
TAA, in its 4th year, will provide the participating directors and screenwriters the opportunity to meet one-on-one with more than 100 potential investors, development executives, producers, and agents in prescheduled meetings. The 32 narrative and documentary directors and screenwriters selected to participate represent members of the African American, Latino, Asian American, Native American and Pacific Islander communities. This years TAA projects span a range of topics, from a romantic comedy starring a neurotic lesbian to a documentary that goes inside the world of a professional league of born-again Christian wrestlers.
Tribeca All Access is now a recognized incubator for U.S.-based writing and directing talent, said Jane Rosenthal, co-founder of the Tribeca Film Institute. We are very proud to present this platform to celebrate a multiplicity of filmmaking voices.
Two alumni of the 2005 TAA program Benson Lee and Jeffrey Morgan will have their works premiere at this years Tribeca Film Festival. Director Benson Lee will present the world premiere of Planet B-Boy, a documentary film on world championship break dancing, in Documentary Competition. Jeffrey Morgan will present the world premiere of Lillie & Leander: A Legacy of Violence, a feature-length documentary that examines what happens when a woman stumbles upon an explosive family secret that hints at decades of racially charged murders. Morgans film will play in this years Discovery program.
Tribeca All Access is about identifying talent and challenging expectations, said Beth Janson, TAA Program Director for the Tribeca Film Institute. We are extremely proud of our selections this year and look forward to facilitating many new and exciting relationships.
This month, Dennis Lee, winner of the 2005 TAA Creative Promise Award is scheduled to go into production on his feature directorial debut Fireflies In The Garden with Ryan Reynolds, Emily Watson, Carrie Ann Moss and Julia Roberts.
Tribeca All Access was a turning point in my career, said Lee. Its a congenial and nurturing program that offers invaluable insight into the film industry. The connections I made through TAA continue to enhance my career.
2007 Tribeca All Access participants were selected from an open call for submissions, which garnered over 300 entries from across the country. Two filmmakers and one screenwriter will be awarded the Tribeca All Access Creative Promise Award, which comes with a prize of $10,000 for narrative and documentary and $5,000 for screenwriting. Announcements regarding the winners will be made at the Tribeca All Access Awards Ceremony at the Tribeca Film Center on April 28th.
TAA is made possible by Bloomberg. Additional support provided by NYC Economic Development Corporation, Time Warner Inc., and the New York State Council on the Arts.
The Tribeca Film Institute
The Tribeca Film Institute creates innovative programs that draw on the unifying power of film to promote understanding, tolerance and global awareness. Our commitment is to educate, entertain and inspire filmmakers and audiences alike, while strengthening the artistic and economic fabric of New York City and its Lower Manhattan community.
For more information visit www.tribecafilminstitute.org.
Venues and Tickets
AMC Theatres is the official theatre partner for the 2007 Tribeca Film Festival and will help the Festival expand its reach with two new screening venues: AMC Loews Kips Bay 15 and AMC Loews 72nd Street 1. Clearview Chelsea West is another key venue addition for 2007. In addition to these three new venues, festival screenings will take place at the following venues: AMC Loews 34th Street 14, AMC Loews Village 7, Regal Cinemas Battery Park Cinemas 11, Tribeca Cinemas, BMCC Tribeca PAC, Pace University Michael Schimmel Center for the Arts, Drive-in at the North Cove, Tribeca Film Center and The Grand Theater @ Tribeca Grand.
Please visit www.tribecafilmfestival.org or call 866.941.FEST (3378) to purchase Festival Passes, Packages and individual tickets. Single tickets can be purchased online, by phone, or at the Tribeca Film Festival box office, located at 15 Laight Street (between Varick and Avenue of the Americas, one block south of Canal Street) and additional satellite locations. Single tickets will be available to downtown residents (with proof of residency) at only the Tribeca Festival Box Office beginning on Friday, April 13th. Single tickets will be available for purchase to the general public online, by phone, and at the Box Office beginning on Saturday, April 14-Sunday, May 6.
The Tribeca Film Festival
The Tribeca Film Festival was founded in 2002 by Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal, and Craig Hatkoff after the attacks on the World Trade Center to help economically and culturally revitalize Lower Manhattan through an annual celebration of film, music, and culture. The Festivals mission is to assist filmmakers to reach the broadest possible audience, enable the international film community and the general public to experience the power of film, and to promote New York City as a major filmmaking center.
In its first five years, the festival attracted over one and a half million attendees from the US and abroad and created more than $325 million in economic activity for New York City.
The sixth annual Tribeca Film Festival will run from April 25th to May 6th, 2007. The Festival is anchored in Tribeca with additional venues throughout Manhattan, and includes film screenings, special events, concerts, a family street fair, and Tribeca Talks panel discussions. For more information on this years festival, as well as for highlights on the festival and filmmakers as it takes place, please visit www.tribecafilmfestival.org.
About the 2007 Festival Sponsors
As Founding Sponsor of the Tribeca Film Festival, American Express is committed to expanding the Festival, bringing it to new audiences in compelling ways while offering Cardmembers and the general public special benefits that enhance the festival-going experience. As part of a long-term partnership with the Festival, American Express delivers on its Cardmembers passion for film, celebrates filmmakers, fosters community and brings energy and business to Lower Manhattan.
