Tribeca Film Festival: Alejandro González Iñárritu, Barbra Streisand, Emma Watson Highlight a Star-Studded 2017 Edition
Sandra Miska
The Tribeca Film Festival, the international film festival co-founded by Robert De Niro to celebrate his hometown of New York as a major filmmaking center, will once again take place for the 16th year April 19 – 30 in lower Manhattan.
The festival will kick off with an opening night gala featuring the world premiere of Chris Perkel’s documentary “Clive Davis: The Soundtrack of Our Lives” at Radio City Music Hall. This doc celebrating the legendary record producer and music executive will be followed by a concert featuring some of the superstars he helped nurture, including Aretha Franklin, Jennifer Hudson and Earth, Wind & Fire.
Other star-studded galas include the world premiere of the “The Circle,” a sci-fi thriller about a young woman played by Emma Watson who lands her dream job at a tech company and becomes involved with a mysterious man. Tom Hanks, Patton Oswalt and the late Bill Paxton co-star. Sean “Diddy” Combs will present his documentary celebrating the first 20 years of his record company Bad Boy Entertainment, “Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop: The Bad Boy Story.”
Another documentary screening that shouldn’t be missed is the world premiere of “The Protectors: Walk in the Ranger’s Shoes,” a short documentary from Kathryn Bigelow. The Oscar-winning director worked alongside VR creator Imraan Ismail to chronicle a day in the life of a Garamba National Park Ranger, in the Democratic Republic of Congo. There, he risks his safety to defend wildlife – specifically the elephants whom are sought out by poachers for their ivory tusks. “The Protectors” will be one of 29 films at this year’s festival that makes use of virtual reality technology.
Bigelow won’t be the only Oscar winner making her mark at Tribeca this year. The legendary Barbra Streisand is set to take part in a Tribeca Talk alongside directors Robert Rodriguez. Alejandro González Iñárritu, the filmmaker who won Best Director back-to-back for “Birdman” and “The Revenant,” will also be participating in a talk as part of the Directors Series, as will Noah Baumbach, as well as Jon Favreau – who will be joined by actress Scarlett Johansson. The Storytellers Series will feature “Girls” creator Lena Dunham, rapper/actor Common, and Bruce Springsteen with Tom Hanks.
Other highlights of the festival include “Dog Years,” a drama about a former movie star dealing with aging. Zachary Quinto, Jenny Slate and Jon Hamm star in Aardvark, a drama about a therapist who falls in love with her patient’s brother. Steve Coogan stars in “The Trip to Spain,” a follow-up to his 2010 comedy “The Trip.” Oscar winner Marion Cotillard will also star alongside her real-life partner Guillame Canet in his musical comedy “Rock‘n Roll.”
57 short films are set to screen at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival, 40 percent of which have been directed by women. Salma Hayek, Elisabeth Moss, Bobby Cannavale, John Turturro and Mae Whitman are some of the names involved in the making of these shorts, both in front and behind the camera.
Great films of the past will also be celebrated, including “The Godfather” and “The Godfather Part II.” The festival will close with a double-screening of the films, to be followed by a conversation with director Francis Ford Coppola and actors Al Pacino, James Caan, Robert Duvall, Diane Keaton, Talia Shire and, of course, Robert De Niro.
De Niro, along with producer Jane Rosenthal and businessman Craig Hatkoff, founded the Tribeca Film Festival in 2002 in to help revitalize NYC following the 9/11 attacks. The festival features hundreds of screenings, including narratives, shorts and documentaries. A full line-up for this year’s festival will be announced later in March.
The 16th annual Tribeca Film Festival will take place April 19 – 30 in New York.