“Everyone knows about his pajamas, his lifestyle, his art, his movies, but not many people know about his sensitivity and vulnerability,” Italian director Pappi Corsicato recently told me. As you may have guessed, unless you’ve missed four decades of art world chatter, the public persona he was referencing is the painter and filmmaker Julian Schnabel. Corsicato’s aperçu followed our query about the title of his new documentary, “Julian Schnabel: A Private P...
“Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” wondered Christ disciple Nathaneal in the Gospel of John. Reframing that question in the context of present-day Israel, Nazarene writer-director-star Shady Srour has retained biblical skeptism in his debut feature Holy Air. But also wicked humor. As Philip told Nathaneal, “Come and see.”
Srour plays Adam, a world-weary accountant who lives with his wife Lamia (Laëtitia Eïdo) in Nazareth. As Christian Arabs i...
“Who is the Shadowman?” asked 80s headlines about the black, phantom-like figures haunting the New York landscape. Now along comes an impressive answer in the documentary Shadowman, about their creator. Given that he is the elusive street art pioneer Richard Hambleton, mysteries still abound after the closing credits. But that’s much to the film’s credit. A beguiling portrait of the artist and his era, it leaves us raring to fathom more.
Some eight years in...
The 2017 Tribeca Film Festival Presented by AT&T opened with CLIVE DAVIS: THE SOUNDTRACK OF OUR LIVES and Concert.
The Tribeca Film Festival -launched after 9/11 to promote the cultural and economic revival of Lower Manhattan- provides a platform for innovative filmmakers to present their latest work alongside some major movie premieres too. The 2017 program will feature films of all stripes: crowd-pleasing blockbusters-to be, provocative docume...
As in past editions the 2016 Tribeca Film Festival continues to expand traditional film festival limits to embrace new areas as eagerly anticipated by its audience. Before the Berlin Film Festival incorporated innovative television in its program schedule several years ago, Tribeca had already shown in 2004 the last episode of the hit show Friends. This year it presented 16 television programs, ‘The Best of the Small Screen on the Big Screen’ incorporating series finales of HBO&rsq...
What to do if you’re a raging anti-Semite and you discover your Jewish roots? As probed in the documentary Keep Quiet, it’s the stunner that Hungarian ultra-nationalist Csanád Szegedi began grappling with when his maternal grandparents were outed as Jews.
Keep Quiet opens by showing family snapshots in nostalgic black-and-white. Yet any stirring of sentimentality is quickly dashed with a caveat about what happens “when you base your story on a lie.&rdquo...
Unicorn. Goose. Shell. Tower. If you haven't been to Siena, Italy, if you aren't up on the city's 17 districts, these four are a colorful start. All of Siena's ancient neighborhoods play a role in the local horse race called the Palio and in Cosima Spender's documentary of the same name.
Palio premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival this past April, and the twice-yearly race is around the bend: first comes Palio della Madonna di Provenzano on July 2, fo...
TransFatty Lives has its next incarnation in Hawaii. Having recently nabbed an audience award at the Tribeca Film Festival, the documentary by and about Patrick O'Brien will now get a "sneak peek screening for tastemakers" at the mini-film fest of the Pacific Rim International Conference on Disability and Diversity.*
O'Brien's intimate tale begins in Manhattan, where the eponymous DJ and director of short films including Paraplegic DJ and Born Again Po...
Christie's and its much-ballyhooed billion dollar week affirm that art addiction is on the rise. Peggy Guggenheim would approve. For a glimpse of the famed collector's habit, there's Lisa Immordino Vreeland's documentary Peggy Guggenheim — Art Addict. A few weeks back, when it premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival, I spoke with Immordino Vreeland. The following link will draw up our chat:
http://www.thalo.com/articles/view/1032/peggy_guggenheim_...
For Slow West, debut director John Maclean tapped veteran cinematographer Robbie Ryan to make it a visual bonanza. I caught up with Ryan several weeks ago, when the film was screening at the Tribeca Film Festival. Click below for his insights:
http://www.thalo.com/articles/view/1037/cinematographer_robbie_ryan_on_shooting_slow_west
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With Goodbye to All That, writer/actor Angus MacLachlan says hello to directing. Greeting him back is success. There have been handshakes all around since his leading man Paul Schneider took the medal for “Best Actor in a Narrative Feature” at the 2014 Tribeca Film Festival. It's almost embarrassing to point out that the theme of the film is our need to be known and appreciated.
The main leave-taking in Goodbye is the breakup of Otto Wall's (Shneider...
At the Tribeca Film Festival premiere of overpopulation inquiry Misconception, a cranky viewer took filmmaker Jessica Yu to task on the grounds that her topic is urgent and she "handled it very lightly." One man's criticism is another man's tagline. Why not make a subject as bleak and obstruse as Earth's mounting human throngs entertaining and engaging? Who besides the old scold and his cronies would go see an academic lesson on film? Humanity's...
Spoiler alert: Ian Cheney's documentary The Search for General Tso ends with the audience desperately craving General Tso's Chicken. Luckily, the rest of the film is full of surprises. For one, who was this military man who lent his name to America's second favorite ethnic dish after pizza?
To whet the palate for a feast of history, Cheney asks sundry Americans this very question. Answers range from the ridiculous to the ridiculous. Traveling to Shanghai, the filmmak...
By Maria Esteves – April 26, 2014
Multimedia artist One9 directorial debut music documentary TIME IS ILLMATIC premiered during the 13th Tribeca Film Festival to a full house audience at the AMC Loews Village, New York, Friday, April 25, 2014. The post premiere Q&A session immediately followed with director One9 and writer Erik Parker, moderated by director of sales & operations Loren Hammonds, Tribeca Film Festival. Questions posed to One9 and Parker by Hammonds and the audience ...
By Maria Esteves – April 26, 2014
The 13th Tribeca Film Festival 2014 (TFF 2014) Opening Night Premiere Music Documentary of TIME IS ILLMATIC, directed by multimedia artist One9 commenced Wednesday, April 16, at the Beacon Theater, New York. Presented by AT&T, TFF celebrated the 20th anniversary of the hip-hop classic album Illmatic with the documentary debut and live performance of the entire album by recording artist Nas (Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones).
TIME IS ILLMATIC is a provocative...
Nineteen-seventy-one was the year the American press lost its virginity. That June, Daniel Ellsberg leaked the Pentagon Papers. But a lesser-known WikiLeaks antecedent took place three months prior, as captured in Johanna Hamilton's riveting documentary 1971.
On the evening of March 8, eight anti-war protesters broke into an FBI office in Media, Pennsylvania, and made off with every document they could lay their hands on. The heist went down on the evening of the sensational Muham...
By Maria Esteves – April 21, 2014
The 2014 Tribeca Film Festival Premiere Documentary BEYOND THE BRICK: A LEGO BRICKUMENTARY, directed by Academy Award winner Daniel Junge and Academy Award nominee Kief Davidson commenced Sunday, April 20, 2014 at the SVA theatre, New York. The post premiere Q&A session immediately followed moderated by director of programming Genna Terranova, Tribeca Film Festival. Questions posed by the audience to directors Junge, Davidson and cast members Lego Ar...
By Maria Esteves – April 19, 2014
Lou Howe’s directorial debut of GABRIEL premiered during the 13th Tribeca Film Festival at the SVA theatre, New York, Thursday, April 17, 2014. The post premiere Q&A session immediately followed with director Howe, lead actor Rory Culkin, cast and crew members moderated by artistic director Frederic Boyer, Tribeca Film Festival.
Questions posed by Boyer and the audience to director Howe and cast included: “Describe the film style, th...
By Maria Esteves - March 30, 2013
The 12th Annual 2013 Tribeca Festival (TFF 2013) Closing Night 30th anniversary restoration of The King of Comedy, directed by Martin Scorsese will be held at Tribeca BMCC PAC, Saturday, April 27. Originally released in 1983, the new digital 4K restoration was made possible by The Film Foundation, Regency Enterprises, and Twentieth Century Fox. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit http://www.tribecafilm.com/festival/tickets
* 2013 Tribeca Film F...
By Maria Esteves – April 27, 2012
The 11th Tribeca Film Festival 2012 (TFF 2012) New York Premiere of 2 DAYS IN NEW YORK, directed by Julie Delpy commenced Thursday, April 26, 2012, 9:30 PM at BMCC. Red carpet arrivals included actor Chris Rock, director Julie Delpy, Alexia Landeau, industry professionals, and celebrity quests.
TFF 2012 New York Premiere of 2 DAYS IN NEW YORK red carpet
arrivals: actor Chris Rock, 2 DAYS IN NEW YORK.
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Another morning...damn it, and the year is almost half way gone. How does this even happen?
Well, here is something for you to do...I am trying to pitch my short film idea about the November 17th, 1989 Velvet Revolution in Czechoslovakia.
If I get the most votes, the short will premiere at Tribeca 2012 film festival.
So, if you can help, please go here and click THUMBS UP on my video.
You can watch it bellow first if you prefer.
And if you really like this, tell at least one of your fri...
SHE MONKEYS, a coming of age film with sexual undertones from Swedish director Lisa Aschan was named Best Narrative Film at the 10th Tribeca Film Festival, which ended its 12 day run yesterday. The film, which won a top prize at the Gothenberg Film Festival and the Teddy Award as best gay film at the Berlin Film Festival earlier this year, is a hothouse story of emerging sexuality set amongst teenage girls in a horse acrobatics training school. Competition, both athletic and sexual, b...
Aside from the smorgasboard of films on tap at this year’s 10th Tribeca Film Festival, which runs through Sunday, the event has been filled with very interesting film panels and talks. One of the most interesting took place on Tuesday entitled Digital By Design. Paramount Digital Entertainment president Tom Lesinski led a panel of experts to discuss how social media can assist in both the marketing and the distribution of independent films.
Now that more movies are being distr...
With the Tribeca Film Festival reaching its mid-point, one does not necessarily have to be in New York to be part of the excitement. The Tribeca (Online) Film Festival, supported by founding partner American Express, is a pioneering digital initiative that allows audiences across the USA to view feature and short films for free and worldwide audiences to engage with filmmakers and industry experts as the Tribeca Film Festival’s 10th edition runs concurrently in lower Manhattan from Ap...
It has been quite a year for veteran actor Robert De Niro. In January, he was honored at the Golden Globes with a Lifetime Achievement Award. Currently, his brainchild and labor of love, the Tribeca Film Festival, is celebrating its 10th anniversary as one of New York’s most provocative film and culture showcases. Next month, De Niro heads to the south of France as President of the Jury at the Cannes Film Festival. After more than 50 years in the business and a film career that spans ...
