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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 20, 2003
PR- 053-03
www.nyc.gov


MAYOR MICHAEL R. BLOOMBERG, ROBERT DE NIRO, JANE ROSENTHAL AND KEVIN SPACEY ANNOUNCE SECOND ANNUAL TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL

Festival Returns To Showcase Great Movies & Celebrate Cultural Vitality Of Lower Manhattan

Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, Tribeca Film Festival co-founders Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal and Craig Hatkoff, and Tribeca Film Institute Board Member Kevin Spacey today announced the Second Annual Tribeca Film Festival in Lower Manhattan. Due to the overwhelming success of last year’s inaugural event, the 2003 Tribeca Film Festival will include an expanded schedule, more diverse programming and additional special events. The Festival, which is presented by American Express, will take place from Saturday, May 3, through Sunday, May 11, 2003.

“Last year’s Tribeca Film Festival was a great success on all fronts and a tribute to the cultural vitality and strength of Lower Manhattan,” said Mayor Bloomberg. “The Festival brought thousands of filmmakers and film lovers to the area from all over the world, which was precisely what Lower Manhattan and our City’s economy needed post-September 11th. Our cultural life is energized when New Yorkers like Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal and Craig Hatkoff create events like this that showcase New York City. I’d like to thank American Express for their continued support of the Tribeca Film Festival and so many other events. We look forward to another successful festival filled with lots of movie magic.”

“Last year’s Festival was a dream come true,” said Robert De Niro. “What started as an idea thirteen years ago became the start of an annual film festival to celebrate both the world of film and the strength and vitality of Lower Manhattan. We were thrilled with the turnout last year, and look forward to doing it again this year.”

“We could not have been happier with the success of the first Tribeca Film Festival,” said Jane Rosenthal. “The thousands of people who traveled to Tribeca to experience the screenings and events brought a sense of renewed hope and energy to Lower Manhattan that was beyond our expectations.  Moving into our second year, it is once again our goal to invite the world to come to Tribeca to experience a film festival that everyone can enjoy – from those who are deeply involved in the industry to those who simply enjoy a good movie.”

“The Tribeca Film Festival is a tremendous event that helps bring excitement and business to downtown New York,” said John Hayes, executive vice president, Global Advertising and Brand Management of American Express. “We are proud to be the founding sponsor of the Festival. American Express is committed to the people, the progress and the promise of Lower Manhattan and it’s gratifying to see our city vibrant again through the help of the Tribeca Film Festival and many other activities.”

Tribeca Film Institute Board Member and TriggerStreet Productions Founder Kevin Spacey also announced the creation of a new award for the Festival. A TriggerStreet.com/
Budweiser New Filmmaker Award will be presented to a Tribeca Film Festival participant for the first time at the 2003 Festival.

 “We are proud to be a part of the Second Annual Tribeca Film Festival,” said Kevin Spacey. “Like TriggerStreet.com, the Tribeca Film Festival is a great opportunity for new filmmakers to be discovered and we are thrilled to have the chance to present this award.”

The 2003 Tribeca Film Festival, under the direction of new Executive Director Peter Scarlet, will include a greater number of films from around the world and five additional award categories, giving filmmakers an even greater opportunity to earn recognition. This year’s festival will include the premieres of more than 200 feature films, documentaries, and film shorts as well as restored classics and Hollywood studio premieres. A “Filmmaker Forum” which will include various events specifically designed for film professionals and a broad showcase of independently produced films both American and international will form the focus of the program along with special spotlights on music films, restored classics and a 25th anniversary tribute to the Black Filmmaker Foundation. The Family Festival will be expanded to two weekends (May 3-4 and May 10-11) and take place on Greenwich Street. Lastly, the festival will once again host the popular outdoor Rock & Comedy concert.

The Tribeca Film Festival is an opportunity for the general public to view a wide variety of the world’s best films before they get picked up from a major studio. For first-time filmmakers, it is a chance to premiere their films and a time for veterans to showcase their most recent work.  At the event, national and international talent will mingle with members of the NYC film community, emerging and established filmmakers from all over the world during the week when more than 200 features, documentaries and shorts will be screened alongside gala premieres of major studio releases. All screenings and events will take place in locations throughout Tribeca.

“We are pleased that Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal and Craig Hatkoff have recommitted themselves to helping Lower Manhattan and the rest of our City by holding
the 2nd Annual Tribeca Film Festival this coming spring,” said Empire State Development Chairman Charles A. Gargano. “Based on the overwhelming success of the first Tribeca Film Festival, I am confident that their efforts will again provide New York City with a tremendous economic boost.”

“As the independent filmmaking capital of the United States and one of the world’s largest international production centers, there is no better location for a film festival than New York City,” said Mayor’s Office of Film, Television and Broadcasting Commissioner Katherine Oliver. “Years ago, Robert De Niro and Jane Rosenthal helped to transform Tribeca into a thriving and creative hub for filmmakers. Now, they’ve now taken their commitment one giant step forward, and continue to build the Tribeca Film Festival, which effectively supports the efforts of the 100,000 New Yorkers who make movies in the City every year.”

The Tribeca Film Festival was founded by Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal and Craig Hatkoff to celebrate New York City as a major filmmaking capital and to contribute to the long-term recovery of Lower Manhattan after the attacks of September 11, 2001. The First Annual Tribeca Film Festival had a tremendous economic impact on New York City. The event attracted more than 150,000 people from around the globe to Lower Manhattan for five days of film screenings, panel discussions, an all-day outdoor family festival and a free public concert. The organizers of the film festival estimate that the event generated more than   $10 million for the City in production costs including approximately 3,600 hotel room nights booked south of Canal Street and approximately 90,000 restaurant meals.

Films that were screened at the first Tribeca Film Festival (TFF) went on to win more than a dozen awards and several of the short filmmakers have been tapped for feature development at various production companies after showcasing their shorts at the festival. Some of the more noteworthy film successes from the 2002 Festival include: Roger Dodger (World Premiered at TFF, bought by Artisan), Standing in the Shadows of Motown (World Premiered at TFF, voted Best Documentary of 2002 by the New York Film Critics’ Circle), Interview with the Assassin (World Premiered at TFF, bought by Magnolia Pictures) and Uncle Frank (World Premiered at TFF, bought by HBO).

In addition, the film “About a Boy” starring Hugh Grant and Toni Collette, which premiered at the Tribeca Performing Arts Center at last year’s festival and was produced by De Niro and Rosenthal’s Tribeca Productions, is up for an Academy Award in the “Best Adapted Screenplay” category. More than half of all of this year’s Academy Award Nominations went to films shot on location in New York, or to New York-based production companies.

Tickets for film screenings and other events will go on sale in April.  For more information on the Tribeca Film Festival, the public should call 1-866-941-FEST (3378), or visit the Tribeca Film Festival website at www.tribecafilmfestival.org.

 


 

www.nyc.gov

Contact: Ed Skyler / Jennifer Falk 
(212) 788-2958
 
  Bob Lawson (Rubenstein for Tribeca) 
(212) 843-8024