The 2017 Tribeca Film Festival wrapped this past weekend with its Audience Awards. Two awards–one for narrative and one for documentary–were given to the audience choices for the best films. The Divine Order (Die göttliche Ordnung), directed and written by Petra Volpe, was chosen to receive the Narrative award, and Hondros, directed by Greg Campbell, written by Campbell and Jenny Golden, garnered the Documentary award. Each award came with a cash prize of $10,000.
The winners were announced at the celebration of the 45th anniversary of The Godfather at Radio City Music Hall on Saturday (4/29), which closed out the Festival’s 16th edition.
“It is always exiting to see what resonates most with the audience, and this year both the narrative and documentary winners represent smart filmmaking and impactful storytelling,” said Tribeca Film Festival’s Paula Weinstein.
The runners-up were Saturday Church, directed and written by Damon Cardasis, for the narrative audience award and Shadowman, directed and written by Oren Jacoby,for the documentary audience award. Throughout the Festival, which kicked off on April 19, audience members voted by using the official Tribeca Film Festival app on their mobile devices and rating the film they just experienced on a scale of 1-5 stars. Films in the U.S. Narrative Competition, International Narrative Competition, World Documentary Competition, Viewpoints, Spotlight, Specials, and Midnight sections were eligible.
Here are descriptions of the Audience Award-winning films.
WINNERS
—The Divine Order (Die göttliche Ordnung). Political leaders in Switzerland cited "Divine Order" as the reason why women still did not have the right to vote as late as 1970. Director Petra Volpe explores this surprising history through the story of Nora, a quiet housewife from a quaint village searching for the fierce suffragette leader inside her. With Marie Leuenberger, Max Simonischek, Rachel Braunschweig, Sibylle Brunner, Marta Zoffoli, Bettina Stucky. In Swiss-German with subtitles.
The film played in the International Narrative Competition section.
—Hondros (USA). Beginning with the war in Kosovo in 1999, award-winning photographer Chris Hondros served as a witness to conflict for over a decade before being killed in Libya in 2011. In Hondros, director and childhood friend Greg Campbell creates a portrait of a man with not only great depth and sensitivity, but a passion for his craft, and an unending talent for creating breathtaking imagery. Executive produced by Jake Gyllenhaal. In Arabic, English with subtitles.
The film played in the Spotlight Documentary section.
RUNNERS UP
—Saturday Church (USA). 14-year-old Ulysses is a shy and effeminate teen being raised in the Bronx by his strict Aunt Rose. He finds escape in a rich fantasy life of music and dance, and soon with a vibrant transgender youth community called Saturday Church. Damon Cardasis’ directorial debut is a rousing celebration of one boy’s search for his identity. With Luka Kain, Margot Bingham, Regina Taylor, Marquis Rodriguez, MJ Rodriguez, Indya Moore, Alexia Garcia.
The film played in the U.S. Narrative Competition section.
—Shadowman (USA). In the early 1980s, Richard Hambleton was New York City’s precursor to Banksy, a rogue street artist whose silhouette paintings haunted the sides of Manhattan buildings. Like so many other geniuses of his time, he fell victim to drug addiction, even as his work continued to rise in both demand and value. Shadowman doubles as both a time capsule of a forgotten New York City era, and a redemption story.
The film played in the Documentary Competition section.
Record Attendance
After 12 days filled with world premiere film and television screenings, cutting-edge virtual reality experiences, the inaugural Tribeca Games Festival, momentous talks, and notable concerts and reunions, the 2017 Tribeca Film Festival announced an estimated attendance of more than 153,000 people to 531 screenings and talks, the virtual arcade, and games with an additional 3.8 million people participating in 15 talks and post-film conversations from afar via Facebook Live. (Note: This is record-setting from recent years and surpasses last year’s attendance, even though in 2016 there were 556 screenings and one of the main theaters being used in 2017 had its seats reconfigured to enhance the audience’s movie-going experience, which resulted in 25% less total seating capacity.)
From April 19 – April 30, the Festival presented 97 features, 57 short films, 31 immersive storytelling projects, 15 television shows, and 16 N.O.W. (New Online Work) projects from 42 countries over the course of the 12 days.
“With film always at our core, the 2017 Tribeca Film Festival continued to break boundaries–this year with television, virtual reality, online work, and gaming–to stay ahead of the convergence of storytelling mediums,” said Jane Rosenthal, co-founder of the Tribeca Film Festival and executive chair of Tribeca Enterprises. “Bringing great stories and great storytellers to our growing audience, no matter what screen or platform, is why we continue to do what we do each year.”
