Twenty-five years ago, in the wake of September 11, a festival was born to heal a city–conceived and built in just 120 days. That resilient spirit endures, and the Tribeca Festival today announced a slate of programming celebrating 25 years of community and storytelling, including a special conversation with co-founders Robert De Niro and Jane Rosenthal, free outdoor screenings at Hudson Yards, and, for the first time, limited public tickets to the Tribeca Festival Awards Ceremony on June 11, where De Niro and Rosenthal will present the signature Founders Award.
On June 11, De Niro, Rosenthal, and special guests will sit down with filmmaker Matt Tyrnauer for an intimate 25th anniversary conversation reflecting on the decision that helped revitalize downtown New York and reshape its cultural landscape. The discussion will explore the Festival’s founding as an act of civic renewal and radical optimism, its evolution over 25 years into one of the world’s most vital cultural gatherings, and its continuing role in shaping how stories are told and shared in New York and beyond. Featuring firsthand accounts, defining bets, near failures, and pivotal moments from the people who built it, the conversation will offer a rare look at how Tribeca has evolved alongside the city itself. This is a conversation that could only happen at 25.
“The festival was an act of defiance. We had 120 days. Thirteen-hundred volunteers. No money. No blueprint. Just an idea and a neighborhood that needed people back in it,” said De Niro. “This wasn’t just about movies–it was about whether downtown was coming back. We were doing everything we could think of to get New York to feel like New York again.”
“I fell in love with New York through the movies and now, New York needed the movies to recover,” said Rosenthal. “Stories help people understand each other in a divided world. That was our mission after 9/11, and it remains true today. We’re still doing what we originally set out to do, entertaining audiences, and championing diverse voices with something meaningful to say.”
To honor this legacy, the Festival presents Tribeca at 25: Celebrating the Stories We Share, a series of free outdoor screenings at Hudson Yards revisiting landmark premieres, audience favorites, and breakthrough discoveries that have defined Tribeca over the past quarter century. More than a retrospective, this series brings defining Tribeca films back to life–under the stars and free to all. Titles include Tomas Alfredson’s Let the Right One In (TF ‘08); Damien Chazelle’s directorial debut Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench (TF ‘09); Paul Crowder and Jon Small’s The Last Play at Shea (TF ‘10); David Gelb’s directorial debut Jiro Dreams of Sushi (TF ‘11); Orlando von Einsiedel’s first feature-length documentary Virunga (TF ‘14); Frédéric Tcheng’s directorial debut Dior and I (TF ‘14); Nia DaCosta’s directorial debut Little Woods (TF ‘18); Ani Simon-Kennedy’s The Short History of the Long Road (TF ‘19); and Jessica Kingdom’s directorial debut Ascension (TF ‘21). Several screenings will be followed by conversations with the filmmakers behind them, including directors DaCosta, Gelb, Simon-Kennedy, Tcheng and producers Jasmine McGlade, Gabrielle Nadig and Cailin Yatsko.
The series also spotlights the Festival’s Academy Award-winning Shorts Program, underscoring Tribeca’s commitment to discovery and emerging voices, with selections including Ben Proudfoot’s Queen of Basketball (TF ‘21); Tusk’s Ripe! (TF ‘24); and Julia Aks and Steve Pinder’s Jane Austen’s Period Drama (TF ‘24).
From its earliest days in Lower Manhattan, Tribeca has been a festival for the people–a commitment reflected in 25 years of free programming. Since its inception, the Festival has generated more than $1 billion in economic impact for New York City while expanding access through free family screenings, street fairs, craft workshops, and conversations with filmmakers and industry leaders across the five boroughs.
That spirit has taken many forms: in June 2014, Film for All brought When Harry Met Sally to all five boroughs simultaneously, an early expression of Tribeca’s commitment to access at scale; the Tribeca Drive-In evolved from local outdoor screenings of classic films into Tribeca Drive-In: Dinner and a Movie at Oculus Plaza, before expanding nationwide in 2020; and in 2021, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Festival went entirely outdoors and free citywide, bringing cinema back to New Yorkers when it was needed most.
Capping off the 25th anniversary celebration, the public is invited–for the first time–to attend the Tribeca Festival Awards Ceremony and cocktail hour. Join De Niro and Rosenthal as they present the signature Founders Award and celebrate this year’s competition winners across categories including narrative, documentary, shorts, games, and audio storytelling. Limited tickets are now available at TribecaFilm.com.
Here’s a rundown of the schedule:
TRIBECA AT 25: A CONVERSATION WITH CO-FOUNDERS JANE ROSENTHAL AND ROBERT DE NIRO
Tribeca Festival co-founders Jane Rosenthal and Robert De Niro sit down for a conversation with Matt Tyrnauer to reflect on the founding of the Festival as an act of urban renewal and radical optimism; its evolution over 25 years into one of the world’s most vital cultural gatherings; and its continuing role in shaping New York’s cultural landscape. They will share real stories, defining bets, near failures, and insights into where Tribeca and culture are headed next. Tribeca has always been about the power of storytelling to bring us together. In honor of our 25th anniversary, we invite our community to come together again for this candid conversation about the risks, reinventions, and cultural moments that define Tribeca.
DATE: Thursday, June 11
TIME: 8:00 PM
LOCATION: OKX Theater at BMCC TPAC
TRIBECA FESTIVAL AWARDS NIGHT
Join Tribeca co-founders Jane Rosenthal and Robert De Niro for one of the festival’s most electric nights as this year’s competition winners are announced. Across categories spanning first-time filmmakers, documentaries, shorts, games, podcasts, and more, this is where breakthroughs happen, new voices are launched, and tomorrow’s headlines are born. Hear directly from our esteemed juries as they announce the standout works of the Festival, then stay for a lively cocktail hour to celebrate alongside filmmakers, industry guests, and the creative community shaping what’s next.
DATE: Thursday, June 11
TIME: 4:00 PM
LOCATION: Spring Studios
TRIBECA AT 25: CELEBRATING THE STORIES WE SHARE, On the outdoor screen in the Public Square and Gardens, Hudson Yards
Thursday, June 4 at 7pm
The Last Play at Shea: (TF ‘10)
We kick off our series with this celebration of Tribeca’s music storytelling through the intersecting stories of two NY icons: Shea Stadium and Billy Joel.
The intersecting histories of a stadium, a team, and a music legend are examined in a documentary that charts the ups and downs of the New York Mets and the life and career of Long Island native Billy Joel, the last performer to play Shea Stadium. Set to the soundtrack of Joel’s final Shea concerts, Last Play interweaves personal Joel interviews with exclusive concert footage and featuring guests like Tony Bennett and Roger Daltrey. Director: Paul Crowder. Producer: Steve Cohen, Nigel Sinclair
Friday, June 5 at 7pm
Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench (TF ‘09)
A rediscovery of acclaimed filmmaker Damien Chazelle’s (La La Land, Babylon, and First Man) first feature, an intimate love letter blending cinema and jazz, which world premiered at Tribeca in 2009.
Director Damien Chazelle’s debut infuses his black-and-white, 16mm vérité-style relationship drama with all that jazzy romance of an old-Hollywood musical. Backed by a grand, alternately rollicking and melancholy score, Guy and Madeline tracks a pair of young lovers in Boston after they separate, search for new romance, and perhaps find their way back to each other. Director: Damien Chazelle. Screenwriter: Damien Chazelle. Producer: Damien Chazelle, Mihai Dinulescu, Jasmine McGlade.
Following the screening: A Q&A with producer Jasmine McGlade.
Saturday, June 6 at 7pm
Best of Tribeca Shorts
Celebrating short-form storytelling as a cornerstone of the Festival’s legacy with a program of all-time highlights.
The Queen of Basketball (TF ‘21) is an electrifying portrait of Lucy Harris, who scored the first basket in women’s Olympic history and was the first and only woman officially drafted into the N.B.A. Harris has remained largely unknown – until now. Director: Ben Proudfoot.
Ripe! (TF ‘24). Nothing says “it’s complicated” like breaking your crush’s arm. Directors: Tusk (Kerry Furrh and Olivia Mitchell)
Jane Austen’s Period Drama (TF ‘24). England, 1813. In the middle of a long-awaited marriage proposal, Miss Estrogenia Talbot gets her period. Her suitor, the dashing Mr. Dickley, mistakes the blood for an injury. Directors: Julia Aks and Steve Pinder.
Sunday, June 7 at 7pm
Jiro Dreams of Sushi (TF ‘11)
A defining documentary discovery and enduring audience favorite. Celebrating its 15th anniversary and the 100th birthday of its beloved protagonist, Jiro celebrates the art of sushi and tradition in highly cinematic fashion. Magnolia Pictures’ also celebrates its own 25th anniversary, a company that has been part of the Tribeca story from the very beginning
An appetizing documentary in every sense, Jiro Dreams of Sushi follows 85-year-old master sushi chef Jiro Ono, paying lushly photographed homage to the process of preparing the artisan sushi that earned Ono’s esteemed Sukiyabashi Jiro restaurant three Michelin stars. From the complicated relationship between Jiro and his sons to the ins and outs of the tuna auction, this spirited film profiles all aspects of Jiro’s craft in tantalizing style and detail. Director: David Gelb. Producer: David Gelb, Kevin Iwashina, Tom Pellegrini.
Following the screening: A Q&A with director David Gelb.
Monday, June 8 at 7pm
Let the Right One In (TF ‘08)
The Swedish vampire movie that became a global phenomenon launched out of Tribeca by winning the festival’s Founders Award for Best Narrative Feature in 2008 and being acquired by Magnolia. It remains one of the most acclaimed horror films of the millennium.
Based on Lindqvist’s bestselling novel, this beautifully touching tale tells of the first romance for bullied 12-year-old Oskar and the girl next door, Eli… who also happens to be a vampire. Director: Tomas Alfredson. Screenwriter: John Ajvide Lindqvist. Producer: John Nordling, Carl Molinder.
Tuesday, June 9 at 7pm
Dior and I (TF ‘14)
An inside look at artistry, craft, and reinvention, reflecting Tribeca’s embrace of stories at the intersection of culture and design. Tcheng’s acclaimed film goes behind the scenes of the first haute couture collection by visionary artistic director Raf Simons.
Frédéric Tcheng’s masterful documentary enters the storied world of the House of Christian Dior, with a privileged, behind-the-scenes look at the creation of Raf Simons’ first Dior Haute Couture collection as artistic director. Beautifully melding the everyday, pressure-filled components of fashion with a mysterious and elegant reverence for the history of this iconic brand, Tcheng’s colorful homage to the seamstresses of the atelier is nothing short of magical. Director: Frédéric Tcheng. Producer: Guillaume de Roquemaurel.
Following the screening: A Q&A with director Frédéric Tcheng.
Wednesday, June 10 at 7pm
Virunga (TF ‘14, World Premiere)
A powerful example of documentary filmmaking driving global awareness and impact, the film exposed illegal oil exploration threatening endangered gorilla populations in DR Congo’s Virunga National Park. After its acquisition by Netflix at Tribeca, the film went on to a 2014 Academy Award® nomination.
Virunga is Africa’s oldest national park, a UNESCO world heritage site, and the last natural habitat for the endangered mountain gorilla. None of that will stop the business interests and rebel insurgencies lurking at the park’s doorstep. Documentarian Orlando von Einsiedel pairs gorgeous natural scenes from Virunga with riveting footage of the Congolese crisis, raising an ardent call for conservation as a vital human enterprise. Director: Orlando von Einsiedel. Producer: Orlando von Einsiedel,Joanna Natasegara.
Thursday, June 11 at 7pm
Little Woods (TF ‘18)
Winner of Tribeca’s Nora Ephron Award for the festival’s best female filmmaker, this debut introduced a defining new voice in Nia DaCosta (Candyman, The Marvels, Hedda, 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple).
In this dramatic thriller set in the fracking boomtown of Little Woods, North Dakota, two estranged sisters are driven to extremes when their mother dies, leaving them with one week to pay back her mortgage.Director and Screenwriter: Nia DaCosta. Producer: Rachael Fung, Gabrielle Nadig, Tim Headington.
Following the screening: A Q&A with director Nia DaCosta and producer Gabrielle Nadig.
Saturday, June 13 at 7pm
The Short History of the Long Road (TF ‘19)
A Tribeca discovery celebrating independent spirit and character-driven storytelling, featuring the breakout first lead performance of Sabrina Carpenter.
For teenage Nola (Sabrina Carpenter), home is the open road with her self-reliant father and their trusty van, two nomads against the world. When Nola’s rootless existence is turned upside-down, she realizes that life as an outsider might not be her only choice. Director: Ani Simon-Kennedy. Screenwriter: Ani Simon-Kennedy. Producer: Kishori Rajan, Eddie Rubin, Darren Dean, Cailin Yatsko, Ani Simon-Kennedy, Bettina Kadoorie, Dominique Telson.
Following the screening: A Q&A with director Ani Simon-Kennedy and Producer & DP Cailin Yatsko.
Sunday, June 14 at 7pm
Ascension (TF ‘21)
A striking example of Tribeca’s continued commitment to visionary nonfiction cinema, Ascension explores the pursuit of the Chinese dream in modern society through stunning big-screen imagery. After winning the festival’s jury award for Best Documentary Feature, it went on to an Academy Award® Nomination in 2021.
The absorbingly cinematic Ascension explores the pursuit of the “Chinese Dream.” Driven by mesmerizing – and sometimes humorous – imagery, this observational documentary presents a contemporary vision of China that prioritizes productivity and innovation above all. Director: Jessica Kingdon. Producer: Kira Simon-Kennedy, Jessica Kingdon, Nathan Truesdell
