The 2014 Tribeca Film Festival (TFF), co-founded by Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal and Craig Hatkoff, and presented by AT&T, tannounced that during the Festival’s 13th edition more than 400,000 people attended screenings, panels, talks and free community events – including the Tribeca Drive-In series, Family Festival Street Fair, Tribeca/ESPN Sports Day, as well as the first-ever Tribeca Innovation Week which featured the Storyscapes installation at the Bombay Sapphire House of Imagination, the Future of Film series, Games for Change, the Tribeca Disruptive Innovation Awards, Tribeca Hacks <Mobile>, and TFI Interactive.
From April 16 through 27, the Festival hosted nearly 400 screenings and panels with more than 95% attendance. A total of 89 features and 57 short films from 40 countries were screened for more than 120,000 movie-goers and panel attendees during the course of the 12-day Festival. For the first time ever, thanks to AT&T, an entire day of film screening tickets were free through “Film for All Friday”, where over 8,000 tickets were claimed for the screenings on Friday, April 25th.
“The response to the films and all of our events throughout our 13th edition has been incredible. We have some of the best audiences in the world and it was great to see them embrace the filmmakers, creators and our new Innovation Week over the last 12 days,” said Jane Rosenthal, co-founder, Tribeca Film Festival.
Audiences from across the country received front row access to exclusive Tribeca content through the fifth annual Tribeca Online Festival (TOF), which returned with free streaming of a selection of four features and four shorts. TOF also hosted the juried #6SECFILMS Competition for a second year, along with the new Tribeca Interactive & Interlude: A Music Film Challenge in collaboration with The Lincoln Motor Company which invited storytellers to create interactive music films for Damon Albarn, Aloe Blacc and Ellie Goulding.
The free community events returned with the Tribeca Drive-In movie series on the Hudson River, which featured the classic Mary Poppins, celebrating 50 years, followed by a 30th Anniversary screening of Ron Howard’s Splash, and a screening of the documentary Next Goal Wins. Despite the unseasonably cold weather, more than 3,200 visitors came out for the free, outdoor films and participated in games and activities, including a “supercalifragilisticexpialidocious” spelling contest, Samoan drumming, face painting, and soccer games.
Festival organizers and Lieutenant Rosenburg of the NYPD First Precinct estimated that even with a rainy afternoon a crowd of 275,000 enjoyed the signature Tribeca Family Festival Street Fair and Tribeca/ESPN Sports Day on Saturday, April 26, which included Games for Change Public Arcade, the Million Dollar Arm pitching contest, live performances from the casts of Broadway shows including Wicked, Motown: The Musical, Rock of Ages and others.
The 2014 Festival closed with John Carney’s comedy, Begin Again, starring Keira Knightley, Mark Ruffalo, Hailee Steinfeld, and Adam Levine.
2014 Tribeca Film Festival anecdotes
The Festival hosted several performances by music legends such as rapper Nas following the world premiere of his film Time Is Illmatic, and rocker Bob Weir after the world premiere of his film The Other One: The Long, Strange Trip of Bob Weir. Jazz luminaries Herbie Hancock,Dianne Reeves, Roy Hargrove, Jon Batiste, and young prodigy Justin Kauflin performed following the world premiere of Keep On Keepin' On – which received a standing ovation. There was also live music at several private events including a performance by Snow Patrol at the after-party for Just Before I Go, a performance by Aloe Blacc at a special event hosted by the Lincoln Motor Company for Every Secret Thing, a performance by Devonte Hynes at the after-party for Palo Alto, and a performance by Damon Albarn at a special event for Tribeca Interactive & Interlude: A Music Film Challenge in collaboration with the Lincoln Motor Company.
In all, 923 industry delegates registered for TFF, representing 35 countries including Israel, Sweden, South Africa, Poland, Italy, France, The Netherlands, South Korea, Norway and Australia.
3,250 attendees experienced Storyscapes – the Festival’s cross-platform, transmedia installation and juried section created in collaboration with BOMBAY SAPPHIRE® gin.
The Amazing Randi, the subject of An Honest Liar, performed magic tricks for audiences following each of his Festival screenings.
Puron the Puppeteer, subject of Tomorrow We Disappear, created puppets of the film's directors – Jimmy Goldblum and Adam Weber – to join everyone on the red carpet.
The Festival welcomed legendary athletes including Allen Iverson for the world premiere of his film Iverson, Greg LeMond for the world premiere of Slaying The Badger, and New York Knicks icons Phil Jackson, Dick Barnett, and Cazzie Russell at the world premiere of When The Garden Was Eden.
The Million Dollar Arm competition during the Tribeca/ESPN Sports Day welcomed hundreds of participants over the course of the day, with the top pitching speeds of the finalists reaching 83 MPH and 85 MPH.
Audience members enjoyed fortune cookies, distributed after the world premiere screening of The Search for General Tso.
Chirlane McCray, the First Lady of NYC, spoke before 450 attendees at the Tribeca Film Institute’s Our City, My Story which premiered the best of NYC produced films by students. In total, the Tribeca Film Institute screened Festival films and student-made work for over 1500 New York City students through its educational programs.
About Tribeca Film Festival
The Tribeca Film Festival helps filmmakers reach the broadest possible audience, enabling the international film community and general public to experience the power of cinema and promote New York City as a major filmmaking center. It is well known for being a diverse international film festival that supports emerging and established directors.
Founded by Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal, and Craig Hatkoff in 2001 following the attacks on the World Trade Center, to spur the economic and cultural revitalization of the lower Manhattan district through an annual celebration of film, music, and culture, the Festival brings the industry and community together around storytelling.
The Tribeca Film Festival has screened more than 1,500 films from more than 80 countries since its first edition in 2002. Since inception, it has attracted an international audience of more than 4.5 million attendees and has generated an estimated $850 million in economic activity for New York City.
About the 2014 Festival Sponsors
As Presenting Sponsor of the Tribeca Film Festival, AT&T is committed to supporting the Festival and the art of filmmaking through access and innovation, aiming to make this the most interactive film festival in the country, where visitors experience the Festival in ways they never imagined.
The Tribeca Film Festival is pleased to announce its Signature Sponsors: Accenture, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, American Express, Bloomberg, BOMBAY SAPPHIRE Gin, Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC), Brookfield, Conrad Hotels & Resorts, ESPN, Hilton Hotels & Resorts, Heineken, IWC Schaffhausen, NBC 4 New York, NCM Media Networks, The New York Times, and PepsiCo. The Festival welcomes the following new Signature Sponsors: The Lincoln Motor Company, United Airlines, Santander, and VDKA 6100™
