The festival season received a major jolt as a portion of the lineup for the 14th Annual Tribeca Film Festival (TFF) was announced. TFF revealed their selections in three categories, World Narrative, Documentary Competition and Viewpoints.
In all, TFF announced the initial 51 films that will play during their upcoming fest, stories which recognize new voices in international and American independent cinema. They will kick off the fest with the Bao Nguyen-directed Saturday Night Live-doc, Live From New York!, an exploration of 40 years of American politics, tragedy, and popular culture through the comedic lens of SNL.
Perennial festival favorite, James Franco, will headline, The Adderall Diaries opposite Ed Harris; former cinematographer Reed Morano makes his directorial debut in Meadowland starring Olivia Wilde, Luke Wilson alongside Elizabeth Moss, Giovanni Ribisi and Juno Temple; Kate Lyn Sheil co-wrote and stars in the period drama, Men Go To Battle, directed by Zachary Treitz; Richard Gere is a wealthy eccentric in the drama Franny, which co-stars Dakota Fanning and Theo James; and country superstar, Faith Hill, gives an impressive performance in Dixieland opposite Riley Keough.
Also, there are a couple of Sundance holdovers at TFF, The Wolfpack and the Spike Lee executive produced, Cronies, as well as films co-directed by Don Argott (The Art of The Steal) and Albert Maysles.
We will update the list as more titles become available. The Tribeca Film Festival runs April 15-26.
World Narrative Feature Competition
The Adderall Diaries, directed and written by Pamela Romanowsky. (USA) – World Premiere. James Franco plays a writer who tries to rise from being blocked and Adderall addicted by jumping into a high-profile murder case. Amber Heard, Ed Harris, and Cynthia Nixon co-star.
Bridgend, directed by Jeppe Rønde, co-written by Jeppe Rønde, Torben Bech, and Peter Asmussen. (Denmark) – North American Premiere. Sara and her dad arrive in a town haunted by a spate of teenage suicides. When she falls in love she becomes prey to the depression that threatens to engulf them all. Jeppe Rønde’s debut is based on the real-life Welsh county borough of Bridgend, which has recorded at least 79 suicides since 2007.
Dixieland, directed and written by Hank Bedford. (USA) – World Premiere. Star crossed lovers meet in the heat of a Mississippi summer. One’s an ex-con, the other an aspiring stripper. It doesn’t end well. Faith Hill is part of the cast.
Franny, directed and written by Andrew Renzi. (USA) – World Premiere. Richard Gere plays the title character, a wealthy eccentric who worms his way into the lives of a deceased friend’s young daughter (Dakota Fanning) and her new husband (Theo James).
Meadowland, directed by Reed Morano, written by Chris Rossi. (USA) – World Premiere. Sarah and Phil’s son goes missing, shattering their life together and forcing each to find their own way to cope. Olivia Wilde and Luke Wilson star.
SEE ALSO: World Documentary | Viewpoints | Gallery
Spotlight | Midnight & Work In Progress
Men Go to Battle, directed and written by Zachary Treitz, co-written by Kate Lyn Sheil. (USA) – World Premiere. Kentucky, 1861. Francis and Henry Mellon depend on each other to keep their unkempt estate afloat as winter encroaches. After Francis takes a casual fight too far, Henry ventures off in the night, leaving each of them to struggle through the wartime on their own.
Necktie Youth, directed and written by Sibs Shongwe-La Mer. (Netherlands, South Africa) – North American Premiere. Jabz and September are two twenty-something suburbanites drifting through a day of drugs, sex, and philosophizing in their privileged Johannesburg neighborhood, ill-equipped to handle a tragedy that has interrupted the hollowness of their daily lives.
The Survivalist, directed and written by Stephen Fingleton. (Northern Ireland, UK) – World Premiere. Self-preservation takes on a new level of meaning in this organic post-apocalyptic drama, where the only way to get food is to farm it. A man is threatened when two starving women stumble across his cabin and demand to stay.
Sworn Virgin (Vergine Giurata), directed and written by Laura Bispuri, co-written by Francesca Manieri. (Albania, Germany, Italy, Kosovo, Switzerland) – North American Premiere. As a young woman living within the confines of a Northern Albanian village, Hana longs to escape the shackles of womanhood, and live her life as a man. To do so she must take an oath to eternally remain a virgin.
Viaje, directed and written by Paz Fábrega. (Costa Rica) –World Premiere. After meeting at a party, Luciana and Pedro spark up a spontaneous rendezvous when Luciana accompanies Pedro to a national forest on a work trip. Eschewing the fraudulent nature of traditional relationships, the pair explores the beauty in the nature that surrounds them as they indulge in the passions of their encounter and navigate the various meanings of commitment.
Virgin Mountain, directed and written by Dagur Kári. (Iceland, Denmark) – North American Premiere. Fúsi is a mammoth of a man who at 43-years-old is still living at home with his mother. Shy and awkward, he hasn’t quite learned how to socialize with others, leaving him as an untouchable inexperienced virgin. His family pushes him to join a dance class, where he meets the equally innocent but playful Sjöfn.
Wednesday 04:45 (Tetari 04:45), directed and written by Alexis Alexiou. (Germany, Greece, Israel) – World Premiere. A life’s work becomes a prison for jazz club owner Stelios when a shady Romanian gangster calls in his debts.