2010 TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL ANNOUNCES SHORT FILM SELECTIONS

New York, NY- The 2010 Tribeca Film Festival (TFF), presented by American Express, the Founding Sponsor of the Festival,  announced its line-up of short films on Thursday.  Of the 2717 short film submissions received this year, the Festival has selected 47, among them Joachim Back’s 2010 Academy Award®-winning film for Best Live Action Short. They will be presented in six thematic programs and among them are 21 world premieres, a record number for the Festival, which includes a short narrative directed and written by Kirsten Dunst. Selections also include films directed by Ken Jacobs, Max Hoffman, James Cromwell and Joshua Bell, and performances by Anthony Hopkins, Harry Dean Stanton, Vincent D’Onofrio, Lukas Haas, Brian Geraghty, David Thewlis, Bobby Cannavale, Mariska Hargitay, Jesse L. Martin, Christopher Meloni, Sam Rockwell and Jesse Eisenberg.

This year’s Festival shorts are a collection of absorbing documentaries and compelling narratives that explore the full spectrum of human experience in new and surprising ways. They come from around the world and around the corner, presenting a wide range of perspectives and styles.  Stories range from the everyday to extraordinary circumstances, from family dramas to black comedies, with some twists and captivating characters. Returning TFF directors include Jacobs, Domenica Scorsese, Rodney Evans, Mark Street, Jean-Gabriel Periot, Tal Rosner, Bill Morrison, Thomas Hefferon and Sara Zandieh.

“It’s an exciting year for Tribeca as we explore new initiatives to widen audiences for short films,” said Maggie Kim, TFF Shorts Programmer. “But at the core, film festivals remain a unique and pivotal forum for short filmmakers to present their works on the big screen. With one  of our strongest shorts programs yet, and a record number of World and North American premieres from both returning and new filmmakers, we are confident that this year’s line-up will provide a memorable cinematic experience for our audiences.”

“Our six programs are arranged around themes that connect directly to audiences, though often in unexpected and clever ways,” said Sharon Badal, TFF shorts programmer. “They continue to expand the horizons of possibility for shorts, taking audiences on journeys that are vivid, mesmerizing and relatable—sometimes all at once.”

This year for the first time, audiences will have the opportunity to experience the Festival from their homes through a new online expansion, Tribeca Film Festival Virtual (TFF Virtual). Audiences across the U.S. will be able to watch a selection of films from this year’s TFF by purchasing a TFF Virtual premium pass, which will include 15 short films. TFF Virtual will also feature panel discussions, Q&A’s with filmmakers and actors, live TFF red carpet action and more – all via the Internet.

The 47 works in the 2010 TFF short film line-up are eligible to compete for combined cash and value-in-kind prizes totaling more than $15,000 for Best Narrative Short, Best Documentary Short and Student Visionary Award.  The 15 short selections that will be available on TFF Virtual will also be eligible to win the $5,000 cash prize for TFF Virtual Best Short Film Award, sponsored by American Express.

Following is a listing of the selected short films in the six programs in which they will be presented:

Hard Core

Our New York, New York program returns with strong characters set in the city that can make you or break you.  Sometimes it takes an antihero to clean up the streets in Something in the Air. A young man finds a safe space between the present and the afterlife in In Space. The 1940s jazz milieu sets the stage for a composer and his consequences in Billy and Aaron. The situation: three boys from Queens, a missing wallet and a prostitute named Cookie. In Bedford Park Boulevard, 15-year-old Byron struggles to outwit a school system that seems against him. Discover where the location is in F–K. Being a good neighbor brings about some bizarre consequences to a couple of The New Tenants.

• Bedford Park Boulevard, (USA), Narrative, New York Premiere, directed and written by Felix Thompson (Student film)
• Billy and Aaron, (USA, Netherlands), Narrative, New York Premiere, directed and written by Rodney Evans (TFF Virtual)
• Cookie, (USA), Narrative, World Premiere, directed and written by Francisco Ordonez (TFF Virtual)
• F–K, (USA), Narrative, World Premiere, directed by Rick Rodgers, written by Ed Vassallo (TFF Virtual)
• In Space (Soonyakat), (Thailand, USA), Narrative, New York Premiere, directed and written by Visra Vichit-Vadakan (Student film)
• The New Tenants, (USA, Denmark), Narrative, New York Premiere, directed by Joachim Back, written by David Rakoff
• Something in the Air, (USA), Narrative, World Premiere, directed and written by Ramsay Davila (TFF Virtual)

Wishful Thinking

Characters are confronted by decisions and indecision in this narrative program.  In A Border Story, a Mexican immigrant and a young American boy try to survive the remote desert. A young woman attempts to regain both her mother’s trust and her daughter’s love in Delilah, Before. Hold your breath when three teenage boys break into their school in The Pool. Recent retiree Edgar feels unneeded by society until he hatches a plan to change his life. A timid soundman teams up with a goth girl to get back what is rightfully his in Epic Fail. After a faked suicide attempt, Jay accepts visits from her well-meaning friends in Cried Suicide. At The Wake of his best friend’s father, a loser and a little boy form an unlikely friendship. More than Champagne is uncorked on New Year’s Eve for Zelda at The Dinner Party.

• A Border Story, (USA), Narrative, World Premiere, directed by Tobias Louie, written by Conor Welter, Tobias Louie
• Cried Suicide, (USA), Narrative, World Premiere, directed and written by Lauren Palmigiano (TFF Virtual)
• Delilah, Before, (Singapore), Narrative, New York Premiere, directed and written by Melanie Schiele (Student film) (TFF Virtual)
• The Dinner Party, (USA), Narrative, International Premiere, directed and written by Peter Glanz
• Edgar, (Germany), Narrative, North American Premiere, directed and written by Fabian Busch (TFF Virtual)
• Epic Fail (Epik feil), (Iceland), Narrative, North American Premiere, directed and written by Ragnar Agnarsson
• The Pool, (Ireland), Narrative, World Premiere, directed by Thomas Hefferon, written by Thomas Hefferon, TJ Hundtofte
• The Wake, (Australia), Narrative, New York Premiere, directed by Gemma Lee, written by Charlie Clausen (TFF Virtual)

Identity Theft

Questions about who you are and what you want abound in these short films.  The breakup happens but the break does not in some boys don’t leave. When Ardal challenges Miss Purdy’s boyfriend to a duel for her affection, 2nd grade will never be the same in The Crush. After their crappy high school team loses the big game (again), a football player and a band geek confront each other on the way home in Poi Dogs. A vinyl Record evokes memories of the past. An amusement park summer leads to life lessons in Loop Planes. A soldier father and his young son share a shave and say goodbye before a military mission in Kiss. A tattooed gang member’s outlook on life is changed forever when he takes a Day Trip. While under house arrest, Mauro is taunted by three local boys through his window in Arena.

• Arena, (Portugal), Narrative, US Premiere, directed and written by JoaÞo Salaviza
• The Crush, (Ireland), Narrative, New York Premiere, directed and written by Michael Creagh
• Day Trip, (New Zealand), Narrative, World Premiere, directed by Zoe McIntosh, written by Costa Botes (TFF Virtual)
• Kiss (Kus), (Netherlands), Narrative, North American Premiere, directed and written by Joost van Ginkel (TFF Virtual)
• Loop Planes, (USA), Narrative, New York Premiere, directed by Robin Wilby, written by Robin Wilby, Austen Rachlis (Student film) (TFF Virtual)
• Poi Dogs, (USA), Narrative, New York Premiere, directed and written by Joel Moffett (TFF Virtual)
• Record, (Canada), Narrative, New York Premiere, directed and written by Dylan Reibling (TFF Virtual)
• some boys don’t leave, (USA), Narrative, World Premiere, directed by Maggie Kiley, written by Matthew Mullen, Maggie Kiley (Student film)

Between the Lines

Things aren’t always as they appear in these short narrative films.  In Roots in Water, three estranged siblings reunite following the death of their mother to settle unfinished emotional business. Khani is faced with an overwhelming task by the wealthy family he serves in The Pool Party. Two slackers seek a solution to their financial problems with the help of a guru in The Third Rule. Father and daughter connect and converse in Brucie. A young girl’s low self-esteem is redeemed in Father Christmas Doesn’t Come Here. A couple in crisis find their way to a desert motel in Bastard. Discover why the chicken did cross the road in Athena.

• Athena, (USA), Narrative, New York Premiere, directed and written by Max Hoffman
• Bastard, (USA), Narrative, World Premiere, directed by Kirsten Dunst, written by Kirsten Dunst, Sasha Sagan
• Brucie, (UK), Narrative, World Premiere, directed and written by Clair Breton (TFF Virtual)
• Father Christmas Doesn’t Come Here, (South Africa), Narrative, New York Premiere, directed by Bheki Sibiya, written by Sibongile Nkosana, Bongi Ndaba
• The Pool Party, (Iran, USA), Narrative, World Premiere, directed and written by Sara Zandieh (Student film)
• Roots in Water, (USA), Narrative, World Premiere, directed by Domenica Scorsese, written by Richard Nelson
• The Third Rule, (USA), Narrative, World Premiere, directed by Aundre Johnson, written by Aundre Johnson, Aaron Crowe (TFF Virtual)

Flashback

The past collides with the present as these short documentaries relive and reflect politics, culture and music.  Her evolution is traced from farm girl to costume designer to civil rights activist in Out of Infamy: Michi Nishiura Weglyn. Actor/activist James Cromwell recalls his experience with the Black Panther Party in A .45 at 50th. Three immigrant soldiers sweat through basic training hoping to achieve US citizenship in New American Soldier. A momentary meeting becomes a search for love in Missed Connections. Meet Zeus, Cuba’s most popular heavy metal band, in Hard Rock Havana. New York, 1983, the Bronx—and the eruption of disco in White Lines & the Fever: The Death of DJ Junebug.

• A .45 at 50th, (USA), Documentary, New York Premiere, directed by Joshua Bell, John Cromwell, written by Joshua Bell (TFF Virtual)
• Hard Rock Havana, (Cuba/USA), Documentary, New York Premiere, directed by Nicholas Brennan (Student film) (TFF Virtual)
• Missed Connections, (USA), Documentary, World Premiere, directed by Mary Robertson (TFF Virtual)
• New American Soldier, (USA), Documentary, New York Premiere, directed by Emma Cott, Anna Belle Peevey (Student film)
• Out of Infamy: Michi Nishiura Weglyn, (USA), Documentary, New York Premiere, directed and written by Nancy Kapitanoff, Sharon Yamato
• White Lines & the Fever: The Death of DJ Junebug, (USA), Documentary, New York Premiere, directed by Travis Senger, written by Travis Senger, Mark Skillz

Experimental Collisions

Dynamic editing rhythms infuse these found footage, animation and live-action experimental movies, in which the filmmakers portray the human figure and the physical environment, as well as vision through the mind’s eye and the landscape of the film frame.

• Berlin, (Canada), Narrative/Documentary, World Premiere, directed by Martin Laporte
• BLACK WHITE BLACK WHITE, (USA), Narrative/Documentary, World Premiere, directed and written by John Thompson (Student film)
• This disk is the same as the other one, Ce disque est le même que l’autre (France), Narrative/Documentary, North American Premiere, directed by Jean-Jacques Palix
• Collision of Parts, (USA), Narrative/Documentary, World Premiere, directed by Mark Street
• The Delicate Art of the Bludgeon (L’Art Deìlicat de la Matraque), (France), Narrative/Documentary, North American Premiere, directed by Jean-Gabriel Periot
• Grandmother’s Eye (Mormors Öga), (Sweden), Narrative/Documentary, North American Premiere, directed by Jonathan Lewald (Student film)
• Lachen Verlernt, (UK), Narrative/Documentary, World Premiere, directed and written by Tal Rosner
• The Visible and Invisible of a Body Under Tension (Parties visible et invisible d’un ensemble sous tension), (France), Narrative/Documentary, North American Premiere, directed by Emmanuel Lefrant
• Release, (USA), Narrative/Documentary, World Premiere, directed by Bill Morrison
• Walkway, (USA), Narrative/Documentary, North American Premiere, directed by Ken Jacobs

Short Screening with Feature

• Yanqui Walker, (USA), Documentary, New York Premiere, directed by Kathryn Ramey (screening with The Travelogues)

Additional information for all these short films can be viewed in the Press section of the Tribeca Film Festival website, www.tribecafilm.com/festival.