Born out of the ashes of 9/11, one of the most catastrophic events NYC ever experienced, the annual Tribeca Film Festival is something very near and dear to my heart. In their midst, surrounded by tried and true New Yorkers as well as celebrities from different disciplines, I started to write about film. I honed my skills there and on their red carpets, I interviewed some of my favorite filmmakers and actors. The pieces that have been inspired by TFF are still some of my best ones to date.
So, when they announced yesterday WE ARE ONE A Global Film Festival, joining forces with the likes of the Festival de Cannes, Venice, Berlinale, Toronto, Tokyo and San Sebastian, 20 in total (for the full list read here) I was over the moon. Plus, the films will be basically free for world audiences to watch, on YouTube and the donations which will pour in from happy viewers will benefit a fund offering help to organizations around the world dealing with the COVID-19 crisis. Hello, they had me at “Hello.”
If you have any doubt of the power of Tribeca, join their “A film a day keeps anxiety away” list and watch 30 days of wondrous short films. I have, it’s wonderful.
On FB I am part of a group of journalists, programmers and publicists who discuss the future of cinema in this uncertain age. “Discuss” may actually be the wrong word as a lot of the people in virtual attendance there simply post the same pieces their colleagues posted before, without ever checking what others are doing. We are living during a time when I believe cultural journalism needs to change dramatically. Audiences can get quotes from celebrities directly on social media — in the case of Tom Hanks when he and his wife Rita Wilson got ill in Australia, his tweets were much clearer and devoid of the fake news quotes of the later headlines featuring their story. They can also keep up with filmmakers on YouTube, and now with this initiative, get to watch films that haven’t been available to audiences before. The line-up for this event, which will run for ten days starting May 29th, hasn’t been announced yet but the titles will most probably be those films that general audience would have missed, due to lack of distribution or simply limited engagements.
So this initiative should be the nail in the coffin of a certain kind of blind and deaf journalism that only repeats news with a slightly different headline and perpetuates “culture” as a mix of ‘The Bachelor’ and other dumb TV, or movies better suited for a five-year old than the adult population they target. I wouldn’t be surprised if audiences found out they actually like indie cinema as a result! Without some of us trying to shove those gems down their throats…
Jane Rosenthal, Tribeca Enterprises and Tribeca Film Festival Co-Founder and CEO, said it best: "We often talk about film's uniquely powerful role in inspiring and uniting people across borders and differences to help heal the world. All of the world needs healing right now. We Are One: A Global Film Festival unites curators, artists and storytellers to entertain and provide relief to audiences worldwide. In working with our extraordinary festival partners and YouTube we hope that everyone gets a taste of what makes each festival so unique and appreciates the art and power of film."
While we await news from all other major film festivals, and Karlovy Vary just announced the cancellation of their 2020 edition, I find this announcement one of the piece of news since this whole disaster struck us.
We Are One A Global Film Festival is a reason to hope. And hope right now is all we need.