Editor

The 2009 Tribeca Film Festival, presented by American Express, the founding sponsor of the Festival, today announced its line-up of short films. The Festival received 2463 short film submissions this year, and 46 have been selected for participation to be presented in six thematic programs. Among the highlights is a short narrative written and directed by Tom Everett Scott, as well as a documentary narrated by Richard Gere. Directors making return visits to the Festival include Jason DaSilva, Brian Durnin, Paula Gaitán, Ken Jacobs and Mark Street.

This year’s Festival shorts are a culmination of works from across the globe, including Cuba, Brazil, Norway, Italy, South Korea and Australia. The voices behind these works range from first-time to veteran filmmakers that include animators, graphic artists and actors taking the helm behind the camera. Collectively, through captivating narratives and gripping documentaries, they tell stories about life’s lessons drawn from dreams, desires and the coming-of-age experience.

“The films in this year’s program represent a strong showcase in the craft of short filmmaking. It's exciting that as digital content platforms continue to emerge, short films are accessible to, and being watched by an increasingly larger audience.” said Maggie Kim, Tribeca Film Festival shorts programmer.

"These six thematic programs contain elements that everyone can relate to - from growing up to dealing with work issues to being faced with irrevocable decisions. It's a solid line-up with narrative, documentary and experimental short films all of which express a unique way of storytelling in this format,” said Sharon Badal, Tribeca Film Festival shorts programmer.

The 46 works in the 2009 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, sponsored by Apple. The jurors for each of the shorts categories—narrative, documentary and student—will be announced at a later date.

Through April 12, 2009, consumers have the opportunity for the first time in the Festival’s history to help select a short film to premiere in the Festival through Delta’s Fly-In Movies competition. Five short film finalists were selected by the Festival programmers and are currently playing on Delta flights equipped with Delta on Demand. They are also available for viewing at delta.com/flyinmovies, where customers can rate each film. The film rated highest by viewers will receive the final spot in this year’s Festival shorts program.

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

Means to an End
Everyone’s just trying to make it through another day in these short films. Discover what’s on the menu at Café Paraíso. A dancing pineapple loses her rhythm in Oda a la Piña, while a rickshaw driver tries not to miss the boat in 3 Wheels. A loyal employee longs for a promotion in The Company Man. Two Average Joes dig their way through the meaning of life in Deconstruction Workers. In Glock, a new secret agent “kills” time waiting for his first assignment, while in Almost Every Day, Agatha navigates work, love and the streets of Rio de Janeiro.

• 3 Wheels, (China, Taiwan R.O.C.), Narrative, World Premiere, directed by Tony Wei, written by Chung Lee (Student film)
• Almost Every Day (Quase Todo Dia), (Brazil, USA), Narrative, World Premiere, directed and written by Gandja Monteiro
• Café Paraíso, (Mexico), Narrative, New York Premiere, directed and written by Alonso Ruizpalacios (Student film)
• The Company Man, (USA), Narrative, New York Premiere, directed and written by Andrew Zappin
• Deconstruction Workers (Bygningsarbeidere), (Norway), Narrative, New York Premiere, directed by Kajsa Næss, written by Kjartan Helleve
• Glock, (USA), Narrative, New York Premiere, directed by Tom Everett Scott, written by Michael McMillian, Tom Everett Scott
• Oda a la Piña, (Cuba), Narrative, North American Premiere, directed and written by Laimir Fano (Student film)

Mixed Feelings
Dreams and desires are contemplated and complicated in this group of shorts. Practically perfect simply isn’t enough in This Will All Make Perfect Sense Someday. Prepare for emotional turbulence in Delta’s Fly-In Movies Competition Winner. Interwoven stories with a cultural connection show the challenges of living in Nueva York. A big helping of truth is served at a dinner party in Oil Change. Mary Jane wonders if she’ll ever leave the Navajo reservation in Shimasani. Five characters collide with cosmic consequences in Of Best Intentions. In Cutlass, Robin remembers what it’s like to want something really, really badly.

• Cutlass, (USA), Narrative, New York Premiere, directed and written by Kate Hudson
• Nueva York, (USA), Narrative, World Premiere, directed and written by Manolo Celi
• Of Best Intentions, (Ireland), Narrative, New York Premiere, directed and written by Brian Durnin
• Oil Change, (USA), Narrative, New York Premiere, directed and written by Todd Luoto
• Shimasani, (USA), Narrative, World Premiere, directed and written by Blackhorse Lowe
• This Will All Make Perfect Sense Someday, (USA), Narrative, New York Premiere, directed and written by Long-Cuu Phan

Wake-up Call
These shorts show life lessons learned, some the hard way. An ex-con confronts an abusive guard from his past in Deadline. Whom would you rat out in Section 44? An immature twenty-something grows up and comes out in Cal Express. Toto, we’re not in Kansas anymore in The Tinwoodsman’s Home Movie #2. “Unhappy” is a seven-letter word in Wu. Gail is torn between a fish and her family tradition in Gefilte Fish. After 20 years, a man takes The North Road home to Beirut to reclaim his father and his past.

• Cal Express, (USA), Narrative, World Premiere, directed and written by Sergio Carvajal (Student film)
• Deadline, (USA), Narrative, New York Premiere, directed by Joseph Bakhash, written by Sean McPhillips
• Gefilte Fish, (Israel), Narrative, North American Premiere, directed and written by Shelly Kling-Yosef (Student film)
• The North Road (La route du Nord), (France), Narrative, North American Premiere, directed and written by Carlos Chahine
• Section 44, (UK), Narrative, New York Premiere, directed and written by Daniel Wilson
• The Tinwoodsman's Home Movie #2, (USA), Narrative, New York Premiere, directed by Naomi Uman, Lee Lynch
• Wu, (France), Narrative, North American Premiere, directed and written by Cécile Vernant

Truth or Consequences
These mature shorts concern growing up, getting off and getting by. Not recommended for those under 16. Twelve-year-old Adriana spends a steamy summer at the sea in Sunspots. Step back to the pre-Internet world of porn in Love Does Grow on Trees. An Irish lad seeks solace from a priest in The Confession. Kenny is a country club lifeguard living in a haze, but one day all that changes in Blue Boy. Sophie hopes for a visit from the Tooth Fairy in Small Change, and two teenagers ditch school and discover a dark place in Search. Georgia’s journey to find her biological mother veers off-course when she meets the Nowhere Kids.

• Blue Boy, (USA), Narrative, World Premiere, directed by Alex Jablonski, written by Alex Jablonski, Kevin Canty (Student film)
• The Confession, (Ireland), Narrative, New York Premiere, directed and written by Thomas Hefferon
• Love Does Grow on Trees, (UK), Narrative, USA Premiere, directed and written by Bevan Walsh
• Nowhere Kids, (USA), Narrative, New York Premiere, directed by Eric Juhola, written by Eric Juhola, Jeremy Stulberg, Lindsay Goldwert
• Search, (USA), Narrative, World Premiere, directed by Lisa M. Perry, written by Aaron Walker (Student film)
• Small Change, (Australia), Narrative, New York Premiere, directed and written by Anna McGrath (Student film)
• Sunspots (Macchie di Sole), (Italy), Narrative, New York Premiere, directed by Stella di Tocco, written by Enrique Esteve

Time Will Tell
This group of documentary shorts will leave a lasting impression on the heart and mind. A sacred Tibetan cultural site is restored in Mustang – Journey of Transformation. Flooded with memories, home is where the heart is. Will you root for Team Taliban? In The Last Mermaids, a story swims beneath the surface about generations of women divers. A filmmaker chronicles his personal experience with multiple sclerosis in First Steps. Finally, in Skin, beauty truly is in the eye of the beholder.

• First Steps, (USA), Documentary, World Premiere, directed and written by Jason DaSilva
• home, (USA), Documentary, New York Premiere, directed by Matthew Faust
• The Last Mermaids, (USA, South Korea), Documentary, North American Premiere, directed by Liz Chae
• Mustang – Journey of Transformation, (USA, Nepal), Documentary, New York Premiere, directed by Will Parrinello, written by Sarah Kass
• Skin, (Australia), Documentary, New York Premiere, directed and written by Rhys Graham
• Team Taliban, (USA), Documentary, New York Premiere, directed by Benjamin Kegan

Human Landscapes
Drawn from filmmakers on three continents, this program of experimental short films and videos centers around the theme of the individual’s relationship to the environmental space he or she inhabits. The avant-garde filmmaking enterprise is essentially one defined by creative artists working single-handedly and with great sensitivity to interpreting the field of vision before their camera lenses. Unlike more conventional modes of storytelling, they employ such diverse techniques as found footage, collage, animation, superimposition of texts, the absence of visible characters, voiceless sound tracks and the transformation of the human figure and manmade constructions into studies of formal abstraction. In so doing, these filmmakers manipulate quotidian reality into beautiful and stirring tales of the fragile nature of human existence.

• The Bather, (USA), World Premiere, directed by George Griffin
• Camera Roll (for Taylor), (USA), World Premiere, directed by Joel Schlemowitz
• Chop Off, (USA), USA Premiere, directed and written by M.M. Serra
• densen, (Sweden), World Premiere, directed by Anna Linder
• Ha’Aki, (Canada), New York Premiere, directed and written by Iriz Pääbo
• Hot Dogs at the Met, (USA), North American Premiere, directed by Ken Jacobs
• influenza/Composition II (chrome square), (Netherlands), World Premiere, directed by Jeroen Jongeleen
• KOGI, (Brazil), World Premiere, directed by Paula Gaitán
• Métro, (Canada), World Premiere, directed by Martin Laporte
• A Time and A Time, (UK), North American Premiere, directed and written by Sarah Cox
• Trailer Trash, (USA), World Premiere, directed by Mark Street
• Us (Nous), (France), USA Premiere, directed and written by Olivier Hems
• Without You, (UK), North American Premiere, directed by Tal Rosner

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

TICKET INFORMATION FOR 2009 TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL

Packages

The 2009 Tribeca Film Festival will offer eleven exclusive ticket packages, featuring three advance ticket selection packages, as well as eight discount ticket packages.

Advance Ticket Selection Packages: Advance selection ticket packages will offer consumers the opportunity to reserve tickets for films they wish to screen ahead of the general public. All films must be selected by April 10, 2009. The advance selection ticket packages include:

• Programmers Picks Ticket Package ($250) - Two general or matinee tickets to six Festival films, handpicked for each customer by the Tribeca Film Festival Programming Team
• Harrison Ticket Package ($225.00) - Early online ticket selection prior to public on-sale dates for ten individual general or matinee screenings
• Franklin Ticket Package ($425.00) - Early online ticket selection prior to public on-sale dates for 20 individual general or matinee screenings

Discount Ticket Packages: Discount ticket packages not only offer consumers a reduced ticket price, but also allow them to navigate the film slate by interest. The discount ticket packages include:

• Opening Weekend Ticket Package ($105) – Two (2) general tickets to one film on Friday, April 24; two films on Saturday, April 25; and one film on Sunday, April 26.
• Matinee Ticket Package ($40.00) – Six (6) matinee screenings tickets, two tickets per performance.
• Late Night Films Ticket Package ($40.00) – Six (6) late night film screenings tickets, two tickets per performance.
• Matinee Documentary Film Fan Package ($40.00) – Six (6) matinee tickets to any documentary film in the Festival, two tickets per performance.
• Documentary Film Fan Package ($75.00) – Six (6) general tickets to any documentary film in the Festival, two tickets per performance.
• Tribeca/ESPN Sports Film Ticket Package ($45.00) – Four (4) general tickets to films playing in the Tribeca/ESPN Sports Film Festival, two tickets per performance.
• Award Winners Screening Package ($45.00) – Four (4) general tickets to award winning films playing on May 3, two tickets per performance. Selections must be made by award category, as winners will not be announced until April 30, 2009.
• Music Fan Package ($75.00) – Six (6) general tickets to any music film playing in the Festival, two tickets per performance.


Single Tickets

Tickets for the Festival will be $15.00 for evening and weekend screenings and $8.00 for daytime weekday and late night screenings.

Ticket/Package Dates and Purchase Information

Advance selection ticket packages will go on sale Monday, March 9, 2009, for American Express Cardmembers and for the general public on Monday, March 16, 2009. All advance packages can be purchased online at www.tribecafilm.com/festival or by telephone, toll free, at (866) 941-FEST (3378).

Single ticket and discounted ticket package sales begin for American Express Cardmembers on April 14, 2009, for downtown residents on April 19, 2009, and for the general public on April 20, 2009. Single tickets can be purchased online, by telephone, or at one of the Ticket Outlets located at the Tribeca Cinemas Ticket Window at 54 Varick Street, and the AMC Village VII Ticket Window at 66 Third Avenue. Downtown residents can only purchase tickets with a discount at the Tribeca Cinemas ticket window. Discounted packages can only be purchased online and by phone. The 2009 Festival will continue ticket discounts for evening and weekend screenings for students, seniors and select downtown Manhattan residents. Additional information and further details on the Festival can be found at www.tribecafilm.com/festival.

Tribeca Film Festival Online and On-the-Go

Visit the Tribeca Film Festival online and become a part of the My Tribeca community at http://www.tribecafilm.com/register/