17 BLOCKS (Dir. Davy Rothbart; Documentary Competition; World Premiere)
Written by Jennifer Tiexiera. Produced by Alex Turtletaub, Michael B. Clark, Marc Turtletaub, Rachel Dengiz, Davy Rothbart. (USA) – World Premiere. Using two decades of intimate home video, 17 Blocks tells the story of the Sanford family, whose struggles with addiction and gun violence eventually lead to a journey of love, loss, and acceptance.
THE APOLLO (Dir. Roger Ross Williams; Gala; World Premiere)
The Apollo, directed by Academy Award-winning and Tribeca alumnus Roger Ross Williams (Music by Prudence; Life, Animated) and is produced by Lisa Cortés (Precious), White Horse’s Nigel Sinclair (George Harrison: Living in the Material World; Undefeated), Jeanne Elfant Festa (Foo Fighters: Back and Forth, Pavarotti) and Cassidy Hartmann (The Beatles: Eight Days A Week, Pavarotti) along with Williams. The Apollo covers the rich history of the storied performance space over its 85 years and follows a new production of Ta-Nehisi Coates’ Between the World and Me as it comes to the theater’s grand stage.
BURNING CANE (Dir. Phillip Youmans; US Narrative Competition; World Premiere)
Produced by Wendell Pierce, Mose Mayer, Ojo Akinlana, Karen Kaia Livers, Cassandra Youmans, Phillip Youmans. (USA) – World Premiere. Set among the cane fields of rural Louisiana, Burning Cane follows a deeply religious mother struggling to reconcile her convictions of faith with the love she has for her troubled son. With Wendell Pierce, Karen Kaia Livers, Dominique McClellan, Braelyn Kelly.
CHANGING THE GAME (Dir. Michael Barnett; Viewpoints; World Premiere)
Written by Michael Barnett, Michael Mahaffie. Produced by Clare Tucker. (USA) – World Premiere, Feature Documentary. Transgender high school athletes from across the country compete at the top of their fields, while also challenging the boundaries and perceptions of fairness and discrimination. With Mack Beggs, Sarah Rose Huckman, Andraya Yearwood. Also playing as part of the Tribeca/ESPN Sports Film Festival.
DEVIL’S PIE: D’ANGELO (Dir. Carine Bijlsma; Spotlight Documentary; World Premiere)
Produced by Mira Mendel, René Mendel, Julia Nottingham, Thomas Benski, Lucas Ochoa, Nina Yang Bongiovi, Forest Whitaker. (Netherlands, UK, USA) – World Premiere. Acclaimed R&B artist D’Angelo was on the precipice of super-stardom when he disappeared entirely from the public eye in 2000. Now preparing a comeback tour, Bijlsma’s film finds D’Angelo at a crossroads between a haunted past and uncertain future.
GAY CHORUS DEEP SOUTH (Dir. David Charles Rodrigues; Movies Plus; World Premiere)
Written by David Charles Rodrigues, Jeff Gilbert. Produced by Bud Johnston, Jesse Moss. (USA) – World Premiere, Feature Documentary. To confront a resurgence of anti-LGBTQ laws, the San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus embarks on an unprecedented bus tour through the Deep South, celebrating music, challenging intolerance, and confronting their own dark coming out stories. With The San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus, Oakland Interfaith Gospel Choir, Dr. Tim Seelig, Ashlé, Jimmy White.
GULLY (Dir. Nabil Elderkin; US Narrative Competition; World Premiere)
Written by Marcus Guillory. Produced by Brad Feinstein, Tom Butterfield, Ben Pugh, Corey Smyth, Alex Georgio. (USA) – World Premiere. After surviving traumatic childhoods and socioeconomic hardships, three disillusioned teens reach their breaking points and go on a rampage through a dystopian modern-day Los Angeles. With Terrence Howard, Amber Heard, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Charlie Plummer, Jacob Latimore, Jonathan Majors, John Corbett, Robin Givens.
GOLDIE (Dir. Sam de Jong; Viewpoints; NA Premiere)
Produced by Luca Borghese, Ben Howe. (USA) – North American Premiere, Feature Narrative. Goldie takes care of her sisters while their mom is in prison, but her true dream is stardom. With child protective services looming and a real music video shoot on the horizon, Goldie’s last option is to make her dreams come true or lose it all in Sam de Jong’s stylish and gritty New York City fable. With Slick Woods, George Sample III, Danny Hoch, Khris Davis, Marsha Stephanie Blake, A$AP Ferg.
INNA DE YARD (Dir. Peter Webber; Movies Plus; World Premiere)
Produced by Gaël Nouaille, Laurent Flahault, Laurent Baudens. (France, Belgium) – World Premiere, Feature Documentary. A joyous portrait of a group of pioneering reggae musicians, Inna De Yard captures the ongoing relevance of reggae and its social values, and the music’s passion to revitalize an older generation while passing it on to younger listeners. With Ken Boothe, Kiddus, Winston McAnuff, Cedric Myton, Judy Mowatt.
A KID FROM CONEY ISLAND (Dirs. Chike Ozah, Coodie Simmons; Spotlight Documentary; World Premiere)
Produced by Nina Yang Bongiovi, Forest Whitaker, Jason Samuels. (USA, China) – World Premiere. From the streets of Coney Island to the NBA, the story of basketball star Stephon Marbury reveals that often life is about the journey, not the destination—and the unexpected places your dreams may take you. Also playing as part of the Tribeca/ESPN Sports Film Festival.
LIL’ BUCK: REAL SWAN (Dir. Louis Wallecan; Spotlight Documentary; World Premiere)
Produced by Victor Lech, Crayton Jr. Armmer, Lil’ Buck, Nadim Cheikhouha, Machine Molle. (France, USA) – World Premiere. Dancer Lil’ Buck grew up jookin and bucking on the streets of Memphis. After a breathtaking video of him dancing to Camille Saint-Saëns’ “The Swan” accompanied by cellist Yo-Yo Ma went viral, everything changed.
ONLY (Dir. Takashi Doscher; Spotlight Narrative; World Premiere)
Produced by Eyal Rimmon, Gabrielle Pickle. (USA) – World Premiere. After the onset of a mysterious plague that affects only females, Eva may be the only woman left on Earth. Longing for freedom after months of secret quarantine, she and her partner Will venture out into the unknown. With Freida Pinto, Leslie Odom Jr., Chandler Riggs, Jayson Warner Smith, Tia Hendricks.
THE REMIX: HIP-HOP X FASHION (Dirs. Lisa Cortes & Farah X; Movies Plus; World Premiere)
Produced by Lisa Cortés. (USA) – World Premiere, Feature Documentary. The story of how hip hop changed fashion, leading to the stratospheric and global rise of street wear. It is a journey of African American creativity and the limitless possibilities of a cultural movement on a global scale. With Misa Hylton, April Walker, Dapper Dan, Kerby Jean-Raymond.
RECORDER: THE MARION STOKES PROJECT (Dir. Matt Wolf; Documentary Competition; World Premiere)
Produced by Kyle Martin, Andrew Kortschak, Walter Kortschak. (USA) – World Premiere. Beginning in the 1970s, Marion Stokes recorded an incredible 70,000 VHS tapes of unfiltered daily television. At the time, her compulsion raised eyebrows, but revisited through the lens of today’s media landscape, Stokes’ unusual life’s work becomes an extraordinary archive of television—and American—history.
ROADS (Dir. Sebastian Schipper; International Narrative Competition; International Premiere)
Written by Sebastian Schipper, Oliver Ziegenbalg. Produced by David Keitsch. (Germany) – International Premiere. An unlikely pair of teenage loners hit the road in an impromptu border-crossing adventure in this cross-cultural road movie from the breakout director of Victoria. With Fionn Whitehead, Stéphane Bak, Moritz Bleibtreu.
SEE YOU YESTERDAY (Stefon Bristol; Viewpoints; World Premiere)
Written by Stefon Bristol & Fredrica Bailey. Produced by Spike Lee, Jason Sokoloff, Matt Myers. (USA) – World Premiere, Feature Narrative. Two Brooklyn teenage prodigies, C.J. Walker and Sebastian Thomas, build make-shift time machines to save C.J.’s brother, Calvin, from being wrongfully killed by a police officer.
WHAT’S MY NAME: MUHAMMAD ALI (Dir. Antoine Fuqua; Spotlight Documentary; World Premiere)
Written by Steven Leckart. Produced by Sean Stuart. (USA) – World Premiere. One of the most iconic figures in athletic history, Muhammad Ali’s incredible story from world champion boxer to inspiring social activist is explored through his own voice and never-before-seen archival material by acclaimed filmmaker Antoine Fuqua, with executive producers LeBron James and Maverick Carter. An HBO Sports release.
THE WEEKEND (Dir. Stella Meghie; Critics’ Week; World Premiere)
Produced by Stella Meghie, Stephanie Allain, Mel Jones, Sarah Lazow, James Gibb. (USA) – New York Premiere, Feature Narrative. A stand-up comic who’s been struggling to get over her ex finds herself instead awkwardly third-wheeling her way through a weekend getaway alongside him and his new girlfriend in this warm, wry comedy. With Sasheer Zamata, Tone Bell, DeWanda Wise, Kym Whitley, and Y’lan Noel.
Directors Presenting Films Are:
Lisa Cortes (THE REMIX: HIP-HOP X FASHION; Movies Plus; World Premiere)
Antoine Fuqua (WHAT’S MY NAME: MUHAMMAD ALI; Spotlight Documentary; World Premiere)
Stella Meghie (THE WEEKEND; Critics’ Week; World Premiere)
Chike Ozah, Coodie Simmons (A KID FROM CONEY ISLAND; Spotlight Documentary; World Premiere)
Louis Wallecan (LIL’ BUCK: REAL SWAN; Spotlight Documentary; World Premiere)
Roger Ross Williams (THE APOLLO; Gala; World Premiere)
Phillip Youmans (BURNING CANE; US Narrative Competition; World Premiere)
Stefon Bristol (SEE YOU YESTERDAY; Viewpoints; World Premiere)
The Tribeca Film Festival will take place from April 24 – May 5 in New York City.
