Tribeca Film Takes On A New Meaning

Tribeca Film Takes On A New Meaning

By:  Hope Wilkos, Writer

The world of film is taking a giant leap forward to satisfy the demands of a constantly changing and technically savvy audience.  It is with great anticipation that Tribeca Enterprises  and Lionsgate  announced their partnership to launch what will be known as “Tribeca Short List”, a subscription video-on-demand service to keep up with the competition.

The service is set to go live during the first half of 2015, a strategic move with the goal of offering premium content to their continually expanding online audience. We all are familiar with Tribeca Enterprises, the global media company behind one of the nation’s top cultural events, Tribeca Film Festival, which is held every April in New York City.  Lionsgate  holds the title for one of the premier next generation global content leaders.

The films that will be offered as part of the exclusive package will certainly be some of the best films to hit the screen. Many prestigious titles will be included in the subscription cost and for those that get caught up in the power of fine films, they will now be able to enjoy a wide and diversified variety of critically-acclaimed films from all over the world. The films will be curated by Tribeca and leading voices in contemporary culture. It will be refreshed on a weekly basis.

“The launch of the “Tribeca Short List” service unites two powerful brands and underscores our commitment to collaborate with blue-chip partners around the world to deliver premium content to online audiences,” said Lionsgate Chief Executive Officer Jon Feltheimer.  “The Tribeca name resonates with movie aficionados everywhere, and our service will encompass a highly curated, diverse and prestigious portfolio of quality films.”

“We are pleased to join with Lionsgate, a world-class brand synonymous with innovation and exciting, quality entertainment, to create a highly curated experience that disrupts the ‘more-is-more’ model in today’s streaming on-demand landscape,” said Jane Rosenthal, CEO of Tribeca Enterprises. “Tribeca Short List” aims to be a service where you can see films you never got to watch, forgot to watch, and want to watch.”  The service will be headquartered in New York City with the advisory board being made up of some of the leading names in American entertainment and culture.

Also, just announced on October 27, 2014, Tribeca Film is extremely pleased to proudly acquire the U.S. rights to a documentary that will make children giggle and adults smile from ear to ear, “I Am Big Bird.”

Every age group is familiar with Sesame Street’s Big Bird and his gruff buddy known as Oscar The Grouch. The individual behind all that fur and feathers is Caroll Spinney. Now 80 years old, Spinney is just as energetic and entertaining as the first time he began his role over 40 years ago. Retirement is not part of his picture for the future, at least at the present.

The hope is that the film will be ready for release to the public towards the end of the first quarter of 2015.  The documentary was directed and produced by Dave  LaMattina and Chad Walker and debuted in its world premiere at Hot Docs earlier this year. Spinney has captivated our hearts and we will love ‘Big Bird’ even more once we have the opportunity to watch the film.  Featured is some extraordinary footage of Spinney’s earliest collaboration with the very creative Jim Henson. We join Spinney on his fulfilling journey from bullied child to childhood icon.

“Big Bird is one of the iconic figures in American television and this portrait of the man inside, Caroll Spinney, is simultaneously joyful and fascinating,” said Tribeca Film GM Todd Green. “Dave and Chad weave together years of archival footage to create a truly revealing look at the man inside the Big Bird suit.”

“Caroll entrusted us with telling his story and we’re thrilled that we’ll finally be able to share it with audiences across the country,” said director and producer Chad Walker.

“This is a project we’ve spent years of our life on and we’re ecstatic to be working with Tribeca, a company that shares our vision for I Am Big Bird,” said director and producer Dave LaMattina.

The deal was negotiated for Tribeca Film by Alison Diviney, and Abby Davis of Preferred Content on behalf of the filmmakers.

The year 2015 will bring with it many exciting surprises in the community of filmmaking and Tribeca Film Festival and Tribeca Enterprises will be on the front lines of the push into the digital frontier.

PHOTOS Courtesy of Tribeca Enterprises