At the end of February it was announced that The Five-Year Engagement, the newest film from the creative team behind Forgetting Sarah Marshall, was going to be opening the 2012 Tribeca Film Festival, set to take place from April 18 through the 29th. Now today, the festival has announced the first round films that are going to be taking place, specifically, in the World Narrative and Documentary Competitions, plus the 22 films that make up the out-of-competition Viewpoints program.
Here are some movies that, at first look, seem worth mentioning. First, is the World Narrative Competition:
Nancy, Please
Directed by Andrew Semans, written by Will Heinrich and Andrew Semans (USA)—World Premiere
Paul’s life is good. He has a gig teaching literature at Yale, and he just moved in with his longtime girlfriend, finally shedding his casually sinister roommate, Nancy. There’s just one thing. Paul left an item of great importance at his old apartment, and Nancy doesn’t want to give it back.… Paul’s life is about to unravel. Debuting director Andrew Semans skillfully orchestrates a minor annoyance into an all-consuming obsession in this smart, stunning psychodrama.
Unit 7 (Grupo 7)
Directed by Alberto Rodriguez, written by Rafael Cobos and Alberto Rodriguez (Spain)—International Premiere
Unit 7 is a semi-official police detail with a seemingly impossible mission: kick Seville’s most vicious drug trafficking ring out-of-town ahead of a major international expo. By any means necessary. As they slip outside the bounds of the law in the name of duty, two officers fueled by violence, lies, and ambition end up on opposing paths. Spanish superstar Mario Casas (Neon Flesh) stars in this adrenaline-pumping action thriller. In Spanish with subtitles.
First Winter
Directed and written by Benjamin Dickinson (USA)—World Premiere
In this extraordinary debut feature, a blackout of apocalyptic proportions strands a group of Brooklyn hipsters in a remote country farmhouse with no heat and no electricity during the coldest winter on record. At first, it’s all sex and drugs and acoustic guitars. But as the days go on and the food supply dwindles, struggles of power, jealousy, and desire threaten the group’s ability to work together in order to survive.
For a full list of the World Narrative Competition films visit here.
Viewpoints program:
Full List
Consuming Spirits
Directed and written by Chris Sullivan (USA)—World Premiere, Narrative
Nearly 15 years in the making, Chris Sullivan’s Consuming Spirits is a meticulously constructed tour de force of experimental animation. Shooting frame by frame in 16mm, Sullivan seamlessly blends together a range of techniques into a distinct, signature visual style. In the process, he constructs a hypnotic, layered narrative, a suspenseful gothic tale that tracks the intertwined lives of three kindred spirits working at a local newspaper in a Midwestern rust belt town.
Cut
Directed by Amir Naderi, written by Amir Naderi, Abou Farman, Shinji Aoyama, Yuichi Tazawa (Japan)—U.S. Premiere, Narrative
Award-winning Iranian filmmaker and TFF alum (Vegas: Based on a True Story) Amir Naderi travels to Tokyo to tell this striking, fiercely unconventional tale of a struggling young filmmaker, Shuji. Desperate to create great cinema, Shuji obtains financing for a few utterly forgettable pictures from his brother—who got the money from the mob. Now Shuji must repay his debts and test his love of the movies by working as a human punching bag for yakuza thugs. In Japanese with subtitles.
The Fourth Dimension
Directed by Harmony Korine, Alexey Fedorchenko, and Jan Kwiecinski, written by Harmony Korine, Alexey Fedorchenko, Jan Kwiecinski, Oleg Loevsky, and Yaroslava Pulinovich (USA, Poland, Russia)—World Premiere, Narrative
A motivational speaker named Val Kilmer (played by Val Kilmer) delivers a sermon at a roller rink. A Russian scientist builds a time machine in his apartment. Four friends stumble upon an abandoned village in the Polish countryside. All are in search of the fourth dimension—whether they know it or not. Weird, ominous, cool, compelling: These three short films could only be inspired by the creative vision of Harmony Korine and Vice Media’s Eddy Moretti. In English, Polish, Russian with subtitles.
Francophrenia (or: Don’t Kill Me, I Know Where the Baby Is)
Directed by Ian Olds and James Franco, written by Ian Olds and Paul Felten (USA)—North American Premiere, Narrative
James Franco stunned the film world when he committed to a regular gig on General Hospital, but the Oscar®-nominated actor had a clever trick up his sleeve. While shooting a key GH episode, Franco brought along a film crew. TFF award winner Ian Olds (Fixer, 2009) then repurposed Franco’s behind-the-scenes footage into an experimental psychological thriller set amid the spectacle of a celebrity’s escalating paranoia, creating a mind-bending exploration of identity.
The full list of the films in the World Documentary Competition.
The films for the Spotlight, Cinemania and Special Screenings sections will be announced March 8th and the online film guide will go live on Monday, March 12th.
Here is the trailer for the festival’s opener The Five-Year Engagement, written and directed by Nicholas Stoller; starring Jason Segal, who also co-wrote the film and Emily Blunt.
