Twenty-five years ago, in the wake of September 11, a festival was born to heal a city–conceived and built in just 120 days. That resilient spirit endures, and the Tribeca Festival, presented by OKX, today announced a slate of programming celebrating 25 years of community and storytelling, including a special conversation with co-founders Robert De Niro and Jane Rosenthal, free outdoor screenings at Hudson Yards, and, for the first time, limited public tickets to the Tribeca Festival Awards Ceremony on June 11, where De Niro and Rosenthal will present the signature Founders Award. Tickets are on sale now at TribecaFilm.com.
On June 11, De Niro, Rosenthal, and special guests will sit down with filmmaker Matt Tyrnauer for an intimate 25th anniversary conversation reflecting on the decision that helped revitalize downtown New York and reshape its cultural landscape. The discussion will explore the Festival’s founding as an act of civic renewal and radical optimism, its evolution over 25 years into one of the world’s most vital cultural gatherings, and its continuing role in shaping how stories are told and shared in New York and beyond. Featuring firsthand accounts, defining bets, near failures, and pivotal moments from the people who built it, the conversation will offer a rare look at how Tribeca has evolved alongside the city itself. This is a conversation that could only happen at 25.
“The festival was an act of defiance. We had 120 days. Thirteen-hundred volunteers. No money. No blueprint. Just an idea and a neighborhood that needed people back in it,” said Tribeca Festival Co-Founder Robert De Niro. “This wasn’t just about movies—it was about whether downtown was coming back. We were doing everything we could think of to get New York to feel like New York again.”
“I fell in love with New York through the movies, and now, New York needed the movies to recover,” said Tribeca Festival Co-Founder Jane Rosenthal. “Stories help people understand each other in a divided world. That was our mission after 9/11, and it remains true today. We’re still doing what we originally set out to do, entertaining audiences, and championing diverse voices with something meaningful to say.”
To honor this legacy, the Festival presents Tribeca at 25: Celebrating the Stories We Share, a series of free outdoor screenings at Hudson Yards revisiting landmark premieres, audience favorites, and breakthrough discoveries that have defined Tribeca over the past quarter century. More than a retrospective, this series brings defining Tribeca films back to life–under the stars and free to all. Titles include Tomas Alfredson’s Let the Right One In (TF ‘08); Damien Chazelle’s directorial debut Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench (TF ‘09); Paul Crowder and Jon Small’s The Last Play at Shea (TF ’10); David Gelb’s directorial debut Jiro Dreams of Sushi (TF ‘11); Orlando von Einsiedel’s first feature-length documentaryVirunga (TF ‘14); Frédéric Tcheng’s directorial debut Dior and I (TF ‘14); Nia DaCosta’s directorial debut Little Woods (TF ‘18); Ani Simon-Kennedy’s The Short History of the Long Road (TF ‘19); and Jessica Kingdom’s directorial debut Ascension (TF ‘21). Several screenings will be followed by conversations with the filmmakers behind them, including directors Nia DaCosta, David Gelb, Ani Simon-Kennedy, Frédéric Tcheng, and producers Jasmine McGlade, Gabrielle Nadig, and Cailin Yatsko.
The series also spotlights the Festival’s Academy Award-winning Shorts Program, underscoring Tribeca’s commitment to discovery and emerging voices, with selections including Ben Proudfoot’s Queen of Basketball (TF ‘21); Tusk’s Ripe! (TF ‘24); and Julia Aks and Steve Pinder’s Jane Austen’s Period Drama (TF ‘24).
Capping off the 25th anniversary celebration, the public is invited–for the first time–to attend the Tribeca Festival Awards Ceremony and cocktail hour. Join De Niro and Rosenthal as they present the signature Founders Award and celebrate this year’s competition winners across categories, including narrative, documentary, shorts, games, and audio storytelling. Limited tickets are now available at TribecaFilm.com.
To learn more about the Tribeca Festival programming team, visit TribecaFilm.com. For updates, follow @Tribeca and #Tribeca2026 on Instagram, X, Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube.