Tribeca and Youtube have partnered to initiate “We Are One” which is an online stage for film festivals across the world. This international film festival will run from May 29 to June 7 and it’s free for audiences around the globe. 

Tribeca Film Festival

Tribeca Enterprises is a multi-platform storytelling company, established in 2003 by Robert De Niro and Jane Rosenthal. Tribeca provides artists with unique platforms to expand the audience for their work and broadens consumer access to experience storytelling, independent film, and media. The company operates a network of entertainment businesses including the Tribeca Film Festival; the Tribeca TV Festival; and its branded entertainment production arm, Tribeca Studios. The Tribeca Film Festival (TFF) is an American film festival, held in the Tribeca neighborhood of Manhattan, showcasing a diverse selection of independent films. Since its inaugural year in 2002, it has become an outlet for independent filmmakers in all genres to release their work to a broad audience. TTFF constitutes a qualifying film festival for the Oscar, and it’s one of the most influential and important film festivals together with Sundance, Cannes, and more. 

Film festivals during the pandemic

COVID -19 is being negatively impacting the film industry as a whole, and film festivals in particular. Many film festivals were postponed due to the pandemic. Cannes and TTFF are among them. Furthermore, film festivals are an extremely important and crucial engine that drives the industry forward. For further information, head over the Y.M.Cinema Magazine article: Coronavirus and Oscar 2021: How Will it Change the Short Films Submission Requirements? The article demonstrates the changes in the submission requirements and the prioritization process of accepting films into the Oscar due to the coronavirus restrictions and social distancing regulations. 

COVID-19 and The Oscar

Variety has reported that During a meeting on Tuesday, Oscar’s board of governors approved a temporary hold on the requirement that a film needs a seven-day theatrical run in a commercial theater in Los Angeles County to qualify for the Oscars. In order to understand the Oscar pathway, take a look at the flowchart below. The requirement for a seven-day theatrical run in a commercial theater in Los Angeles County is one of the courses of a film being eligible for submission to The Oscar. 

Oscar’s board of governors approved a temporary hold on the requirement that a film needs a seven-day theatrical run in a commercial theater in Los Angeles County to qualify for the Oscars

Variety

The Digital Option

According to Variety, films will be allowed to be released digitally without playing in theaters. However, that doesn’t mean any movie premiering on a streaming service is eligible for Oscar gold. To be considered, the streamed film must have already had a planned theatrical release. The film must also be made available on the Academy Screening Room member-only streaming site within 60 days of the film’s streaming or VOD release. “The Academy firmly believes there is no greater way to experience the magic of movies than to see them in a theater,” Academy president David Rubin and CEO Dawn Hudson said in a statement. “Our commitment to that is unchanged and unwavering. Nonetheless, the historically tragic COVID-19 pandemic necessitates this temporary exception to our awards eligibility rules. The Academy supports its members and colleagues during this time of uncertainty. We recognize the importance of their work being seen and also celebrated, especially now, when audiences appreciate movies more than ever.” 

“We Are One”: A Tribeca and Youtube initiative

As explained, the situation presented above needs out of the box thinking. For now, the sole option is streaming. However, not every independent film is accepted to be streamed on one of the major streaming services (Netflix, Amazon, etc). Thus a valid alternative is needed. For that reason, YouTube and Tribeca Enterprises announced a new event called We Are One, which is a Global Film Festival. According to Tribeca: “We Are One is an unprecedented 10-day digital film festival exclusively on YouTube, bringing together an international community of storytellers to present festival programming for free to audiences around the world”. This digital film festival is set to begin on May 29. 

Check out the YouTube link below: 

We Are One is an unprecedented 10-day digital film festival exclusively on YouTube, bringing together an international community of storytellers to present festival programming for free to audiences around the world

Tribeca Enterprises

The participating film festivals

While the programming featured during the 10-day event hasn’t been announced yet, participating festivals include:

• Annecy International Animation Film Festival
• Berlin International Film Festival
• BFI London Film Festival
• Cannes Film Festival
• Guadalajara International Film Festival
• International Film Festival & Awards Macao (IFFAM)
• Jerusalem Film Festival
• Mumbai Film Festival
• Karlovy Vary International Film Festival
• Locarno Film Festival
• Marrakech International Film Festival
• New York Film Festival
• San Sebastian International Film Festival
• Sarajevo Film Festival
• Sundance Film Festival
• Sydney Film Festival
• Tokyo International Film Festival
• Toronto International Film Festival
• Tribeca Film Festival
• Venice Film Festival

The goal is to “immerse audiences in stories from around the world and providing a voice for filmmakers on a global stage” as stated by Tribeca. 

Immersing audiences in stories from around the world and providing a voice for filmmakers on a global stage

Tribeca Enterprises

We Are One and the World Health Organization

Through We Are One audience will not only get a peek into different cultures through a new lens, but they’ll also be able to support local communities by directly donating to organizations helping the relief efforts for those affected by COVID-19. The festival will benefit the World Health Organization (WHO), as well as local relief partners in each region. “We often talk about film’s uniquely powerful role in inspiring and uniting people across borders and differences to help heal the world. All of the worlds needs healing right now,” said Tribeca Enterprises and Tribeca Film Festival Co-Founder and CEO Jane Rosenthal. “We Are One: A Global Film Festival unites curators, artists, and storytellers to entertain and provide relief to audiences worldwide. In working with our extraordinary festival partners and YouTube we hope that everyone gets a taste of what makes each festival so unique and appreciates the art and power of film.”

We Are One: A Global Film Festival unites curators, artists, and storytellers to entertain and provide relief to audiences worldwide

Jane Rosenthal- Co-Founder and CEO of Tribeca Enterprises and Tribeca Film Festival

Schedule 

We Are One: A Global Film Festival will run from May 29 – June 7 on YouTube.com/WeAreOne. Programming will be available for free and will include films, shorts, documentaries, music, comedy, and conversations. A full schedule will be available closer to the festival start date.

Final thoughts

As stated above, the most appropriate way so see films, is via the big screen. Filmmakers work extremely hard to get their vision out there to be screened on the big canvas for the best immersive experience. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 situation dictates us a whole new different reality we must adapt. Fortunately, initiatives like We Are One allow to keep filmmakers’ heads above water to help them survive and even thrive at those unprecedented times.