New York, NY (April 13, 2009)  - The Tribeca Film Festival, presented by founding sponsor American Express, today announced its 2009 Sponsors, a diverse collection of global brands, companies and other organizations dedicated to supporting filmmakers, artists and the community.  Sponsors play an integral role by supporting the Festival’s infrastructure, enhancing the Festivalgoer’s experience, and making possible many of the services provided to filmmakers during the Festival. Now in its eighth year, the Tribeca Film Festival runs from April 22 - May 3, 2009.

Tribeca is proud to have many returning sponsors, anchored by founding partner American Express who last year renewed their relationship with the Festival for five years, and to announce new relationships with Accenture, AMC, Babelgum, B.R. Guest Restaurant, Cunard Line, DIRECTV, Heineken, Kim Crawford Wines, Morgans Hotel Group, NCM.com, Nintendo DSi, Stolichnaya Vodka, and Union Square Ballroom.  The 2009 sponsorship lineup shows that the Festival is a valuable national marketing platform that reaches an influential consumer and industry audience.

“We are delighted to see that in this very challenging environment our partners have stepped up their efforts in a truly collaborative spirit to help meet the needs of the filmmakers, the audiences and the community. From the beginning this Festival has been rooted in bringing together the community through our many free public and community-based events and activities.  This year we hope that the festival will provide an opportunity for a welcome break from the impact of the financial crisis and generate its usual excitement and energy that everyone can be part of," said Craig Hatkoff, co-founder of the Tribeca Film Festival.

“Given all the financial uncertainty in the world today it is reassuring to know we have strong support from our sponsors for everything from transporting our filmmakers to the fest to enabling us to produce our free drive in and street fair,” said Nancy Schafer, Executive Director of the Festival.

CREATING VALUABLE ONSITE EXPERIENCES AND SUPPORTING THE FESTIVAL BY SUPPORTING THE COMMUNITY

Tribeca’s sponsors help to provide the fundamental necessities for both filmmakers and festivalgoers and support the Festival by enhancing onsite experiences.

American Express remains committed to supporting the Tribeca Film Festival, driving business to local merchants, providing value and experiences for Cardmembers, and supporting the filmmaker community. Throughout the Festival, Cardmembers have access to private screenings, filmmaker interviews, red carpet premieres and panel discussions. American Express is also providing Cardmembers with exclusive offers, including valuable dining benefits at some of the area’s most favored eateries and complimentary movie tickets for shopping at local merchants during the Tribeca Family Festival. 

American Express created the ultimate guide to the Tribeca Film Festival, including listings of all screenings and activities, insights from well-known members of the film industry, not-to-miss hot spots and special offers for Cardmembers. Festival attendees can pick up this complimentary guide at the Festival or select magazine stands, merchants and hotels.

At the center of the Festival are the films and supporting the film sections this year are Delta Air Lines, sponsoring the World Narrative Competition, Cunard Line, sponsoring the World Documentary Competition, L’Oréal Paris, sponsoring the Encounters series, and Nintendo DSi, sponsoring the Spotlight series.

Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC) anchors the Festival’s TriBeCa hub again, providing the venue for many red carpet screenings.

Brookfield Properties, Lower Manhattan Development Corporation/U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development help support the Festival’s downtown activities by hosting the highly anticipated annual Tribeca Drive-In at the World Financial Center Plaza.

Union Square Ballroom supports the Festival by sponsoring the Filmmaker Lounge, which will serve as a dedicated space where filmmakers and industry can enjoy downtime during the day between screenings and can take part in private industry receptions. 

DIRECTV, the nation’s leading satellite TV provider, joins Tribeca as a Signature Sponsor. Media covering the Festival will conduct filmmaker interviews in the comfort of the DIRECTV Tribeca Press Center, a working press office and the primary destination for all media attending the Festival.

Within many of these locations and others, festivalgoers will find food and beverage sponsors, including Heineken, Kim Crawford Wines, Snapple all natural Iced-T, Stolichnaya, and ZonePerfect® Nutrition Bars.

Snapple co-sponsors the annual Tribeca Drive-In at the World Financial Center Plaza and as the official sponsor of the Festival’s Volunteer Program, they will support the thousands of volunteers from around the world who lend crucial support to the Festival. 

iShares exchange traded funds continues to enhance the movie going experience by allowing audiences to further engage in film through their support of Behind the Screens: Films and Conversations About Truth, Clarity and Responsibility. Behind the Screens offers unique, intimate screenings and discussions with directors and key creatives of Festival films, hosted by a noted industry personality and curated by the Festival.

SUPPORT FOR THE FESTIVAL’S FILMMAKERS AND ARTISTS

The Tribeca Film Festival recognizes that prizes are an important vehicle by which to support and encourage up-and-coming talent in their creative endeavors. 

Founding Sponsor American Express will continue its tradition of honoring excellence in filmmaking, awarding the winners of the Best New Narrative Filmmaker and Best New Documentary Filmmaker categories unrestricted cash prizes totaling $50,000. 

Delta Air Lines will again help transport filmmakers to the Festival and host the World Narrative Features Competition Series, awarding the Best Actor and Best Actress two pairs of International BusinessElite tickets to any of Delta’s destinations worldwide. In addition, Delta’s Fly-In Movie competition is expanding the audience for short films; passengers are being given the ability to vote for one of five short films to be chosen as an official selection for the Tribeca Film Festival.

Heineken, a new Signature Sponsor, will engage filmmakers and audiences alike with The Heineken Audience Award -- a $25,000 cash prize to the audience choice for Best Feature Film.

L’Oréal Paris will honor the winner of its Women of Worth “Vision” Award with a $15,000 grant for use towards future projects and an exclusive, limited edition L’Oréal Paris 2009 Compact designed by Carelle.  The “Vision” Award honors a female filmmaker who exemplifies the spirit of L’Oréal’s Women of Worth initiative, which recognizes women who serve their communities, inspire others by example, and demonstrate a commitment to social responsibility.

CHANEL continues its support of the Artists Award Program.  Through this program, well-known, contemporary artists contribute original paintings and photographs that are given as awards to ten of the Festival winners.  The Artist Awards program highlights the Festival’s commitment to artists celebrating other artists.

Cunard Line, a new Friend of the Festival and sponsor of the World Documentary Competition, will present the winning filmmaker with a voyage certificate for a Transatlantic Crossing on Queen Mary 2 from New York to Southampton, England.

The 2009 Tribeca Film Festival Sponsors 

In 2009, the Tribeca Film Festival provides members of the filmmaking community a robust program through its Industry sponsorships. Integral partners include Alpha Cine Labs, Brightcove, Broadway Video Digital Media, Directors Guild of America, Dolby Production Services, Kodak Motion Picture Film, Magno Film/Sound/Video, and Panavision, with Supporters Babelgum, Morgans Hotel Group, MUD, NY State Governor’s Office for Motion Picture and Television Development, School of Visual Arts, and Shooting People. 

Signature Sponsors include: Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, Apple, Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC), Brookfield Properties, Delta Air Lines, DIRECTV, Heineken, iShares, RR Donnelley, Snapple. Signature Media Sponsors include: AMC, Bloomberg, NBC 4 New York, NCM.com, The New York Times, Telemundo 47 and Vanity Fair.

Friends of the Festival include: Accenture, B.R. Guest Restaurant, CHANEL, Crumpler, Cunard Line, Kim Crawford Wines, L'Oréal Paris, Lower Manhattan Development Corporation/U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, The City of New York Mayor's Office of Film, Theatre and Broadcasting, Nintendo DSi, Ogilvy, Stolichnaya Vodka, Union Square Ballroom, and ZonePerfect Nutrition Bars. Media Friends of the Festival include: 101.9 RXP, Getty Images, Radio Disney, Screen International, The Hollywood Reporter, Time Out New York, and Variety.

About the Tribeca Film Festival

Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal and Craig Hatkoff founded the Tribeca Film Festival in 2001 following the attacks on the World Trade Center, New York City to spur the economic and cultural revitalization of the lower Manhattan district through an annual celebration of film, music and culture. The Festival’s mission is to help filmmakers reach the broadest possible audience, enable the international film community and general public to experience the power of cinema and promote New York City as a major filmmaking center.   Tribeca Film Festival is well known for being a diverse international film festival that supports emerging and established directors. The Tribeca Festival has screened over 1100 films from over 80 countries since its first Festival in 2002. Since its founding, it has attracted an international audience of more than two million attendees and has generated over $530 million in economic activity for New York City. 

About the 2009 Festival Sponsors 

As Founding Sponsor of the Tribeca Film Festival, American Express is committed to supporting the Festival and the art of film making, bringing business and energy to New York City and offering benefits that enhance the festival-going experience.    

To learn more about American Express’ special access to the world of film and other entertainment offers, visit americanexpress.com/entertainment.

The Festival is pleased to announce the return of its Signature Sponsors: Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, Apple, Bloomberg, Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC), Brookfield Properties, Delta Air Lines, iShares, NBC 4 New York, The New York Times, RR Donnelley, Snapple, Telemundo 47 and Vanity Fair.  The Tribeca Film Festival is also honored to welcome the following new Signature Sponsors: AMC, DIRECTV, Heineken, and NCM.com.

###

Tags: Tribeca Film Festival