IndependentFilm.com

New York, NY August 28th – Tropfest@Tribeca – a new free public outdoor short film festival created in collaboration between Tribeca Enterprises, the company behind the Tribeca Film Festival, and John Polson, creator of Australia’s Tropfest, the world’s largest short film festival – announced the finalists and event details for Target presents Tropfest@Tribeca, taking place September 23, 2007 at the World Financial Center Plaza in New York City.

Tropfest@Tribeca was created in the spirit of the original Tropfest in Australia, to recognize the critical role short films play in filmmaking. This shorts fest offers a platform for emerging filmmakers to showcase their talent to diverse audiences. Tropfest@Tribeca debuted during the 2006 Tribeca Film Festival to so much fanfare that it is being launched as a standalone festival. As with the Australian festival, all short films submitted for competition included the Tropfest Signature Item (TSI) which shows that each film was made specifically for the festival; The 2007 TSI is ‘Slice’.

Sixteen short films from four countries were selected from 161 submissions from ten countries to premiere at Tropfest@Tribeca. The finalists interpreted ‘Slice’ in the films in a variety of manners, from incorporating slices of food in their films to slicing up its characters.

Australian born actress Rose Byrne (Damages, Troy), actor/director Griffin Dunne (The Accidental Husband, Fierce People, After Hours) and Academy Award nominated director Bennett Miller (Capote) have been named as jury members for the 2007 Tropfest@Tribeca, additional jury members will be announced in September. The jury will be on hand at the Festival and at the end of the evening will award one film the Target Filmmaker Award which carries a cash prize of $10,000 from Target and a trip for two to Australia, home of Tropfest, provided by Australia.com and Qantas Airlines. Prizes will also be handed out for best actress and actor and the audience will vote by hand to select the audience award.

"I am thrilled that so many filmmakers from around the globe created works for our inaugural stand alone festival," said John Polson, co-founder and creative director, Tropfest@Tribeca. “We are excited for the public to see the wonderful array of diverse films from comedies to a documentary and delighted to be working with Target, Nokia Nseries, Australia.com and Brookfield Properties to create this exciting Festival in New York.”

"With the creation of Tropfest@Tribeca, Tribeca Enterprises launches a unique platform for creative talent and expands our public programming with this free outdoor festival where the community can discover short films in a new way," said Jane Rosenthal, co-founder of Tribeca Enterprises. “John Polson has built Tropfest in Australia into a national event where over 150,000 people attend and we hope to build Tropfest@Tribeca into an equally dynamic event with as strong a following.”

Tropfest@Tribeca Finalists
From a father and son reunion to a murder plot with cocktails and a friendly brawl over a piece of pizza, the filmmakers selected as finalists come to us from Australia, England, Norway and the United States of America. The complete list of films selected for competition at Tropfest@Tribeca includes:

Title: August
Director: Matthew Kehoe – Manhattan, NY
Synopsis: After his mother’ commits suicide and his father gets remarried, Max moves to New York to become a photographer.

Title: Autumn Meadow
Director: Adam Schram – Manhattan, NY
Synopsis: Harold can't seem to do anything right, even when it comes killing his wife.

Title: Bird Strikes
Director: Chris Cassidy – Brooklyn, NY
Synopsis: When technology and nature collide, Bob Leporati uses the ancient art of falconry to clear the runways of JFK International Airport.

Title: Black Tears
Director: James Wright III – Richmond, VA
Synopsis: The story of an African American trying to find employment. Although he dreams of being a famous animator, he is forced to take a job at a pizza joint dressed up as a Slice.

Title: The Closet
Director: Bob Sentipal – Montebello, NY
Synopsis: A dog day afternoon turns into a lonely night when a man and his best friends are forced to part ways.

Title: Homecoming
Director: Josiah Signor – Brooklyn, NY
Synopsis: A young soldier returns home from war only to find his father unresponsive to him. His father soon learns that it’s not all as it once was.

Title: I Graduated, But…
Director: Alexander Poe – Manhattan, NY
Synopsis: There's nothing like the last slice of pizza to bring up conflict between old friends.

Title: I Remain the Same
Director: Joanna Chejade-Bloom and Kiki Allgeier – Brooklyn, NY
Synopsis: Under the auspices of the Achilles Track Club, an organization that encourages people with disabilities to become involved in sports, a young Chechen comes to New York City to run in the 5K Hope and Possibility Race. While here, he receives a new prosthetic leg.

Title: Lemon and Lime
Director: Ben Thompson – London, England
Synopsis: A wealthy housewife plans to murder her husband with a poisoned gin and tonic.

Title: Morning
Director: Kathleen Johnsen – Bergen, Norway
Synopsis: Two personalities, one person. The one side of ourselves that is difficult to accept, but if we manage we might feel complete.

Title: The Picnic
Director: Belinda King – Marrickville, Australia
Synopsis: The desperate acts of a crazed woman turn a friendly picnic into a day to remember.

Title: Slices Only
Director: Mike Tenaglia – Queens, NY
Synopsis: A Queens pizzeria implements a no slices policy and chaos ensues.

Title: Snookered
Director: Daniel Knight – Sydney, Australia
Synopsis: A men’s locker room is a mine field of unspoken protocol passed down through the generations. Now, a moment of confusion will break this etiquette and leave two men well and truly snookered.

Title: Super Slice
Director: Stephen Franciosa, Jr. – Bronx, NY
Synopsis: Pizza Man, who is a pizza maker by day, is an extraordinary superhero that brings villains to justice using everyone’s favorite food… PIZZA!

Title: The Switch
Director: Jonathon Emmerling – Manhattan, NY
Synopsis: Tom has no luck with women. Not a single one is interested. Then Tom meets Wes, a perfect 10 who totally gets him; the only problem is Tom’s pesky heterosexuality.

Title: Take Me
Director: Dana Bower – Manhattan, NY
Synopsis: Harry comes full circle in his attempts to say goodbye to an old, faithful friend.

More Than Shorts
Tropfest@Tribeca will kick off at 5pm with a preshow of live musical performances. The following bands have been selected to perform:

Haunt – Haunt is a project from the ex-frontman of The Ware River Club, Matthew Hebert. Hebert’s well-placed lyrics, vocal rasp and bitter-sweet chords have toured the U.S. many times over and supported such artists as The Jayhawks, Dave Alvin, Marah, Blue Rodeo, Emmy Lou Harris, Bob Mould, Daniel Johnston, Richard Buckner and The Allman Brothers.

Second Dan – Following in the trajectory of Tropfest itself, indie rock band Second Dan got its start in Australia winning the prestigious Triple J Unearthed Competition. The band now based in New York City has garnered rave reviews for its energetic live shows and intelligent songwriting, and are set to release their debut US album in early 2008.

DJ Shorty – DJ Shorty is a well known Manhattan nightlife fixture and has been a DJ at such renowned nightspots as Moomba, Wax, Sway, Lotus, Palladium. Shorty currently has residencies at the Hotel on Rivington, The Garden at ONO/The Gansevoort Hotel and Sugar/TriBeCa and regularly plays at Hiro, KOS and at The 60 Thompson Hotel.

At 8pm the World Financial Center Plaza turns into a movie theater under the stars with the films premiering on a 48’x26’ inflatable air screen and a large area for public seating on Target outfitted chairs and the short film program begins. Additionally, premiering at the Festival will be
the winner from the Nokia Nseries “Slice of Life” clip contest – now accepting entries at: http://www.tribecafilmfestival.org/365-tropfest-nokia.html– where aspiring filmmakers and everyday consumers submit clips captured on mobile phones illustrating the creator’s idea of life in a moment.

Attendees at the Festival also have the opportunity to win a five night trip for two to Sydney, Australia in February to attend Tropfest, courtesy of Australia.com with flights provided by Qantas Airways.

The 2007 Tropfest@Tribeca is presented by Target, supported by Australia.com, Nokia Nseries and official host Brookfield Properties along with media support from Daily News, Time Out New York and WNBC. The Tropfest @Tribeca Official Guide, which includes a full calendar of events, will be exclusively in the Daily News on Friday, September 21. For more information log onto www.tribecafilm.com/tropfest or call (212) 941.3923.

About Tribeca Enterprises
Tribeca Enterprises is a diversified multi-platform media company located in New York City. Established in 2003 by Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal, and Craig Hatkoff, the company currently operates a network of branded entertainment businesses including the Tribeca Film Festival, Tribeca Cinemas, and Tropfest@Tribeca. The Company’s mission is to provide artists with unique platforms to expand the audience for their works and to broaden the access point for consumers to experience independent film and media.

About Tropfest
Tropfest, founded by John Polson, is the world’s largest short film festival and Australia’s most beloved public cultural event. The central aim of Tropfest is to stimulate the production of short films and provide an audience for the work of Australia’s emerging filmmakers.

The festival began in the early 1990s when John Polson approached a local café to screen his short film for cast, crew, and friends. The film, entitled Surry Hills: 902 Spring Roll, drew an amazing crowd of 200 people. Inspired by the turn out, Polson decided that a short film festival was the next step. In 1993 the Tropicana Short Film Festival was born, named after the café venue, The Tropicana Caffe.

Now known as Sony Tropfest, the festival is the premiere creative platform for aspiring filmmakers in Australia. The films screen live via satellite to unique outdoor settings in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Canberra, Perth, and Hobart to audiences in excess of 150,000 and is supported by many of Australia’s most established film identities.

For more information please visit www.tropfest.com

About Target
Minneapolis-based Target serves guests at 1,537 stores in 47 states nationwide by delivering today’s best retail trends at affordable prices. Target is committed to providing guests with great design through innovative products, in-store experiences and community partnerships. Whether visiting a Target store or shopping online at Target.com, guests enjoy a fun and convenient shopping experience with access to thousands of unique and highly differentiated items. Target (NYSE:TGT) gives more than $3 million a week to its local communities through grants and special programs. Since opening its first store in 1962, Target has partnered with nonprofit organizations, guests and team members to help meet community needs.

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