Eye For Film >> Festivals >> Tribeca >> 2007 >> Spotlight

The organisers said: "The Spotlight category was created for unique out-of-competition films with well-known cast members, high-profile directors or timely subject matter. With themes ranging from soccer and poker to a determined shepherdess looking for the perfect husband as well as a documentary about the unsung heroes of humanitarian efforts, this year's Spotlight category sheds light on diverse issues and emotions with 17 features and documentaries from eight different countries."

View other Tribeca Festival Films by strand: Discovery, Encounters, Family Films, Midnight, Showcase, World Documentary Feature Competition, World Narrative Feature Competition

This Is England and The Grand

2 Days In Paris (Two Days In Paris, Deux Jours a Paris) (Country: Germany, France; Year: 2007; Director: Julie Delpy; Writer: Julie Delpy; Stars: Julie Delpy, Adam Goldberg, Daniel Brühl, Marie Pillet, Albert Delpy, Aleksia Landeau, Adan Jodorowsky, Alexandre Nahon, Charlotte Maury-Sentier, Vanessa Seward, Thibault De Lussy), Official Site

A couple try to hold their relationship together on a weekend in Paris.

Full Review See: Julie Delpy Interview about 2 Days In Paris

North American Premiere

Chops (Country: US; Year: 2007; Director: Bruce Broder), Official Site

Each year, Jazz at Lincoln Center and its artistic director Wynton Marsalis host the prestigious Essentially Ellington Festival, a competition of high school jazz bands from across the country. This toe-tapping and empowering documentary focuses on one Florida band filled with young musicians who hit all the right notes.

World Premiere

The Grand (Country: USA; Year: 2007; Director: Zak Penn; Writer: Zak Penn, Matt Bierman; Stars: Woody Harrelson, Cheryl Hines, David Cross, Ray Romano, Jason Alexander, Dennis Farina, Chris Parnell, Richard Kind, Werner Herzog)

Poker movie comes up trumps.

Full Review See: Tribeca Film Festival diary: Days 4 and 5

World Premiere

Invisibles (Country: Spain; Year: 2006; Director: Mariano Barroso, Isabel Coixet, Javier Corcuera, Fernando León de Aranoa, Wim Wenders), Official Site

Giving voice to those silenced by international indifference, Academy Award® nominated actor Javier Bardem teams with Doctors Without Borders to produce this powerful collection of short films. Five acclaimed directors shed light on heroic, yet unsung humanitarian efforts to combat international crises, which have thus far remained invisible.

US Premiere

The Killing Of John Lennon (Country: UK; Year: 2006; Director: Andrew Piddington; Writer: Andrew Piddington; Stars: Jonas Ball), Trailer

An exploration of the experiences of Mark Chapman before and after he killed John Lennon.

Full Review

North American Premiere

You Kill Me and Tuya's Marriage

My Best Friend (Mon Meilleur Ami) (Country: France; Year: 2006; Director: Patrice Leconte; Writer: Olivier Dazat, Patrice Leconte; Stars: Daniel Auteuil, Dany Boon, Julie Gayet, Julie Durand, Henri Garcin, Jacques Mathou, Marie Pillet, Élisabeth Bourgine, Jacques Spiesser, Audrey Marnay, Anne Le Ny), Official Site

A successful antiques dealer, challenged by his dinner companions to introduce his best friend for a bet, realises he doesn’t have one.

Full Review

US Premiere

The Optimists (Optimisti) (Country: Serbia; Year: 2006; Director: Goran Paskaljevic; Writer: Goran Paskaljevic, Vladimir Paskaljevic; Stars: Lazar Ristovski, Bojana Novakovic, Petar Bozovic, Tihomir Arsic, Nebojsa Glogovac, Nebojsa Milovanovic, Slavko Stimac, Dragan Jovanovic, Mira Banjac, Viktor Savic, Lazar Milosevic)

One of Central Europe's leading filmmakers follows his unforgettable A Midwinter Night's Dream (TFF 2005) with this new film whose five episodes conjure up a world where people have trouble distinguishing truth from illusions. Each segment reflects the motto of Voltaire's Candide: "Optimism is insisting everything is good, when everything is bad."

North American Premiere

Pete Seeger: The Power of Song (Country: US; Year: 2007; Director: Jim Brown; Stars: Joan Baez, Bob Dylan, Arlo Guthrie, Natalie Maines, Pete Seeger, Bruce Springsteen, N. Paul Stookey, , , , )

Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen are two of many who attest to Seeger's importance in this compelling documentary that is more than a simple biography. Using new interviews, archival footage and home movies, Brown presents a social history through the life of one of this country's most compelling forces for change and, arguably, the most significant folk artist of our time.

World Premiere

The Power Of The Game (Country: US; Year: 2007; Director: Michael Apted)

Six stories intertwine in this dramatic and moving examination of the social impact of soccer across the world. Juxtaposing thrilling footage from games leading to and throughout the 2006 World Cup, Apted highlights stories of triumph over adversity from around the globe and skillfully conveys the remarkable transformative power of this sport.

World Premiere

Purple Violets (Country: US; Year: 2007; Director: Edward Burns; Writer: Edward Burns; Stars: Selma Blair, Patrick Wilson, Edward Burns, Debra Messing, Dennis Farina, Max Baker, James Biberi, George Bryant II, Orlagh Cassidy, Donal Logue, Jay Patterson)

Aspiring novelist Patti Petalson's (Selma Blair) chance encounter with her ex Brian (Patrick Wilson) turns her life upside down in this charming romance. Burns shows a new maturity both behind and in front of the lens as he also pairs with Debra Messing to round-out the foursome of college friends reuniting after years of estrangement.

World Premiere

The Killing Of John Lennon and 2 Days In Paris

Razzle Dazzle The Lost World (Country: US; Year: 2007; Director: Ken Jacobs), Official Site

A frequently returning TFF filmmaker presents the world premiere of his new experimental narrative opus. Razzle Dazzle confirms Jacobs' mastery of digital filmmaking in which he treats the image as a painterly canvas, exploring the depths of cubism and abstract expressionism from source material comprising turn-of-the-century stereopticon slides and an early Edison film.

World Premiere

The Road To St Diego (El Camino De San Diego) (Country: Argentina; Year: 2006; Director: Carlos Sorin; Writer: Carlos Sorin; Stars: Ignacio Benítez, Carlos Wagner La Bella, Paola Rotela, Silvina Fontelles, Miguel González Colman, José Armónico, Toti Rivas, Marisa Córdoba, Otto Mosdien, Claudio Uassouf, Lila Cáceres)

A young Argentine backwoodsman learns that soccer star Diego Maradona is ailing in a Buenos Aires hospital, and resolves to bring him a tree root he's uncovered--which he's certain looks just like his idol. Tracing a pilgrimage filled with humor, Sorin spins a delightfully offbeat tale about the roles that fate, religion and idolatry can play in life.

North American Premiere

Steep (Country: US; Year: 2007; Director: Mark Obenhaus; Writer: Mark Obenhaus; Stars: Ingrid Backstrom, Anselme Baud, Bill Briggs, Doug Coombs, Chris Davenport, Stefano De Benedetti, Shane McConkey, Andrew McLean, Seth Morrison, Eric Pehota, Glen Plake)

Whether it's jumping out of a helicopter hovering above the powdery slopes of Alaska's mountain ranges, or trying to outrun an avalanche in the French Alps, Steep traces the legacy of extreme skiing from its early pioneers to the death-defying daredevils of today.

World Premiere

Take The Bridge (Country: US, Chile; Year: 2006; Director: Sergio M Castilla; Writer: Sergio M Castilla; Stars: Adrián Castilla, Sergio M Castilla, Francisco Delgado, Mimi Pasqual, Anthony Reynoso, Angelica Rodriguez, Kathleen Rodriguez, Pedro Aponte Rosario, Yolanda Suero, Ruth Sullivan)

Four young strangers meet after their failed suicide attempts land each of them in the hospital on the same day. United by circumstance, they may yet discover a reason to live. This fresh, original take on city life pays tribute to the vitality and energy of the Dominican community in Washington Heights.

World Premiere

This Is England (Country: UK; Year: 2006; Director: Shane Meadows; Writer: Shane Meadows; Stars: Thomas Turgoose, Stephen Graham, Jo Hartley, Andrew Shim, Vicky McClure, Joseph Gilgun, Perry Benson, George Newton, Frank Harper, Jack O'Connell, Kieran Hardcastle)

A young boy adopted by a group of skinheads struggles to find his own identity in a world dominated by racism and war. Now out to own on two-disc DVD.

Full Review See: Interview with Thomas Turgoose and Tom Harper about The Scouting Book For Boys
, Stephen Graham interview about This is England

US Premiere

My Best Friend and The Optimists

Tuya's Marriage (Tu Ya De Hun Shi) (Country: China; Year: 2006; Director: Quanan Wang; Writer: Wei Lu, Quanan Wang; Stars: Nan Yu, Bater, Sen'ge, Baolier, Zhaya,)

A woman faces tough choices in the Mongolian Steppe.

Full Review

North American Premiere

You Kill Me (Country: US; Year: 2007; Director: John Dahl; Writer: Christopher Markus, Stephen McFeely; Stars: Ben Kingsley, Téa Leoni, Luke Wilson, Dennis Farina, Philip Baker Hall, Bill Pullman), Official Site, Trailer

An alcoholic hitman means a dangerous woman.

Full Review See: John Dahl Interview about You Kill Me

World Premiere