The Tribeca Film Festival was held earlier this month, representing the first major film festival in N. Am. to resume in-person screenings after 15 months of upheaval wrought by the COVID-19 pandemic. Organizers are pleased with the results, with the festival having drawn 100,000 attendees in-person and an additional 115,000 online participants who purchased tickets to watch premieres through Tribeca’s online platform. While the online channel was forced by the pandemic, the hybrid in-person/online festival now appears to be here to stay. Tribeca 2021 was the largest year in the 19-year history of the festival, with Tribeca 2019 having drawn 140,000 in-person attendees without offering the opportunity for remote viewers to watch movies online. Other major festivals appear ready to follow suit, with the upcoming Toronto International Film Festival announcing that this year’s event in September will include full programs in-person and online, a first for TIFF. Festival director Joana Vicente explained, “We believe that digital access is an important part of providing accessibility to audiences and will be vital to the future of film festivals. This inclusivity across all our offerings helps to ensure that, no matter where you are located, you can participate in the Festival.”
See also: Toronto Film Festival Lineup Includes Alanis Morissette Doc, ‘Dune,’ and ‘Last Night in Soho’ (Variety)