The 2024 Tribeca Film Festival begins today, and it promises to be one of the most exciting ones yet. This 23rd edition comes with a diverse selection of narrative, documentary, animated, and short films featuring a range of cultural and present experiences. And with 103 feature films from 114 filmmakers across the globe, the festival promises to be a perfect blend of returning and new storytellers, with half of the stories told by women and 35% told by BIPOC filmmakers.

Every year I struggle to make a watchlist. It isn’t because there aren’t any that have garnered my interest. It’s because the lineups continue to impress me. Though I am only one woman with one set of eyes, I plan to watch as many great films as possible. Of course, I’ll be watching the majority of the midnight section. And this year, I decided to shake things up and add in some docs too! So, without further ado, here’s my watchlist for the 2024 Tribeca Film Festival:

U.S. NARRATIVE

1) Adult Best Friend | Director: Delaney Buffet

Synopsis: Nothing holds a mirror up to your life more than the examination of a friend from childhood. While Katie (Katie Corwin) should be celebrating her engagement to John (Mason Gooding), she can’t help but fret over what her best friend, Delaney (Delaney Buffett), will think. Driftless and unambitious, her opinions and feelings matter most to Katie. In an effort to reconnect and break the news gently, she plans a girls’ trip to assuage her codependent friend, setting the stage for a hilarious buddy comedy. 

2) The French Italian | Director: Rachel Wolther

Synopsis:  Doug (Aristotle Athari) and Valerie (Catherine Cohen) have made a mistake. Their hate-fueled obsession with the jerks downstairs — who always seem to be singing karaoke in a brownstone, who even does that? — recently led them to flee the city for Doug’s parents’ place upstate, giving up a great deal on a rent-stabilized apartment in the process. Their friends are horrified, and regret is setting in. They start plotting their revenge— and before they know it, they’re staging an off-Broadway play starring their nemesis. 

3) Griffin in Summer | Director: Nicholas Colia

Synopsis: Summer vacation is usually the time for kids to let loose, but for fourteen-year-old Griffin Nafly it’s time to get down to the serious business of putting on his dramatic new play: an ambitious cross between Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf and American Beauty. However, when his tween collaborators get distracted by more trivial pursuits like boys and camp, Griffin’s attention drifts toward Brad, the zoned-out handyman working at his house. Increasingly smitten and seeking a kindred spirit in Brad due to his failed career as a New York-based performance artist, Griffin finds himself embarking on an unforgettable summer.

4) Sacramento | Director: Michael Angarano

Synopsis: Flighty and unpredictable Ricky (Michael Angarano) is kicked out of his convalescent home following the death of his father and surprises his best friend, Glenn (Michael Cera), by forcing him on a road trip across California. Unbeknownst to him, Glenn is about to start a family with his wife Rosie (Kristen Stewart) and is sick of Ricky’s inability to grow out of their past shenanigans. In the worn yellow seats of Glenn’s old college car, the two men reckon with the mistakes of their past and the questions lurking in their future. 

SPOTLIGHT NARRATIVE

5) Daddio | Director: Christy Hall

Synopsis: On a late-night drive from JFK Airport to Midtown Manhattan, a young woman (Dakota Johnson) and her cab driver (Sean Penn) start talking. The usual pleasantries and jokes soon turn into a game between the two strangers as they exchange stories about important people in their lives. As their conversation unravels, secrets are revealed, advice is shared, and a genuine bond is forged. At times funny, sexy, tense and deeply heartfelt, this chance encounter impacts both in ways neither could’ve ever imagined.

6) A Mistake | Director: Christine Jeffs

Synopsis: Expert surgeon Elizabeth Taylor (Elizabeth Banks) makes a fateful decision during a routine surgery by allowing her young colleague to take charge of a delicate procedure. When a mistake occurs that can’t be undone, Elizabeth finds herself in a difficult situation, facing the desperate need for answers from the patient’s parents and the hospital’s relentless efforts to protect its reputation. As she tries to shield her colleague and herself from the consequences, the film delves into the ripple effects of a single human error.

7) The Shallow Tale of a Writer Who Decided to Write about a Serial Killer | Director: Tolga Karacelik

Synopsis: In this darkly comedic tale, a struggling writer (John Magaro) finds his life taking a bizarre turn when he befriends a retired serial killer (Steve Buscemi) who becomes his unlikely marriage counselor and muse. As the writer grapples with his second novel and a crumbling marriage to his disillusioned wife (Britt Lower), the former killer reluctantly offers guidance on both matters, leading to a series of twists and turns that blur the lines between reality and fiction. 

8) The Wasp | Director: Guillem Morales

Synopsis: In this taut, twisty psychological thriller, estranged friends Heather (Natalie Dormer) and Carla (Naomie Harris) reunite over tea, only to unveil a dangerous and deceptive plot that will irrevocably alter their lives. As the two navigate a web of secrets and hidden agendas, the true nature of their meeting slowly comes to light, revealing a shocking and perilous reality that neither could have anticipated. 

9) Winter Spring Summer or Fall | Director: Tiffany Paulsen

Synopsis: Following a chance encounter, wunderkind Remy (Jenna Ortega) and music-obsessed slacker Barnes (Percy Hynes White) become inexorably entwined in each other’s lives. As winter turns to spring and spring turns to summer, the two find themselves falling in love. But with Remy heading to Harvard in the fall, the young couple are forced to reevaluate what’s truly important to them.

MIDNIGHT

10) The A-Frame | Director: Calvin Lee Reeder

Synopsis: In this mind-bending sci-fi comedy, a quantum physicist’s groundbreaking machine inadvertently opens a portal to a subatomic universe while attempting to prove its efficacy. During his experiments on rats, he stumbles upon a radical cancer treatment that could revolutionize modern medicine. Driven by ambition and the desire to legitimize his work, the physicist begins human trials, raising the stakes and blurring the lines between science and ethics. 

11) Beacon | Director: Roxy Shih

Synopsis: Driven by an overzealous sense of adventure, young sailor Emily (Julia Goldani Telles), quickly runs into trouble when she shipwrecks on a remote island off the coast of South America. She’s rescued by the island’s lone inhabitant, Demián Bichir’s mysterious light keeper Ismael. With communications down due to incredibly stormy conditions, they try to work together to ensure each other’s survival, but tension grows once Emily begins to question Ismael’s lack of answers and the bizarre occurrences they encounter as time passes. 

12) The Devil’s Bath | Director: Severin Fiala & Veronika Franz

Synopsis: In 18th century Austria, Agnes (Anja Plaschg) embarks on a new life as she marries her beloved Wolf (David Scheid). However, her hopes for marital bliss are quickly shattered by a controlling mother-in-law and her husband’s apparent disinterest in her. As Agnes struggles with the isolation and despair of her unfulfilling existence, she descends down a dark and disturbing path that leads her to contemplate the unthinkable. 

13) The Weekend | Director: Daniel Emeke Oriahi

Synopsis: Orphaned at a young age, Nikya has finally gotten the family she always wanted in her fiancé Luke. Now, there is only one thing that would make her life complete: to meet his parents and relatives. However Luke is reticent, having not been home in over a decade. Longing for connection, Nikya pushes him to reconcile with his past and soon they are off to Luke’s childhood home. While there Nikya learns that family baggage can be harder to stomach than she assumed. 

VIEWPOINTS

14) Color Book | Director: David Fortune

Synopsis: Following his wife’s recent passing, single father Lucky finds himself navigating the challenges of raising his son Mason, who has Down syndrome. Mason is an exuberant 11-year-old boy who enjoys drawing in his color book and watching baseball with his dad. Seeking solace, Lucky and Mason embark on a journey across Metro Atlanta to attend their first baseball game together. 

15) Come Closer | Director: Tom Nesher

Synopsis: In this poignant drama, a young woman’s life is shattered when her beloved younger brother dies in a tragic accident. Consumed by grief, Eden takes increasingly desperate measures to fill the void left by her brother’s absence. Her journey takes a passionate and dangerous turn when she discovers her brother had a secret girlfriend. 

16) Restless | Director: Jed Hart

Synopsis: How far would you go to maintain a peaceful home? This is the quandary that Nicky, a single, mild-mannered woman and caregiver, faces after a group of young men move into the adjoining house. Nicky hopes that their first eardrum-bursting party is an anomaly, but what begins as her polite request to keep the music down quickly escalates into an angry series of confrontations that edge toward violence. Pushed to insanity after weeks of no sleep, she begins to contemplate increasingly severe means to find solitude. 

17) Searching for Amani | Director: Nicole Gormley & Debra Aroko

Synopsis: In the heart of Kenya, a tragedy shatters a young boy’s life. Simon Ali, 13, finds himself in a world of mystery when his father, a respected conservancy guide, is found dead under suspicious circumstances. Armed with his video camera and an unwavering desire for truth, Simon and his best friend Haron embark on a perilous journey to uncover the secrets behind his father’s demise. 

DOCUMENTARY COMPETITION

18) The Debutantes | Director: Contessa Gayles

Synopsis: Following a decades long absence, a new group of Black debutantes dawn on Canton, Ohio, where an intergenerational group of women and girls seek to bring a new source of vibrant energy to the forgotten tradition of the debutante ball. Preparing for the event takes herculean efforts, as waltz and etiquette classes become key for all involved — not to mention the need for escorts to the delightful affair — and traditions and contemporary political ideals come to a head.

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Thank you for checking out my 2024 Tribeca film festival watchlist. Full reviews will be posted right here on PCR!