Tribeca Film Festival Underway In New York
The 2025 Tribeca Festival in New York, which opened on June 5, will close on June 15, and already has winners of this year’s festival competition. Organisers announced winners ahead of the closing ceremony on Sunday. However, winners of the prestigious Audience Award, which is determined by audience votes throughout the festival, will be announced at a later date. A yearly film festival, which runs for 10 days and which hosts more than 500 events across New York City, this year’s winners for the US narrative competition category are Libby Ewing’s Charliebird, which won the Founders Award for Best U.S Narrative, Best Performance in a U.S. Narrative Feature went to Gabriela Ochoa Perez for Charliebird (United States) while the Best Screenplay in a U.S. Narrative Feature was awarded to Isabel Hagen for On a String (United States). The Best Cinematography in a U.S. Narrative Feature award went to Cedric Cheung-Lau for Esta Isla (This Island) from Puerto Rico while the Best International Narrative Feature award went to Happy Birthday, director Sarah Goher (Egypt). The Special Jury Mention for International Narrative Feature was awarded to Cuerpo Celeste, director Nayra Ilic García (Chile, Italy) while the Best Performance in an International Narrative Feature went to Andrea Riseborough and Brenda Blethyn for Dragonfly (United Kingdom) and the Best Screenplay in an International Narrative Feature was awarded to Mohamed Diab and Sarah Goher for Happy Birthday (Egypt). Over 115 features films culled from nearly 14,000 submissions were screened at the festival out of which 95 were world premieres. The festival played host to 135 filmmakers from 36 countries with 48 per cent of the films reportedly directed by women. CEO of Tribeca Enterprises and festival co-founder Jane Rosenthal described Tribeca Film Festival as a festival that is more than a festival. “It is home for artists navigating an ever changing world…for over two decades, we have championed emerging voices, celebrated established storytellers, and built a creative community where artists can grow, connect, and thrive. We are proud of the ecosystem we have cultivated and can’t wait to share it with the world in June,” Rosenthal submitted. The festival ends on Sunday.

Del-York Group Strong Showing At Tribeca Filmfest
AFRICA’S leading player in the creative industry – The Del-York Group – has kicked off the landmark partnership the company sealed with the Tribeca Film Festival to host the 2025 African Film Spotlight Event. The spotlight event is an initiative to project African storytelling onto the global stage and the Del-Yok group at this edition curated events that celebrated the continent’s creative excellence. The initiative themed ‘Cross-Continental Collaboration & The Power of Partnership’, not only spotlighted curated stories from African filmmakers, but it showcased emerging talents and sparked international collaboration within the film industry. There were a couple of panel discussions, film screenings by African filmmakers, industry panels exploring collaboration and innovation in African cinema and networking sessions linking African creatives with international partners. Vice President of Del-York group Stephanie Linus Idahosa stated that the Del-York–Tribeca partnership reflects the group’s commitment to fostering cultural diplomacy and long-term ecosystem development in Africa’s creative sector. “It also reinforces the company’s broader vision of positioning Africa as a powerhouse of innovation, storytelling, and talent export,” the Vice President added. The Tribeca Film Festival, founded by veteran actor Robert De Niro, remains one of the most respected cultural events globally, drawing elite industry players and top creative talents from around the world.

Durban FilmMart Institute Opens Call For DFMI Business Lab
THE Durban Film Institute (DFMI) has open calls for the DFMI Business Lab, an 18-week online business skills development programme, aimed at nurturing and empowering producers with the necessary skills to effectively engage in a global market. The programme is presented in partnership with DW Akademie supported by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development. The programme focuses on topics such as Business Management; Coproduction; Equitable Coproduction; Distribution; Financial management; Fundraising; IP and Entertainment Law; PR and Marketing led by industry experts from across Africa and the world. “Business acumen is an important skill set required from a producer. We have found that amongst the training programmes in Africa, upskilling in the area of business development needs more focus therefore DFMI is pleased to present the 5th edition of the Business Lab programme,” says Magdalene Reddy, director of the Durban FilmMart Institute. “Over the past four years there have been 125 producers who have gained necessary skills to strengthen their production companies and grow the film eco-system on the continent. We look forward to welcoming the new cohort.” The application is open to producers with African passports who have produced films and have less than five years’ experience as producers in the industry. Directors, line producers, script writers and those from other departments who are interested in the programme will need to provide a 1-page letter of motivation for consideration to participate. However, selected participants will need to avail themselves for two 90-minute zoom sessions per week from August 2025 to January 2026. Additional information can be sourced from [email protected] while deadline for submissions is Friday, June 20, 2025.