The Tribeca Festival is bringing back in-person events for its 2021 lineup, and that includes programming typically seen at home. The Tribeca TV lineup will feature nine shows total, consisting of eight series premieres and a season premiere, as well as panel appearances by featured guests Tina Fey, Robert Carlock, Joshua Jackson, Helen Hunt, and more.
Oh, and to kick things off, KISS will be performing. Yes, KISS the band. At a film and television festival. Just go with it.
“When we launched Tribeca TV five years ago, we created space within the film festival to recognize the incredible, boundary-pushing work being done by filmmakers in the episodic format as official festival selections,” Cara Cusumano, Festival Director and VP of Programming, said in a statement. “In a year defined by at-home entertainment, we are proud to continue that tradition with an exciting Tribeca TV lineup of new series from today’s top storytellers and unique new voices.”
Running from June 9-20, the festival will feature notable premieres including the Starz series “Blindspotting,” AMC’s mind- and genre-bending “Kevin Can F**k Himself,” Peacock’s podcast adaptation of “Dr. Death,” and Taika Waititi’s FX original series, “Reservation Dogs.” Also featured are two docuseries premieres: “9/11: One Day in America” comes from National Geographic and executive producer Donald Glover, while A&E will be touting its latest “Biography” entry, “KISStory.” (See? Now it all makes sense.) As for the non-series premiere, OWN will be premiering the anticipated second season of “David Makes Man” from executive producer Tarell McCraney and showrunner Dee Harris-Lawrence.
Over in the Tribeca NOW section, the festival will be premiering independent episodic work, including short- and long-form pilots and series. The NOW section will showcase four indie pilots from creators telling original, smart, and contemporary stories. Check out the full lineups for both sections below.
“9/11: One Day in America” (National Geographic) – World Premiere
Executive Producer: David Glover
– Emmy®-winning 72 Films (Inside North Korea’s Dynasty) and Academy Award®-winning executive producers Dan Lindsay and T.J. Martin (Undefeated and LA 92) came together to produce a documentary series marking 20 years since the attacks of 9/11. Made in official collaboration with the 9/11 Memorial & Museum.
“Blindspotting” (Starz) – World Premiere
Executive Producers: Rafael Casal, Daveed Diggs, Jess Wu Calder, Keith Calder, Ken Lee, Emily Gerson Saines, Tim Palen, Seith Mann
Cast: Jasmine Cephas Jones, Benjamin Turner, Candace Nicholas-Lippman, Atticus Woodward, Jaylen Barron, Helen Hunt, Rafael Casal
– As Ashley (Jasmine Cephas Jones) is ready to ring in the new year with Miles (Rafael Casal), she finds him being dragged out of their apartment and into the back of a squad car. After the screening there will be a conversation with cast members Rafael Casal, Jasmine Cephas Jones, and Helen Hunt.
“Biography: KISStory” (A&E Network) – World Premiere
Executive Producers: Leslie Greif, Jenny Daly, Elaine Frontain Bryant, Brad Abramson
Cast: Paul Stanley, Gene Simmons, Ace Frehley, Peter Criss, Dave Grohl, Tom Morello, Doc McGhee, Eddie Kramer, Bob Ezrin, Matt Pinfield, Tommy Thayer, Eric Singer
– After 50 years, the No. 1 Gold Record-selling band of all time, KISS, is sharing their story of success in this definitive documentary. Founders Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons tell the wild story of the band’s iconic rise to superstardom before smashing their last guitar and extinguishing the fire-breathing demon. After the screening there will be a special performance by KISS.
“David Makes Man” (Oprah Winfrey Network) – Season 2 World Premiere
Executive Producers: Dee Harris-Lawrence, Tarell McCraney, Michael B. Jordan, Oprah Winfrey, John Strauss
Cast: Kwame Patterson, Arlen Escarpeta, Akili McDowell, Cayden Williams, Alana Arenas, Travis Coles
– David (Kwame Patterson and Akili McDowell) is in his 30s, a rising businessman facing an opportunity that will change him and his community forever. After the screening there will be a conversation with series creator and executive producer, Tarell McCraney, and showrunner, Dee Harris-Lawrence.
“Dr. Death” (Peacock) – World Premiere
Executive Producer: Patrick Macmanus
Cast: Joshua Jackson, Grace Gummer, AnnaSophia Robb, Christian Slater, Alec Baldwin
– “Dr. Death” is based on Wondery’s hit podcast detailing the terrifying true story of Dr. Christopher Duntsch (Joshua Jackson), a rising star in the Dallas medical community. Young, charismatic and ostensibly brilliant, Dr. Duntsch was building a flourishing neurosurgery practice when everything suddenly changed. As victims piled up, two fellow physicians, neurosurgeon Robert Henderson (Alec Baldwin) and vascular surgeon Randall Kirby (Christian Slater), set out to stop him. After the screening there will be a conversation with cast members Joshua Jackson, Christian Slater, and Grace Gummer, executive producer/writer/showrunner Patrick Macmanus and director Maggie Kiley.
Annie Murphy in “Kevin Can F**k Himself”
Courtesy of AMC
“Kevin Can F**K Himself” (AMC) – World Premiere
Executive Producers: Valerie Armstrong, Craig DiGregorio, Rashida Jones, Will McCormack
Cast: Annie Murphy, Mary Hollis Inboden, Eric Petersen, Alex Bonifer, Brian Howe, Raymond Lee
– “Kevin Can F**K Himself” probes the secret life of the sitcom wife (Annie Murphy). Alternating between single-camera realism and multi-camera comedy, the formats inform one another as the audience imagines what happens when she escapes her confines and takes the lead in her own life.
“Monsters at Work” – World Premiere
Executive Producer: Roberts “Bobs” Gannaway
Cast: Ben Feldman, Mindy Kaling, Billy Crystal, John Goodman, Henry Winkler, Lucas Neff, Alanna Ubach
– “Monsters at Work” tells the story of Tylor Tuskmon (Ben Feldman) and his dream to become a Jokester, as well as his misadventures with MIFT, the crew that keeps Monsters, Inc. running.
“The Mysterious Benedict Society” – World Premiere
Executive Producers: Phil Hay, Matt Manfredi, Todd Slavkin, Darren Swimmer, Jaime Tarses, Karen Kehela Sherwood, Deepak Nayar, James Bobin, David Ellender, Matt Loze
Cast: Tony Hale, Kristen Schaal, MaameYaa Boafo, Ryan Hurst , Gia Sandhu, Mystic Inscho, Seth B. Carr, Emmy DeOliveira, Marta Kessler
– Placed undercover at a boarding school, a group of orphans must foil a nefarious plot with global ramifications while creating a new sort of family along the way.
“Reservation Dogs” (FX) – World Premiere
Executive Producer: Sterlin Harjo, Taika Waititi, Garrett Basch
Cast: D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai, Devery Jacobs, Paulina Alexis, Lane Factor
– One year after the death of their friend, four Native teens commit crimes to fund their efforts to leave their home in rural Oklahoma. After the screening there will be a conversation with Executive Producer Sterlin Harjo and select cast members
A Conversation with Tina Fey, Robert Carlock, Meredith Scardino and Jeff Richmond
– Woven within the framework of such massively popular series like “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt,” “Mr. Mayor” and the soon to debut, “Girls5eva,” exists a writing, composing, producing and directing collaboration that has proven itself to be consistently brilliant. Join us for a conversation with longtime collaborators Tina Fey, Robert Carlock, Meredith Scardino and Jeff Richmond as they dig into the intricacies of creating year after year of hilarious, poignant and whip-smart storytelling replete with some of the most memorable TV characters of the past 2 decades.
An Uncandid Portrait, created by Rick Gomez, Steve Zahn (United States) – Episodes 1 & 2 (World Premiere)
– “An Uncandid Portrait” is a series of fabricated documentaries that follow the lives of fictional artists. Just because it’s made up doesn’t mean there isn’t some truth to it. With Steve Zahn and Rosemarie Dewitt.
“In the Cards,” created by Colin Kane Healey (United States) – Episode 1 (World Premiere)
– A dark comedy series that follows a notorious psychic scammer on the dirty road she takes to riches—and a spot on the FBI’s Most Wanted list. With Eleanore Pienta, Sherilyn Fenn, Michael Drayer and Catherine Curtin.
“if i’m alive next week…,” created by Jennifer Morris, Robbie Sublett (United States) – Episodes 1, 2, & 3 (World Premiere)
– When a foul-mouthed, 80-year-old grandma gets dumped and booted from her boyfriend’s brownstone, she’s forced to return to the rent-stabilized apartment housing of her broke, ungrateful kids. WIth Joyce Van Patten, Peter Friedman, Jennifer Morris and Robbie Sublett.
“VIRAL,” created by Miles Blim, Camille Casmie, Chloe Howard (United States) –Episodes 1 & 2 (World Premiere)
– “VIRAL” is a nonlinear comedy about memory, identity, and the insidious effects of the algorithm. With Miles Blim and Chloe Howard.
2021 NOW Special Screening
“Incarceration Nations: A Global Docuseries,” created by Dr. Baz Dreisinger (World Premiere)
– Mass incarceration is a global calamity. From England to El Salvador, Argentina to the USA, Brazil and Lebanon to South Africa and Sierra Leone, its harms and horrors look strikingly similar. INN-TV is the first docuseries to tell this border-crossing story. Narrated entirely by those who have lived incarceration around the world, the ten episodes expose an international crisis while also spotlighting solutions, showcasing the work of the justice partners in the Incarceration Nations Network, from one continent to another.
Oh, and to kick things off, KISS will be performing. Yes, KISS the band. At a film and television festival. Just go with it.
“When we launched Tribeca TV five years ago, we created space within the film festival to recognize the incredible, boundary-pushing work being done by filmmakers in the episodic format as official festival selections,” Cara Cusumano, Festival Director and VP of Programming, said in a statement. “In a year defined by at-home entertainment, we are proud to continue that tradition with an exciting Tribeca TV lineup of new series from today’s top storytellers and unique new voices.”
Running from June 9-20, the festival will feature notable premieres including the Starz series “Blindspotting,” AMC’s mind- and genre-bending “Kevin Can F**k Himself,” Peacock’s podcast adaptation of “Dr. Death,” and Taika Waititi’s FX original series, “Reservation Dogs.” Also featured are two docuseries premieres: “9/11: One Day in America” comes from National Geographic and executive producer Donald Glover, while A&E will be touting its latest “Biography” entry, “KISStory.” (See? Now it all makes sense.) As for the non-series premiere, OWN will be premiering the anticipated second season of “David Makes Man” from executive producer Tarell McCraney and showrunner Dee Harris-Lawrence.
Over in the Tribeca NOW section, the festival will be premiering independent episodic work, including short- and long-form pilots and series. The NOW section will showcase four indie pilots from creators telling original, smart, and contemporary stories. Check out the full lineups for both sections below.
2021 Tribeca TV Lineup
“9/11: One Day in America” (National Geographic) – World Premiere
Executive Producer: David Glover
– Emmy®-winning 72 Films (Inside North Korea’s Dynasty) and Academy Award®-winning executive producers Dan Lindsay and T.J. Martin (Undefeated and LA 92) came together to produce a documentary series marking 20 years since the attacks of 9/11. Made in official collaboration with the 9/11 Memorial & Museum.
“Blindspotting” (Starz) – World Premiere
Executive Producers: Rafael Casal, Daveed Diggs, Jess Wu Calder, Keith Calder, Ken Lee, Emily Gerson Saines, Tim Palen, Seith Mann
Cast: Jasmine Cephas Jones, Benjamin Turner, Candace Nicholas-Lippman, Atticus Woodward, Jaylen Barron, Helen Hunt, Rafael Casal
– As Ashley (Jasmine Cephas Jones) is ready to ring in the new year with Miles (Rafael Casal), she finds him being dragged out of their apartment and into the back of a squad car. After the screening there will be a conversation with cast members Rafael Casal, Jasmine Cephas Jones, and Helen Hunt.
“Biography: KISStory” (A&E Network) – World Premiere
Executive Producers: Leslie Greif, Jenny Daly, Elaine Frontain Bryant, Brad Abramson
Cast: Paul Stanley, Gene Simmons, Ace Frehley, Peter Criss, Dave Grohl, Tom Morello, Doc McGhee, Eddie Kramer, Bob Ezrin, Matt Pinfield, Tommy Thayer, Eric Singer
– After 50 years, the No. 1 Gold Record-selling band of all time, KISS, is sharing their story of success in this definitive documentary. Founders Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons tell the wild story of the band’s iconic rise to superstardom before smashing their last guitar and extinguishing the fire-breathing demon. After the screening there will be a special performance by KISS.
“David Makes Man” (Oprah Winfrey Network) – Season 2 World Premiere
Executive Producers: Dee Harris-Lawrence, Tarell McCraney, Michael B. Jordan, Oprah Winfrey, John Strauss
Cast: Kwame Patterson, Arlen Escarpeta, Akili McDowell, Cayden Williams, Alana Arenas, Travis Coles
– David (Kwame Patterson and Akili McDowell) is in his 30s, a rising businessman facing an opportunity that will change him and his community forever. After the screening there will be a conversation with series creator and executive producer, Tarell McCraney, and showrunner, Dee Harris-Lawrence.
“Dr. Death” (Peacock) – World Premiere
Executive Producer: Patrick Macmanus
Cast: Joshua Jackson, Grace Gummer, AnnaSophia Robb, Christian Slater, Alec Baldwin
– “Dr. Death” is based on Wondery’s hit podcast detailing the terrifying true story of Dr. Christopher Duntsch (Joshua Jackson), a rising star in the Dallas medical community. Young, charismatic and ostensibly brilliant, Dr. Duntsch was building a flourishing neurosurgery practice when everything suddenly changed. As victims piled up, two fellow physicians, neurosurgeon Robert Henderson (Alec Baldwin) and vascular surgeon Randall Kirby (Christian Slater), set out to stop him. After the screening there will be a conversation with cast members Joshua Jackson, Christian Slater, and Grace Gummer, executive producer/writer/showrunner Patrick Macmanus and director Maggie Kiley.
Annie Murphy in “Kevin Can F**k Himself”
Courtesy of AMC
“Kevin Can F**K Himself” (AMC) – World Premiere
Executive Producers: Valerie Armstrong, Craig DiGregorio, Rashida Jones, Will McCormack
Cast: Annie Murphy, Mary Hollis Inboden, Eric Petersen, Alex Bonifer, Brian Howe, Raymond Lee
– “Kevin Can F**K Himself” probes the secret life of the sitcom wife (Annie Murphy). Alternating between single-camera realism and multi-camera comedy, the formats inform one another as the audience imagines what happens when she escapes her confines and takes the lead in her own life.
“Monsters at Work” – World Premiere
Executive Producer: Roberts “Bobs” Gannaway
Cast: Ben Feldman, Mindy Kaling, Billy Crystal, John Goodman, Henry Winkler, Lucas Neff, Alanna Ubach
– “Monsters at Work” tells the story of Tylor Tuskmon (Ben Feldman) and his dream to become a Jokester, as well as his misadventures with MIFT, the crew that keeps Monsters, Inc. running.
“The Mysterious Benedict Society” – World Premiere
Executive Producers: Phil Hay, Matt Manfredi, Todd Slavkin, Darren Swimmer, Jaime Tarses, Karen Kehela Sherwood, Deepak Nayar, James Bobin, David Ellender, Matt Loze
Cast: Tony Hale, Kristen Schaal, MaameYaa Boafo, Ryan Hurst , Gia Sandhu, Mystic Inscho, Seth B. Carr, Emmy DeOliveira, Marta Kessler
– Placed undercover at a boarding school, a group of orphans must foil a nefarious plot with global ramifications while creating a new sort of family along the way.
“Reservation Dogs” (FX) – World Premiere
Executive Producer: Sterlin Harjo, Taika Waititi, Garrett Basch
Cast: D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai, Devery Jacobs, Paulina Alexis, Lane Factor
– One year after the death of their friend, four Native teens commit crimes to fund their efforts to leave their home in rural Oklahoma. After the screening there will be a conversation with Executive Producer Sterlin Harjo and select cast members
A Conversation with Tina Fey, Robert Carlock, Meredith Scardino and Jeff Richmond
– Woven within the framework of such massively popular series like “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt,” “Mr. Mayor” and the soon to debut, “Girls5eva,” exists a writing, composing, producing and directing collaboration that has proven itself to be consistently brilliant. Join us for a conversation with longtime collaborators Tina Fey, Robert Carlock, Meredith Scardino and Jeff Richmond as they dig into the intricacies of creating year after year of hilarious, poignant and whip-smart storytelling replete with some of the most memorable TV characters of the past 2 decades.
2021 NOW Showcase
An Uncandid Portrait, created by Rick Gomez, Steve Zahn (United States) – Episodes 1 & 2 (World Premiere)
– “An Uncandid Portrait” is a series of fabricated documentaries that follow the lives of fictional artists. Just because it’s made up doesn’t mean there isn’t some truth to it. With Steve Zahn and Rosemarie Dewitt.
“In the Cards,” created by Colin Kane Healey (United States) – Episode 1 (World Premiere)
– A dark comedy series that follows a notorious psychic scammer on the dirty road she takes to riches—and a spot on the FBI’s Most Wanted list. With Eleanore Pienta, Sherilyn Fenn, Michael Drayer and Catherine Curtin.
- Colin Kane Healey is a writer, director, and copywriter. The New York Times called his award-winning feature film Homemakers “a raggedy ode to the DIY ethos.”
“if i’m alive next week…,” created by Jennifer Morris, Robbie Sublett (United States) – Episodes 1, 2, & 3 (World Premiere)
– When a foul-mouthed, 80-year-old grandma gets dumped and booted from her boyfriend’s brownstone, she’s forced to return to the rent-stabilized apartment housing of her broke, ungrateful kids. WIth Joyce Van Patten, Peter Friedman, Jennifer Morris and Robbie Sublett.
- Jennifer R. Morris and Robbie Collier Sublett are a writing and directing team based in New York. Their play “You Better Sit Down” premiered at The Flea Theater. As actors, they’ve appeared both on and off Broadway and in numerous films and TV shows. “if i’m alive next week…” is their directorial debut.
“VIRAL,” created by Miles Blim, Camille Casmie, Chloe Howard (United States) –Episodes 1 & 2 (World Premiere)
– “VIRAL” is a nonlinear comedy about memory, identity, and the insidious effects of the algorithm. With Miles Blim and Chloe Howard.
- Miles Blim is a Chicago-born, New York-based artist. He recently graduated from Northwestern where he studied theatre. He’s performed in several professional productions and is eager to explore the full range of his artistic interests beginning with VIRAL, his first foray into writing, directing, and screen acting.
- Camille Casmier is a director who lives in Brooklyn, NY. Since graduating from Northwestern University’s directing program, she has directed theatre, music videos, promo videos, and shorts. She also works in development at Tiny Reparations.
- Chloe Howard is a New York-based actor and artist originally from the California Bay Area. She is a graduate of Northwestern University where she studied theatre, musical theatre, and acting for screen.
2021 NOW Special Screening
“Incarceration Nations: A Global Docuseries,” created by Dr. Baz Dreisinger (World Premiere)
– Mass incarceration is a global calamity. From England to El Salvador, Argentina to the USA, Brazil and Lebanon to South Africa and Sierra Leone, its harms and horrors look strikingly similar. INN-TV is the first docuseries to tell this border-crossing story. Narrated entirely by those who have lived incarceration around the world, the ten episodes expose an international crisis while also spotlighting solutions, showcasing the work of the justice partners in the Incarceration Nations Network, from one continent to another.
- Dr. Baz Dreisinger is a professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, the Executive Director of Incarceration Nations Network (INN) and founder of the Prison-to-College Pipeline program. A Global Fulbright Scholar and Fulbright Specialist, she is the author of “Incarceration Nations: A Journey to Justice in Prisons Around the World” and “Near Black: White-to-Black Passing in American Culture.”