Tribeca Film Festival Winners Get a Big Chunk of Change

Miles to go before profit

Four filmmakers from the Tribeca Film Festival will each get a nice, healthy check for $25,000. Of course, considering the amount of money it takes to make a film, most of these people won’t even be able to pay off the personal loans they took out to fund their creations, or the debt consolidation loans they might need in the future.

Cinemaweb says it takes 10 times that amount to make “an average, every-evening movie.” But, hey, cash is cash, right? At least they’ll be in a better position that those who didn’t win. Other festival winners, such as Best Narrative Short, got $5,000 prizes.

Mystery prizes

If the individuals who won awards such as Best Actor got cash prizes, it’s not being reported. At least, not anywhere that I can find. The Best Actor in a Narrative award went to Ciaran Hinds for “The Eclipse.” Zoe Kazan won Best Actress in A Narrative Feature for “The Exploding Girl.”

What did they win? I don’t know. But I do know who walked away from the Tirbeca Film Festival with $25,000 each.

$25,000 winners

Iranian Director Asghar Farhadi won Best Narrative Feature for the film “About Elly,” which tells the story of a kindergarten teacher and her friend’s quest to marry her off. Best New Narrative Filmmaker went to Rune Rune Denstad Langlo for “North.”

The  United States took home the Best Documentary Feature award for director Marshall Curry’s “Racing Dreams.” Ian Olds, also from the U.S., won Best New Documentary Filmmaker for “The Taking of Ajmal Naqshbandi.”

$5,000 winners

The award for Best New York Narrative went to someone who lives nowhere near New York. Director Darko Lungulov from Serbia took home the check for “Here and There.”

Someone a bit closer won Best New York Documentary. “Partly Private,” by Canadian director Danae Elon got that award. Best Narrative Short went to Carlos Chahine, from France, for “The North Road.”

Director Matthew Faust, from the United States, won Best Documentary Short for his film called “Home.”

So that sums up the money-making that went on at the Tribeca Film Festival this year. Money spent? That is another, much longer, story.