10 Must-See Movies at the 2024 Tribeca Festival

Sacramento

Tribeca Festival is back for another year, and with it comes a slate of more than 100 films, plus TV shows, video games, talks and immersive installations. Since the festival was founded post-9/11 as a way to revitalize lower Manhattan, it's grown into one of the world's premiere film festivals screening a cutting-edge lineup with everything from celebrity documentaries and international political features to buzzy comedies and independent short films. This year's festival, which runs from June 5-16 is no exception.

The 2024 lineup is impressive with the likes of Liza Minelli, Elizabeth Taylor, Elizabeth Banks, Kristen Stewart and festival founder Robert De Niro all gracing the screen. The festival has grown so large that combing through the packed schedule can be a bit overwhelming, especially for first time festival goers.

To that end, Parade sat down with Festival Director and Vice President of Programming, Cara Cusumano to discuss this year's lineup full of hidden gems. "We're just so addicted to discovery," she said of the Tribeca Festival programmers. "Those moments of like, 'Wow! This is really incredible. This is gonna be a big deal.' Sometimes it's a documentary that could change the world. Sometimes narrative films you know could be the next big thing. Both of those experiences we've had programming Tribeca."

Related: The 9 Films from the 2023 Tribeca Festival You Need to Watch

Which documentaries from the 2024 lineup will change the world? Which narratives will be the next big thing? We've combed through the lineup, with a little help from Cara, to pick out some of the must-see movies in this year's lineup.

But first, a little Tribeca advice from a pro. "Use the rush line," Cusumano siad. "When things are sold out online, it'll say it's 'on rush,' which means we're not issuing any more tickets. But if you come to the event 30 minutes before the start time, you can wait in the rush line and any available seats we sell. Typically, we're able to get in the entire rush line for almost every event."

So even if you haven't bought your tickets yet, you can always try rushing these 10 titles and dozens more.

Must-See Movies at the 2024 Tribeca Festival

1. Avicii - I'm Tim

While you may have never heard of Tim Bergling, you almost certainly know his music, or his stage name, Avicii. This documentary, using never-before-seen footage, catalogs the late Swedish DJ's meteoric rise to fame, his short career in EDM and his untimely death. If you're a music lover, this touching documentary is a festival must see.

2. Bad Actor: A Hollywood Ponzi Scheme

One of Cusumano's top picks for the festival is this documentary about D-List action star Zachary Horwitz. "It's a Hollywood true crime story about this wannabe action star who ended up launching a Ponzi scheme to self-finance his own terrible action movie," she said, describing the comedic true-crime caper. "I feel like this is a story I haven't seen told quite in this way." Have you seen a true-crime doc complete with bad action stunts? Neither have I.

3. Diane von Furstenberg: Woman in Charge

2024's opening night film will be this documentary about fashion icon Diane von Furstenberg. "Opening night is about setting the table and the tone for the whole festival," said Cusumano. "[Diane von Furstenberg] is an iconic New Yorker. She's a creative force. She's an incredible storyteller." The doc will not only showcase her work in fashion but also growing up in Europe the child of a Holocaust survivor, her time as a Studio 54 "It Girl" and continued work today.

4. Elizabeth Taylor: The Lost Tapes

"There's an Elizabeth Taylor documentary," said Cusumano, citing another highlight of this year's lineup. "For someone like me who's a huge classic cinema fan, this is why I do what I do. You come to this thinking you know the story and have seen the footage, but she recorded her own story. I had not been exposed to this before. It's just catnip." The documentary relies heavily on recently discovered archival recordings from Taylor and she's got some things to say about her career, about acting and of course about her husbands.

5. Federer: Twelve Final Days

By all accounts, Roger Federer is one of the greatest tennis players to ever live. In 2022 he retired after competing in the Laver Cup. This documentary follows the Swiss tennis star as he prepares for his final days on the court and includes interviews with not just Federer but also Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray.

6. Group Therapy

Therapy, but make it funny. In this documentary—stand up special? variety show?—a group of comedians, led by Neil Patrick Harris and including Mike Birbiglia, Nicole Byer, Gary Gulman, Landon Hughes, Tig Notaro and Atsuko Okatsuka go though a little group therapy. The comics come together to discuss mental health, wellness, trauma and love in perhaps the most star-studded and funniest group therapy session ever staged.

7. La Cocina

Two years ago Tribeca debuted The Bear over in its TV section. This year, another kitchen masterpiece is on the lineup, La Cocina, starring Rooney Mara. "It's set in a kitchen in New York," Cusumano said. "It has that kind of frantic, back-of-house energy to it that I think people will really love if they did like The Bear." The narrative feature is from Tribeca alum Alonso Ruizpalacios and also stars Raúl Briones.

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8. McVeigh

Game of Thrones star Alfie Allen will be starring in Mike Ott's film about the perpetrator of the Oklahoma City bombing, Timothy McVeigh. The movie examines the notorious terrorist in the weeks leading up to the attack in which he plots the catastrophic events with his fellow conspirator Terry Nichols (Brett Gelman).

9. Sacramento

Tribeca Festival is known for launching comedies and Sky High star-turned-director Michael Angarano wrote and directed this movie about a young man who decides to take a road trip with his best friend and the best friend's wife following the death of his father. Angarano stars alongside Michael Cera, Kristen Stewart and Maya Erskine in one of the festivals most star-studded lineups.

10. Slave Play. Not a Movie. A Play.

If Tribeca Festival is representing New York City, you can't forget about Broadway. In this experimental doc, playwright Jeremy O. Harris deconstructs his Tony-nominated work Slave Play. This isn't a recording of the play or a biography of Harris, but some exciting mixing of the two. "When you're in a city like New York, where our audience is the most diverse audience on the planet," Cusumano said, "We never have to say, 'Well this was great, but do we really have the audience for it?' Of course we do. We're New York." And so you can now go see a movie that is "Not a Movie. A Play."

Next, The Best Movies of 2024 (So Far)