Tribeca Film Festival Opening Night Dedicated To Boston

Tribeca Film Festival's opening night was dedicated to Boston, following the fatal bombing that targeted the finish line of the Boston Marathon on Monday. The 12-year-old film festival was founded by Robert De Niro and Jane Rosenthal after 9/11 as a way to revive lower Manhattan in the wake of the tragedy at the World Trade Center.

"Being the New Yorkers that we are, the spirit that we showed after 9/11, and it [was] very, very moving to be able to see people coming out fearlessly," comedian Richard Beltzer told the crowd at the Tribeca Performing Arts on Wednesday night. "And now we have the Boston tragedy, and those people showed incredible humanity and bravery. And so tonight, we're going to dedicate this festival to the people of Boston. Tonight we're all Bostonians because we all breathe the same air, we're all part of the same family."

Belzer then introduced the opening film of the festival's first night, Mistaken for Strangers, a documentary about Brooklyn indie rock band the National, filmed by bandmate Matt Berninger's brother Tom Berninger. The film found its heart when it focused on the relationship between the two brothers, rather than on the dynamic of a band, as might be found in a more traditional rock doc. Following the film, the star-studded crowd was treated to an intimate concert by the National.

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