Lower Manhattan will soon be crawling with the stars of the 2015 Tribeca Film Festival, which kicks off Wednesday with the premiere of "Saturday Night Live" documentary "Live From New York!" and runs through April 26. In between, the fest's panels are the place to be -- Courtney Love will gab about Kurt Cobain, George Lucas is set to discuss his career with Stephen Colbert and the "Goodfellas" cast will reunite for a conversation moderated by Jon Stewart. You can also catch Sundance holdovers ("The Overnight," "Sleeping with Other People," "Grandma," "The Wolfpack") or get cozy with potential Tribeca standouts starring Nat Wolff, Lake Bell, Matthew Broderick, Christopher Walken, Olivia Wilde and a slew of others. Here are 21 films and events to keep on your radar throughout this year's festival:
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"Live From New York!" (Opening Night selection)
ASSOCIATED PRESS
April 15, 7:30 p.m. -- The cultural institution that is "Saturday Night Live" gets a close examination in Bao Nguyen's documentary, which zeroes in on the show's early years to chart its meteoric impact on the American zeitgeist. The film opens the festival on April 15 -- followed by a performance from Ludacris -- and will hit theaters on June 12. [Watch the trailer.]
"Goodfellas" panel (Closing Night selection)
Tribeca Film Festival
April 25, 7:30 p.m. -- Robert De Niro is Tribeca's patriarch, so one might connect some dots to determine whose call it was to have "Goodfellas" wrap up this year's festival. Celebrating its 25th anniversary, Martin Scorsese's gangster classic has been newly remastered so you can enjoy its iconic Copacabana tracking shot like you're seeing it for the first time. Organizers haven't announced which of the film's cast members and creators are on the guest list, but whomever it is will join Jon Stewart for a discussion after the screening.
George Lucas in conversation with Stephen Colbert
AFP via Getty Images
April 17, 4 p.m. -- The original Jedi Master will sit down with soon-to-be "Late Show" host Stephen Colbert to discuss his oh-so-humble career.
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"Man Up"
Tribeca Film Festival
Directed by Ben Palmer ("The Inbetweeners"), "Man Up" has the trappings of a conventional rom-com -- and we could not be more thrilled about that. Lake Bell is on hand as a down-on-love single woman who is mistaken for a stranger's (Simon Pegg) blind date. The pair hit it off, but both soon realize they weren't totally true to themselves upon first encounter. Give us something to swoon over, Tribeca. [Watch the trailer.]
Courtney Love and Brett Morgen in conversation with Neil Strauss
ASSOCIATED PRESS
April 19, 7 p.m. -- Following a screening of the documentary "Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck," which premiered to rapturous reception at Sundance, the singer's former wife and the film's director will discuss Cobain's life with author Neil Strauss. [Watch the "Montage of Heck" trailer.]
"Meadowland"
Tribeca Film Festival
Reed Morano shot "The Skeleton Twins" and Season 1 of "Looking," and she'll soon serve as DP on HBO's Sarah Jessica Parker vehicle, "Divorce." But for now, Morano is seated in the director's chair for the first time with the story of a couple (Olivia Wilde and Luke Wilson) who struggle to find solace after their son goes missing. Kevin Corrigan, John Leguizamo, Elisabeth Moss, Giovanni Ribisi, Juno Temple and Merritt Wever co-star.
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"Maggie"
Tribeca Film Festival
In a quarantined community ravaged by a zombie outbreak, an uninfected man (Arnold Schwarzenegger) insists on caring for his daughter (Abigail Breslin) himself, all while her disease escalates. Scheduled for a May 8 limited theatrical release, "Maggie" is the directorial debut from title-sequence designer Henry Hobson ("The Help," "The Walking Dead"). [Watch the trailer.]
"Mary J. Blige - The London Sessions"
Tribeca Film Festival
This film chronicles the R&B priestess while recording her 13th studio album alongside the likes of Sam Smith, Disclosure, Emeli Sandé and more. Blige will perform at the Beacon Theater after the movie's April 16 premiere.
"Monty Python and the Holy Grail" panel
John Phillips/Invision/AP
April 24, 7:30 p.m. -- Eric Idle, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Michael Palin and Terry Jones will reunite to celebrate the 40th anniversary of "Monty Python and the Holy Grail. While they're at it, Tribeca will spotlight two of the comedy troupe's other classics -- “Life of Brian” (April 25) and “Meaning of Life” (April 26) -- and premiere “Monty Python: The Meaning of Live" (April 25), a documentary about the group's recent shows in London.
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"Ashby"
Tribeca Film Festival
Nat Wolff is headed for another big summer with the latest John Green adaptation, "Paper Towns," but first catch him in Tony McNamara's comedy "Ashby." Wolff plays a smarty-pants high schooler who befriends the quirky girl in school (Emma Roberts) and finds a stand-in father figure in his titular CIA-assassin neighbor (Mickey Rourke).
"Tumbledown"
Tribeca Film Festival
After years of struggling to process her folk-songwriter husband's accidental death, a small-town woman (Rebecca Hall) is reinvigorated after a New York academic (Jason Sudeikis) approaches her to collaborate on a book about her late husband. Directed by Sean Mewshaw, "Tumbledown" also stars Dianna Agron, Blythe Danner and Griffin Dunne.
Christopher Nolan in conversation with Bennett Miller
Frazer Harrison via Getty Images
April 20, 6 p.m. -- Christoper Nolan ("The Dark Knight," "Interstellar") and Bennett Miller ("Capote," "Foxcatcher") make very different styles of movies, but both have emerged as some of this century's most acclaimed directors. The Oscar nominees will dive into their respective cinematic worlds during an intimate conversation.
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"Autism in Love"
Tribeca Film Festival
This documentary turns a heartfelt eye to the plight of romance among adults with autism.
"Anesthesia"
Tribeca Film Festival
Tim Blake Nelson wrote and directed this reflective drama about a beloved Columbia professor (Sam Waterston) who is mugged in New York City and retraces his steps to find what led to the attack. Enter a cast of motley characters played by Nelson, Kristen Stewart, Glenn Close, Corey Stoll, K. Todd Freedman and Gretchen Mol.
"Inside Amy Schumer" panel
Charles Sykes/Invision/AP
April 19, 4:30 p.m. -- Amy Schumer and her eponymous show's producers, writers, director and DP will sit down with Entertainment Weekly writer Sara Vilkomerson to gab about the third season of the Comedy Central hit.
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"Roseanne for President!"
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Years after transforming the politics of prime-time sitcoms, Roseanne Barr placed sixth in the 2012 presidential election. Eric Weinrib, who produced Michael Moore's "Sicko" and "Capitalism: A Love Story," tracked the comedian during her candidacy, shining a light on third-party politics and Barr's lifelong will to fight for change.
Harvey Weinstein in conversation
Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP
April 18, 2 p.m -- Known for breathing life into independent film in the late '80s and fortifying the intensity of Oscar campaigns over the past two decades, irascible studio head Harvey Weinstein is often referred to as The Punisher. He'll sit down to recount stories from the front lines of his esteemed career (moderator TBD).
"Bleeding Heart"
Tribeca Film Festival
Diane Bell's "Obselidia" was a breakout of the 2010 Sundance Film Festival, and now "Bleeding Heart" looks poised to make a dent at this year's Tribeca. A reticent yoga instructor (Jessica Biel) is gliding through life when her long-lost chaotic sister (Zosia Mamet), who's caught in an abusive relationship, pops up and pulls her into her turbulent web.
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"When I Live My Life Over Again"
Tribeca Film Festival
Jude (Amber Heard) is fed up with the big city, so she spends some time with her father (Christopher Walken), who lives in the Hamptons and is staging a musical comeback in the winter of his life. You read that right: Christopher Walken plays an over-the-hill singer desperate to resurrect his career -- if living with his daughter doesn't drive them both crazy first. Written and directed by Robert Edwards, "When I Live My Life Over Again" also features Kelli Garner, Hamish Linklater and Oliver Platt.
"A Nazi Legacy: What Our Fathers Did"
Tribeca Film Festival
Two men with opposing views of their Nazi war-criminal fathers are profiled in this documentary from David Evans, who is best known for directing episodes of "Downton Abbey" and "Shameless." Through their time together, Evans and human-rights lawyer Philippe Sands -- who is researching the Nuremberg trials -- dissect what it means to grow up knowing your parent is a mass murderer.
"Dirty Weekend"
Tribeca Film Festival
In the latest from Neil LaBute ("Nurse Betty," "Death at a Funeral"), two colleagues (Matthew Broderick and Alice Eve) venture through Albuquerque after their flight is delayed. While their downtown adventures rev up, a bond forms as each realizes the other is carrying a few secrets. Fingers crossed that "Dirty Weekend" signals Broderick's much-deserved film resurgence.
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