Tribeca Shortlist: Not Just Another Niche Streaming Service

Tribeca Shortlist is not just another niche streaming service. It doesn’t try to have the most movies. It doesn’t try to figure out what you want to watch. It doesn’t use algorithms. Tribeca Shortlist is a subscription video-on-demand streaming service that offers shortlists created by industry insider curators—actors, directors, people involved in the Tribeca Film Festival.

Shortlists are more than playlists. Curators discuss why each title made their list. It’s like attending a party with a group of cool film professionals who are discussing their favorite films.

The streaming service was launched in October 2015 as a joint venture between Lionsgate and Tribeca Enterprises. Tribeca Enterprises is the company behind the 15-year old Tribeca Film Festival established in 2003 by Craig Hatkoff, Jane Rosenthal and Robert De Niro.

Curated Shortlists have a broad them and comprise three to six movies chosen by actors—including John Leguizamo, Gary Oldman, and Lizzy Caplan to name a few—and directors such as Michael Rapport (The Heat), Rebecca Miller (Personal Velocity), and Derek Cianfrance (Place Beyond the Pines). Tribeca execs Sol Guy and Cara Cusumano, senior film programmer for the Tribeca Film Festival, also weigh in with lists.

Each Shortlist includes a short overview video of the curator talking about the films they selected, and each film includes a "Why Watch It" video featuring personal insights and clips that illustrate his/her point of view.

Documentary filmmaker, Morgan Spurlock (Supersize Me ) curated a list called “Cult Films 101” that consists of Hair, Swimming with Sharks, and The Producers. Spurlock described The Producers as a film that is “so good it will stay with you forever.”

You can select films from Shortlists, staff-curated categories—Most Popular, Recent Additions, Not on Netflix, Step Back in the 80s, Top Ten US Grossing Movies, Staff Picks, and Departing Soon—or by browsing alphabetically.

Titles that are part of a Shortlist have an “SL” icon. Some movies are on multiple shortlists and “Why Watch It” videos are listed from all curators who are recommending the film.

A third of Tribeca Shortlist's approximately 150 films are changed each month with titles typically available for three months. Shortlists are added, and others removed as the films rotate out. While John Leguizamo’s shortlist is no longer available, his “Why Watch It” video is still included with Jean Luc Godard’s 1960’s film Pierrot Le Fou in which he discusses the difficulties of acting and directing an avant grade film, “How do I make it natural and real? With a master director like Godard, you give up and surrender.”

The service includes a broad mix of films, including major studio releases, film classics, independent studio gems, foreign film favorites, and documentaries. Current offerings include: Chasing Amy, Amelie, Reservoir Dogs, Some Like it Hot, Moby Dick, 1941, Affliction, Carnal Knowledge, Crash,; indie films like Meeks Cutoff and Basquiat; and documentaries like Downloaded: The Story of Napster, David Byrne’s Stop Making Sense, and The U.S. vs. John Lennon.

The Tribeca Shortlist subscription costs $5 per month and there are no ads. The app is available to stream to Roku, Apple TV, Fire TV, iPhone, iPad, Android, or a PC and is compatible with Chromecast and AirPlay. The web browser and tablet app have a complete list of movie genres to make it easy to find films. Films can also be downloaded to the iPhone, iPad, or Android devices for offline viewing.

While movie lovers have been able to stream classic films from the Criterion Collection through FilmStruck, Tribeca Shortlist makes it easier to find a film to watch, including unfamiliar titles. Perhaps you’ve heard of a film but don’t know what makes it great. When Rebecca Miller talks about the extreme stylization of Woody Allen’s Husbands and Wives, we see the film in a whole new way. Discussions continue on the Tribeca Shortlist blog where there are stories about films like Why Coffee is Vital to Tarantino Films (it makes his crazy characters more relatable).

Whether you appreciate the art of filmmaking, or are just looking for some great classics, Tribeca Shortlist deserves a look. A 14-day trial is available for new users.

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