The 2025 Tribeca Festival, presented by OKX, today announced its short film lineup, featuring selections across narrative, documentary, animated works, and music videos. Taking place June 4–15 in New York City, the program is thoughtfully curated to inspire, challenge and captivate audiences.

Year over year, the Tribeca Shorts program continues to break records for submissions, and 2025 is no exception. With expanded eligibility—including projects previously screened in New York or online for out-of-competition consideration—Tribeca is premiering 93 short films this year, marking a new high among major film festivals. Reflecting this growth and demand, Tribeca is deepening its investment in shorts by introducing the inaugural Shorts Cinema at Spring Studios. Situated within the Festival hub, this designated screening theater will allow more filmmakers and fans to discover the next generation of independent film.

“This year we received a staggering number of short submissions, and while it certainly made our job as programmers more challenging, we are confident our programs will reflect the quality, variety and imagination of the films we received from around the world,” said Ben Thompson, Vice President of Shorts Programming at the Tribeca Festival. “I am proud that we have expanded our programming, selecting the highest number of short films of any of the major film festivals. Our aim is to make shorts and music videos a major focus at Tribeca, with storytelling that dazzles and delights our audiences here in New York!”

For 24 years, Tribeca’s acclaimed Shorts program has spotlighted bold new voices, including Emmy nominee David Gelb (TF ‘06, ‘11, ‘15, ‘21), Oscar nominee Ryan Coogler (TF ’09), and Oscar winner Domee Shi (TF ’18). With 25 Oscar nominations and 12 wins—most recently for last year’s In the Shadow of the Cypress—the program continues to shape the future of film.

The 2025 shorts lineup will feature 93 selections from 105 filmmakers, including 82 films in competition and 10 music videos. This year’s program spans over 30 countries, including first-ever selections from Ecuador, Zimbabwe, and Curaçao. Among the selections are 49 world premieres, five international premieres, eight North American premieres, and 19 New York premieres. The lineup also welcomes back five directors returning to Tribeca with their latest projects.

The program’s four categories—narrative shorts, documentary shorts, animated shorts, and music videos—explore bold stories of passion, joy, friendship and trauma. These stories unfold across a diverse array of thematic programs, ranging from New York stories and bloody midnight fun to family comedy and personal triumph.

World premieres include “How I Learned to Die,” directed by Manya Glassman and executive produced by Oscar winner Spike Lee, an inspiring story of a 16-year-old girl confronting a life-threatening operation; “Jean Jacket,” directed by Maxim Nebeker and Lucy Nebeker, produced by and starring AnnaSophia Robb, a heartfelt and hopeful tale of a woman chasing one last shot at her dreams through a high-stakes lottery ticket; and “Kiss My Grass,” directed by Mary Pryor and Mara Whitehead and executive produced by Rosario Dawson, former NFL football quarterback Colin Kaepernick, Nancy Whiteman and Hilary Yu, a story that uncovers the relentless struggles of Black women in the cannabis business.

Whoopi Goldberg’s curated animated shorts program now features the largest number of animated short films ever in competition at Tribeca, highlighting powerful stories like the yearning for friendship in “Snow Bear” directed by Aaron Blaise, a lifelong bond that resonates far beyond their final note in the “The Piano” directed by Avery Kroll, and the haunting, hallucinatory solitude of “The Quinta’s Ghost” directed by James A. Castillo.

The vibrant music video lineup, curated by music video programmer Sharon Badal, spans the world premiere of Kid Cudi’s new short film “Neverland,” directed by Ti West and produced by Monkeypaw Productions; the nostalgic, high-energy throwback “Rock the Bells” from LL Cool J; Jack White’s raw, bluesy anthem “That’s How I’m Feeling;” and “Madame President” by Grace Bowers, a gritty, guitar-driven powerhouse.

Learn more about the Tribeca Festival programming team at TribecaFilm.com.

About Tribeca Festival
The Tribeca Festival, presented by OKX, brings artists and diverse audiences together to celebrate storytelling in all its forms, including film, TV, music, audio storytelling, games, and immersive. With strong roots in independent film, Tribeca is synonymous with creative expression and entertainment. Tribeca champions emerging and established voices, discovers award-winning talent, curates innovative experiences, and introduces new ideas through exclusive premieres, exhibitions, conversations, and live performances.

The Festival was founded by Robert De Niro, Jane Rosenthal, and Craig Hatkoff in 2001 to spur the economic and cultural revitalization of lower Manhattan following the attacks on the World Trade Center. The annual Tribeca Festival will celebrate its 24th year from June 4–15, 2025 in New York City.

In 2019, James Murdoch’s Lupa Systems bought a majority stake in Tribeca Enterprises, bringing together Rosenthal, De Niro, and Murdoch to grow the enterprise.