Robert De Niro Reveals How Tribeca Festival Began After 9/11

Robert De Niro – (Special Correpondent/Web Desk) – Robert De Niro says the Tribeca Festival was never a plan, it was a reaction. Speaking with longtime partner Jane Rosenthal and director Matt Tyrnauer, he opened up about the raw urgency behind its creation just weeks after the September 11 attacks.

De Niro called it “an act of defiance.” He explained that he and Rosenthal had only 120 days, 1,300 volunteers, and no real budget. What they had was a broken neighbourhood that needed people to return.

Rosenthal remembered feeling deep fear at the time. As a mother of two young girls, she worried about what might happen next. But that fear turned into purpose, a wish to help however she could.

De Niro said once the decision was made, there was no doubt left in his mind. He wasn’t overthinking it, he was simply moving forward and doing it.

Both described those months as strange and heavy. Trucks carried debris from Ground Zero through the streets daily. Long sirens meant another body had been found. Helicopters overhead made the city feel like something out of a war film.

Despite the pain, the festival carried moments of real hope. De Niro personally called Nelson Mandela and invited him to the very first event. Mandela, who once bonded with fellow prisoners over shared love of film, appeared at the 2002 opening beside actor Hugh Grant.

The first Tribeca Festival launched in May 2002 and pulled in more than 150,000 people, proving downtown New York could heal.

Now, almost 25 years later, the documentary Tribeca 25 tells this full story. It premieres on Netflix on September 11, a date that carries deep meaning for everyone involved.

Since then, the festival has grown far beyond film. It now includes concerts, panels, podcasts, and new technology showcases held across venues throughout New York City.