April 23rd, 2026 Press Materials Available HereTRIBECA FESTIVAL 2026 EXPANDS TRIBECA NOW, SPOTLIGHTING DIGITAL CREATORS
Tribeca Becomes First Major Film Festival to Open Official Submissions to Social Media Creators, Introducing a New Class of Storytellers Through the Tribeca NOW Creators Showcase
Plus Tribeca NOW Live Events Featuring Keke Palmer and Lawrence Murray of KeyTV, and the World Premiere of Two Episodes of Kareem Rahma's Keep The Meter Running, Followed by a Conversation With Rahma
Tribeca NOW Also Presents Third Annual Creator Conversation at The Lighthouse Brooklyn, Spotlighting the Future of Digital Storytelling
Passes & Ticket Packages Available at TribecaFilm.com; Single Tickets on Sale April 28
New York, NY - April 23, 2026 - Celebrating its 25th anniversary, the Tribeca Festival, presented by OKX, today announced the 2026 NOW (New Online Work) lineup, Tribeca's dedicated platform for digital-first storytelling. Tribeca NOW, in partnership with The Lighthouse (part of Whalar Group), takes place during this year's Festival from June 3-14 in New York City. Passes and ticket packages are on sale now at TribecaFilm.com, with the Hudson Pass offering the premier festival experience, including VIP access and an invitation to Opening or Closing Night. Single tickets go on sale April 28.
With the expansion of Tribeca NOW, Tribeca becomes the first major film festival to open official submissions to social media creators across platforms including TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram, signaling a broader industry shift in how storytelling is discovered, evaluated, and elevated. The 2026 slate features ten boundary-pushing creators whose work spans genres, formats, and platforms, united by distinct voices and a cinematic approach to digital storytelling. Submissions were evaluated holistically, recognizing not only standout individual pieces but each creator's broader body of work, storytelling voice, and cultural impact.
This year's Official Selections include: And They Were Roommates (@atwrtheseries), a New York City rom-com series; Shanked (@shankedshow), a chaotic country club workplace comedy; BK Coffee Shop (@bkcoffeeshop), a viral Gen Z satire set in Brooklyn; VHS Dates (@vhsdates), found-footage comedy about dating in the 80s; Sideline Archive (@sideline.archive), which uncovers forgotten stories through vintage sports memorabilia; That's That on That (@tajrani), deep-dive portraits of the uncredited architects of Black history; Emmy Award-nominated journalism from Retache (@retachemedia); 15 Second Film (@15secondfilm), a micro-filmmaking experiment turning strangers into storytellers; Mechanical Pencil (@amari.k.jones and @palmerwilliams3), coming-of-age stories rooted in 90s Black cinema; and TIME 100 Creator and Emmy Award-nominated host Taylor Cassidy (@taylorcassidyj).
Tribeca has always been at the forefront of how storytelling evolves, from early online series to todays creator-driven ecosystem, and Tribeca NOW reflects that legacy in motion, said Tribeca Festival Senior Programmer Jarod Neece. What began as Up Next has grown into a program that recognizes these artists for who they truly are: world-builders, community architects, and pioneers of an entirely new pathway into the industry.
In addition to the Official Selections, Tribeca NOW will host a series of live events, including a screening and conversation with Keke Palmer (@keke) and Lawrence Murray (@lawrencesmurray) centered on KeyTV's The Rise & Fall of DivaGurl, moderated by NOW Creator Taj Rani (@tajrani). The program also features the world premiere of two episodes of Keep The Meter Running from Kareem Rahma (@kareem), the beloved New York City taxi series making the leap from short-form social video to long-form storytelling on YouTube. The screening will be followed by a conversation with Rahma and producer Adam Faze (@adamfaze), moderated by New York Times pop music critic and Popcast host Jon Caramanica (@joncaramanica).
Returning for its third year, Whalar Group brings two dynamic live conversations to Tribeca NOW at The Lighthouse, Brooklyn's premier campus for creators, spotlighting the evolving relationship between digital storytelling and Hollywood filmmaking. The signature Tribeca NOW conversation convenes leading voices from across film and creator ecosystems to explore how these worlds are converging in real time. In addition, Whalar Group and The Lighthouse also present What's Next, a reunion panel with New York-based creators from Tribeca's 2025 Up Next cohort, returning one year later to reflect on momentum, growth, and what comes after the breakthrough moment.
The expanded programming of Tribeca NOW meaningfully reflects every stage of the creator journey, said Tribeca Festival Programmer Tiana Harris. Our KeyTV event, highlighting Keke Palmer's digital platform, underscores the role digital plays in shaping and sustaining a career, even for established A-list talent. Kareem Rahma's return to Tribeca with his new series exemplifies the power of consistent, iterative, entertaining content-work that evolves in real time, engages audiences, and deepens the connection. Meanwhile, our NOW Showcase features a dynamic slate of storytellers we are eager for broader audiences and the industry to discover, champion, and continue to follow as their work evolves.
This milestone builds on Tribeca's long-standing leadership at the intersection of technology, culture, and storytelling. Since launching Tribeca NOW in 2014-the first festival platform dedicated to online work-the Festival has consistently identified and elevated breakout digital creators early, including those behind High Maintenance prior to its HBO acquisition, alongside Lena Waithe's Hello Cupid, Shaina Feinberg's Dinette, Elvira Lind's Academy Award -
