The 2025 Tribeca Festival is unveiling not one, but two Whoopi Goldberg curated animated shorts presentations. The first group, called “Whoopi’s Wonderful World of Animation”, just screened in NYC, with two more showings next weekend. I’ve got my thoughts on these shorts, exclusive filmmaker statements, and an additional animated short part of Tribeca 2025. (Statements were edited for length and clarity.)
Hand-drawn Linie 12 is about a train conductor and a musician. There’s a nice connection between these two. Very pretty animation and music.
“LINIE 12 is, essentially, a film about travelling. By telling a story set on a train hurtling through a fantastical, nearly impassable world, we refer to the fascinating journey that is life; and the many different people we meet upon it. Our protagonists — Clara and Peregrin — share their own journey for a while. Despite being complete opposites, they find a way to see the world through the eyes of the other; and their life, their journey, becomes richer for it. To know that our film, a labour of love of many years, will begin its own journey at Tribeca Festival this weekend, and celebrate its World Premiere, is an exciting, humbling thought. We are incredibly honoured and thankful for this selection and cannot wait to share with the world what we have poured our hearts into for the last couple of years. LINIE 12 is a celebration of life and a love-letter to music; it is a film that only became what it is thanks to the passion and collaboration of many skilled, dedicated artists. I would like to extend my thanks not only to the staff of Tribeca Festival, especially to Whoopi Goldberg for selecting and including our film, but also to them; the wonderful people who helped us, with music, sound, animation, colouring, production, and much more.” — Directors Sarah Schulz and Christopher Schmier.
Clever stop-motion Aardman Academy entry Awaiting the Lightning Bolt centers on Renato, who seeks to catch a lightning bolt. The more attempts, the higher the stakes, as we discover in the emotional climax.
“I am absolutely honored by the selection of AWAITING THE LIGHTNING BOLT at the Tribeca Festival 2025. Being part of this incredible lineup in Whoopi’s Wonderful World of Animation is almost surreal. When I tackled the challenge of approaching animation for the very first time at the Aardman Academy, I could never have imagined seeing the result of those six months of intense work projected at such a prestigious festival. “Awaiting the Lightning Bolt” is about science, pride, but ultimately, it is about love. Through Renato’s rocambolesque attempts to catch a lightning bolt, I managed to express feelings that I had suppressed for years. Sharing them with the Tribeca audience is a profound honor.” — Director Marco Russo
The legendary Stephen King adapts his short story “Here There Be Tygers” for Lily. A teacher, wearing a lily, is angry at a student who wishes to go to the bathroom and then discovers something very interesting while there. It’s what King is known for: unique concepts, suspense, humor and gore.
Director Kate Siegel shares: “I’m very excited to be returning to the Tribeca Festival and even more excited to be a part of the Animated Shorts program. Animation is an art form I’ve been a fan of for so long, and to join this group of animated shorts is an honor. I hope everyone enjoys our story, and it’s been a joy to work with Mali Elfman, Pete Scalzitti and Stephen King on the whole process.” And animator Scalzitti provides this statement: “Lily was designed and animated in just 21 days, so it was an incredible marathon from start to finish! And I never imagined I’d be so lucky as to create my second animated short with such prolific collaborators. Kate brilliantly told me exactly what I needed to hear each time we spoke, while also fine tuning the gorgeous and incredibly nuanced score with horror music legends The Newton Brothers. And of course, speaking of horror legends, getting the chance to animate a screenplay written specifically for us to animate by Stephen King still makes me suspicious whether or not this is all a dream!”
Captain Zero: Into the Abyss Part II asks the question, “Who’s gonna save superheroes when they need saving?” An intense, honest vibe with some big action and comedy.
“I’m excited to be having our world premiere at Tribeca. While production for this short has only been a year, I’ve been trying to get the world to know who and what Captain Zero is for the better part of a decade, so to have been accepted to such a prestigious festival — and to be hand-picked by Whoopi Goldberg, no less, is truly an honor. I can’t wait for audiences to dive into the psyche of Xerxes and examine my unique take on the superhero genre. More than anything, I hope that what sticks with them ISN’T any of the superhero elements but instead, Xerxes’ mental health journey. This short is loosely based on my own life and my interpersonal struggles with depression and shedding the fear and stigma surrounding seeking professional help and coming to grips with what my CDD (clinical depressive disorder) diagnosis meant. I’m excited to see and feel the response this short will generate among viewers and the questions it will leave them asking themselves after they view it. This short is a springboard for a feature film that’s already been written, so I hope to generate enough hype around this short so that audience members are curious about Xerxes’ future to see where the story will go. I think Captain Zero: Into the Abyss Part II will be a fun, informative, and entertaining way for us to reframe the conversations surrounding mental health, all while telling a unique coming-of-age story that resonates with people on multiple levels.” — Director Z Cher-Aimé
A sparrow is truly motivated in Ostrich. The short couldn’t be provided for review in time for publication, but the trailer shows a colorful look with appropriate, techno workout music. Here’s director Marie Kenov’s statement: “A sparrow is trying to look like an Ostrich – a majestic bird with strong legs, long neck and beautiful eyes. After hard training, makeup tutorials and some body modification, the little bird comes quite close to its goal. The story of the sparrow is not only about unrealistic beauty standards. It‘s about running with full power to a completely wrong direction and that painful moment when you realise it and have to face the truth. The idea was to tell a tragic story about self-optimization – what a lot of people probably can relate to – in a funny way and to show a solution to the problem at the end. It’s a great honour to have the world premiere of Ostrich at the Tribeca Film Festival 2025. And of course being part of Whoopi’s Wonderful World of Animation, curated by the legendary Whoopi Goldberg herself is very flattering! We are looking forward to the screening in New York and to meet the audience!”
Tigre, with its bold and creative visuals, focuses on an unpredictable exploration of a jungle in Thailand. Here’s what director María Victoria Sánchez says: “It is a true universal knowledge that not everything is what it seems. TIGRE is a story about what is hidden, what can be confusing and lead you to doom, danger can lurk in the shadows and use your kindness to hurt you, but with the help and wisdom of our elders, we can be protected. As a team, we focused on bringing to life a world that can hold the story up and it took a lot of work, dedication and focus from a group of Mexican and Venezuelan artists to accomplish it. But I won’t lie, we also had a lot of it. As a team, we wanted to honor the story, the culture and show some south asian mythology as respectfully as possible. It took us more than 4 years to finish it, and in it is our heart. This story waited many years to see the light and to see it in Tribeca, and being shown next to our heroes and admired artists is truly an honor beyond words. Thanks to the curators and organization of Tribeca Festival who deemed TIGRE worthy of being among giants.”
One Snow Bear yearns for another, with music and facial expressions and reactions guiding us throughout this sincere hand-drawn short.
“I’m beyond honored to have Snow Bear selected as part of Tribeca’s animation program, especially knowing it’s been curated by the amazing Whoopi Goldberg. Years ago, I had the privilege of animating on The Lion King, where Whoopi voiced the character of Shenzi the hyena. So in a small way, we’ve actually shared a scene together before, this just makes the connection even more special. This film is deeply personal to me. I spent over three years drawing and animating it by hand, frame by frame, as a solo project. Snow Bear was inspired by the profound sense of loss and loneliness I experienced after losing my wife to illness. Watching someone you love slowly ‘melt away’ can leave you feeling adrift and hopeless. I remember those feelings and that emotional weight is what sparked this story. But ultimately, it’s meant to be a message of hope! It’s about healing, regaining your footing, and rediscovering companionship. It also reflects my lifelong love of wildlife and the natural world. I’m proud to have the support of Polar Bears International and the National Parks Conservation Association, two organizations whose missions align with the themes of conservation in the film. These partnerships have been incredibly meaningful, as they highlight the urgent need to protect the fragile ecosystems that inspire stories like this one. To be able to share Snow Bear at Tribeca, in the company of such talented filmmakers, is both humbling and thrilling. I hope the film resonates with audiences and serves as a gentle reminder that it’s our job to help put some beauty into the world.” — Director Aaron Blaise
And the dramatic stop-motion horror short Playing God has also screened at Tribeca. Crazy, creepy clay… quite effective. This is from director Mattero Burani and producer and animator Arianna Gheller: “We’re incredibly excited to be part of Tribeca 2025 with our stop-motion short, Playing God. We’ve poured heart and soul into this project! Since its premiere at Venice Critics’ Week in September 2024, Playing God has been on an unexpected journey: in just 8 months, it’s been selected by over 90 festivals worldwide and has collected 47 awards. We’re honestly amazed by the response. Being invited to New York for Tribeca and screening the film in front of such an international and passionate audience is beyond thrilling. We never imagined this little stop-motion story would travel so far. And now, we’re just enjoying the ride. The screening at Tribeca will mark Playing God’s official New York premiere and we can’t wait to share it with you!”
Stay tuned for the second group of 2025 Whoopi Golberg curated shorts highlighted here on Animation Scoop! For Tribeca 2025 tickets and more info, visit TribecaFilm.com.
