Spike Lee Is Launching a Film Festival in New York

The Story

Spike Lee and Clara Wu Tsai are teaming up to launch ‘Playback,’ a film festival in New York celebrating the spirit of Brooklyn

The festival will be open at Brooklyn Academy of Music on November 6 and 7

The event will feature film screenings, a block party, live performances, community activations, and talks from a number of artists and guest speakers

You don’t have to be a die-hard Spike Lee fan to know that his hometown ties run deep. From his debut film shot on Super 8 to this video of him being paraded around “like the pope” in Fort Greene post-Knicks win, it’s no wonder a 2025 documentary on him was dubbed The Last King of Brooklyn.

This fall, Lee is teaming up with Clara Wu Tsai, the co-owner of the New York Liberty and Brooklyn Nets, for the inaugural edition of Playback, a new film festival all about the borough.

Set to take over the Brooklyn Academy of Music on November 6 and 7, from what we know so far, the festival’s programming slate will include screenings of repertory films, curated by Lee and producer Nicholas Ma, alongside live music, community activations, food vendors, poetry readings, a block party, and conversations between some of the most influential artists and filmmakers hailing from Brooklyn and beyond.

“With Playback, we are setting out to create a new kind of film festival — one that brings together people who share a love of storytelling through film,” said Wu Tsai, who co-owns the New York Liberty and the Brooklyn Nets. Outside of her role, she’s also an avid collector and patron of the arts, having enlisted Sarah Sze, Rashid Johnson, Mark Bradford, and LaToya Ruby Frazier for art installations at Barclays Center.

“There is nowhere else like Brooklyn, nothing like the energy of this borough, and this festival will highlight all that makes our community unique,” she continued.

Further programming, alongside guest speakers and curators have yet to be unveiled, and will be unveiled in the months leading up to the festival. For more information on Playback: The Brooklyn Watch Party and how to cop tickets, head to the event’s website to sign up for the mailing list.

Original report

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