‘The Handmaid’s Tale,’ NatGeo’s ‘Genius’ to Premiere at Tribeca Film Festival’s TV Program

Oriana Schwindt

The 2017 Tribeca Film Festival has set the lineup for its second annual TV festival, Tribeca TV. Five series, including Hulu’s “The Handmaid’s Tale” and NatGeo’s Albert Einstein bioseries “Genius,” will have their series premieres, and events for 10 other shows will be held during the run of the Festival, from April 19-30.

“The Handmaid’s Tale” will screen its premiere, followed by a conversation with cast members Elisabeth Moss, Joseph Fiennes, Alexis Bledel, Samira Wiley, and Max Minghella. “Genius” will get a similar treatment, with an after-premiere panel featuring executive producers Brian Grazer and Ron Howard as well as stars Emily Watson and Geoffrey Rush. USA’s anthology crime thriller “The Sinner,” starring Jessica Biel and Bill Pullman, will open at Tribeca TV as well and be accompanied by a discussion with Biel, Pullman, and director Antonio Campos. Comedy streaming service Seeso will debut the Tony Danza-starring “There’s…Johnny!” from Paul Reiser and David Gordon Green.

And Ken Burns, who will also be honored with the new Citizen Filmmaker Award by the Festival, will screen a sneak peek of “The Vietnam War,” his upcoming 10-part, 18-hour documentary series directed with Lynn Novick. The series will premiere on PBS in the fall.

Tribeca TV will also host the following events:

  • The Season 3 premiere of Netflix original series “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt,” followed by a conversation with executive producers Tina Fey and Robert Carlock and stars Ellie Kemper, Tituss Burgess, Jane Krakowski and Carol Kane.

  • The debut of the final season of Showtime’s “Episodes,” followed by a conversation between Matt LeBlanc and creators David Crane and Jeffrey Klarik.

  • The Season 3 premiere of Hulu’s dark family comedy “Casual,” followed by a conversation with executive producers and cast members.

  • The third season premiere Comedy Central’s “Another Period,” followed by a conversation with creators, writers, and stars Natasha Leggero and Riki Lindhome.

  • New CNN series “Soundtracks: Songs That Defined History,” executive produced by Dwayne Johnson, will screen its episode about 9/11 at the 9/11 Memorial and Museum.

  • Spike TV will give audiences a look at new feature documentary series “I Am” by showing the installment about Heath Ledger, featuring stories from the actor’s inner circle.

  • Independent variety show “The Eyeslicer” will premiere.

This year’s festival will also premiere three new, independently produced pilots: Black Magic for White Boys, Lost & Found, and Manic. A conversation with their creators will take place after the screening.

“Coming off of a very successful first year of Tribeca TV, we curated this year’s program to include an expanded, exceptional lineup of top-notch shows and dynamic storytellers both in front of and behind the camera,” said Cara Cusumano, Tribeca Film Festival’s director of programming. “As the TV landscape continues to evolve in exciting, cinematic directions, the festival creates a unique opportunity for audiences to discover together on a big screen what everyone else will eventually be talking about from their couches at home.”

Get more from Variety and Variety411: Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Newsletter