Allen launches pared-down Tribeca

Allen's latest stars Larry David (right) of Curb Your Enthusiasm

Woody Allen's first US movie for five years will launch this year's Tribeca Film Festival, which will be smaller this year due to the economic crisis.

"With the current economic climate we had to look closely at our expenses for this year's festival," said executive director Nancy Schafer.

This year's event, which runs from 22 April to 3 May, will show 86 features compared to the 120 screened in 2008.

Allen's new film Whatever Works is his first set in New York since 2004.

The festival, co-founded by actor Robert De Niro to help revitalise the Tribeca neighbourhood after the 9/11 attacks, will include films from Iran, Ireland, Australia and Brazil.

The event is sited in the Manhattan neighbourhood whose name is derived from the words "Triangle Below Canal Street".

Sponsors

Known for his New York-based stories, Allen recently made three films in the UK and a fourth in Spain.

His latest work stars Larry David of Curb Your Enthusiasm fame and Evan Rachel Wood from The Wrestler.

Other films featured include Accidents Happen, a family drama with Geena Davis, and The Eclipse, the latest work from Irish playwright and screenwriter Conor Macpherson.

The economic situation has also seen the number of sponsors and cinemas also being reduced.

Fittingly perhaps, the emerging film-makers section includes American Casino - a documentary about the collapse of Wall Street at the expense of working Americans.