James Murdoch's Firm Buys Tribeca Film Festival's Majority Stake

TRIBECA, NY — James Murdoch is partnering with Jane Rosenthal and Robert De Niro to expand the Tribeca Film Festival brand globally.

His investment firm, Lupa Systems, bought the majority stake in the Tribeca Film Festival empire from The Madison Square Garden Company, the festival's co-founder Craig Hatkoff, and other investors, the film festival said in a release.

Attention Capital's co-founder Joe Marchese and Tribeca Enterprises' Rosenthal and De Niro joined Murdoch's Lupa Systems to announce their new partnership Monday.

"We are excited about working with Jane and Bob to help grow the unique Tribeca brand," Lupa Systems founder Murdoch said in a statement.

"When Tribeca was founded after 9/11, they brought together a tremendous creative community to embark on mission-driven business with civic impact and support for storytellers at its core. It is a real privilege to partner with this talented team to enhance and grow that mission," said Murdoch, the youngest of media mogul Rupert Murdoch's two sons.

Rosenthal added Murdoch and Marchese will bring "valuable expertise" as she and De Niro plan to grow the Tribeca brand globally.

The Tribeca Film Festival was founded in 2001, shortly after the September 11th terrorist attacks. Since then, it draws five million people each year, the company says.

The 19th annual festival is slated for April 15 through 26 next year. Submissions for the 2020 festival open August 19.