Every year at Tribeca, we aim to add new events and series to the mix, expanding the conversation into new areas and topics. For TFF 2012, one of these additions is the Future of Film Lunch Series: daily talks and presentations related to platforms, technology, and trends that are changing the art and business of film.

(Note: Lunch will not be served at these events, but 92YTribeca has a terrific café—we invite you to come early or stay late and enjoy lunch while you're downtown. Food is not allowed in the theater.)

Thought leaders spanning the worlds of film, media, technology and society will each speak for 30 minutes, followed by an audience Q&A. Every day, from April 23-26, there will be two presentations spanning the 12:00 to 1:30 time block, and the entire series is free and open to the public. Our hosts at 92YTribeca have a fabulous café, so grab your lunch and join us each day for these lively conversations. If you can’t make it downtown, watch daily video highlights on TribecaFilm.com.

Notable speakers include Paranormal Activity producer Jason Blum, Tumblr founder David Karp, College Humor and Vimeo founder Ricky Van Veen, and more.

“Our Future of Film blog has been an important tool in nurturing a steady, year-round dialogue on the changes in our industry. As we continue to drive this conversation year round and grow the community of contributors, our Future of Film speaker series is a great platform to hear from industry pros who are experiencing the changes first hand,” said Matt Spangler, Tribeca Enterprises, EVP Marketing and Content. “The live event and video content created by this terrific lineup of speakers will offer unique perspectives for our audience on where film is headed.”

The full lineup of speakers follows.

April 23

Jigar Mehta: Co-Creator, 18 Days in Egypt
Annie Correal: Head of Community at Cowbird

Correal and Mehta will present projects that are helping redefine how people are using digital technology to tell stories and discuss what this means for the future of filmmaking.

April 24 

Elisabeth Holm: Director of Film Program, Kickstarter
David Karp: Founder of Tumblr

From the definitive crowd-funding community to one of the fastest growing co-creation and publishing platforms, Kickstarter and Tumblr have made supporting the film community vital to their business. Holm and Karp will present the latest from these two market leaders and how their future will contribute to the future of film.

April 25

Ricky Van Veen, Founder of College Humor, Vimeo and Notional, and producer of new College Humor-branded film Coffee Town
Jason Blum, President of Blumhouse Productions, producer of the blockbuster  Paranormal Activity franchise and ABC series The River

As successful entrepreneurs and film and television producers, Van Veen and Blum will share their thoughts on the future of film, exploring the topics of production, distribution, their experience with new storytelling techniques, and beyond.

Followed by a presentation by Rob Altman, manager of Camera-Video Marketing in the Imaging Technologies & Communications Group at Canon, who will discuss the future of filmmaking technology and Project Imagin8ion, the first photo contest to inspire a Hollywood film. After the talk, they will screen when you find me, the Ron Howard production directed by Bryce Dallas Howard, which was the first film shot using Canon C300 cameras.

April 26

Andrew Weissman, Co-Founder of Betaworks and Partner at Union Square Ventures
Jason Hirschhorn, Curator @MediaReDEF, former President of MySpace and Sling Media, and Chief Digital Officer of MTV Networks

As successful entrepreneurs and media/internet executives, Weissman and Hirschhorn will speak openly about the future of film, exploring the topics of business models, new platforms, distribution, funding trends and our constantly changing media landscape.

James Lawler, independent producer of Don't Let Me Down and 30 for 30 and founder of Constellation , and David Larkin, founder and CEO of GoWatchit.com, a search engine and universal queue for movies, will discuss the current state of independent filmmaking, digital technology, and the emerging markets of crowd-sourced theatrical screenings, and data-driven distribution.

*We are sad to report that Ted Hope had to pull out of the event due to a film scheduling conflict.

Breaking News: Introductions and Moderation on Tues-Thurs by Max Lugavere.

 Max Lugavere is a filmmaker, musician, and science journalist. Founding host and producer of Al Gore's Emmy-winning Current TV. Co-host of Pangea Day, the TED Conference's live broadcast of short films from six international cities that reached more than 150 countries.

  The entire series is free; no ticket required. Walk-ins welcome, but click here to RSVP and guarantee your seat.