Robert De Niro, Judd Apatow Discuss 100 Years Of Universal At The Tribeca Film Festival
At the end of April, Universal Studios celebrates its 100th anniversary. To mark the milestone, the studio has a heavy presence at the eleventh annual Tribeca Film Festival. Its upcoming comedy, "The Five-Year Engagement," opened Tribeca on Wednesday night, and on Thursday, the fest hosted Judd Apatow and Robert De Niro for an hour-long discussion about their contributions to the studio.
De Niro has made twelve films for Universal throughout his lauded career, including "Meet the Parents," "Cape Fear," "The Deer Hunter," "Casino" and "Midnight Run." All four of Apatow's directorial efforts ("The 40-Year-Old Virgin," "Knocked Up," "Funny People" and the upcoming "This is 40") were released by Universal, as was the Apatow-produced comedy "Bridesmaids." (He also produced "Five-Year.") As Universal president and CEO Ron Meyer said at the beginning of the presentation, the two men are "an integral part of [the] organization."
Despite a shaky start -- mostly owing to the fact that moderator Mike Fleming asked a torrent of questions about De Niro's work in "The Deer Hunter," his first Universal feature, that the actor didn't seem all that interested in answering -- Apatow and De Niro had a good rapport during the panel, discussing everything from personal failures to the future of digital filmmaking. (Meryl Streep, who made "Out of Africa" and "Mamma Mia" for Universal was scheduled to attend, but had to bow out due to an illness in her family.)
De Niro has made twelve films for Universal throughout his lauded career, including "Meet the Parents," "Cape Fear," "The Deer Hunter," "Casino" and "Midnight Run." All four of Apatow's directorial efforts ("The 40-Year-Old Virgin," "Knocked Up," "Funny People" and the upcoming "This is 40") were released by Universal, as was the Apatow-produced comedy "Bridesmaids." (He also produced "Five-Year.") As Universal president and CEO Ron Meyer said at the beginning of the presentation, the two men are "an integral part of [the] organization."
Despite a shaky start -- mostly owing to the fact that moderator Mike Fleming asked a torrent of questions about De Niro's work in "The Deer Hunter," his first Universal feature, that the actor didn't seem all that interested in answering -- Apatow and De Niro had a good rapport during the panel, discussing everything from personal failures to the future of digital filmmaking. (Meryl Streep, who made "Out of Africa" and "Mamma Mia" for Universal was scheduled to attend, but had to bow out due to an illness in her family.)
