The Trouble at Tribeca

The Tribeca Film Festival was founded in 2002. Those who found a film festival generally have input into the films that are chosen to be screened - and Robert DeNiro, along with Jane Rosenthal and Craig Hatkoff founded the TFF. But he is now catching some flack for screening the documentary Vaxxed: From Cover-up to Catastrophe. This is apparently the first time he has invoked the privilege asking to have a film be screened AT A FILM FESTIVAL HE HELPED FOUND. 

One would think film festivals celebrate nothing but the most milque-toast of subjects, and deviating into any kind of controversy was odd or out of the ordinary. So here's a short list of subjects also being addressed in the films being screened at the 2016 TFF:  

    Abortion
    Virginity 
    Refugees 
    
And that's just on the first page! I'll guess that the abortion film has a pro-abort worldview because if it didn't the pro-aborts would be losing their ever lovin' minds (that was deep sarcasm right there) that TFF would dare to show such a thing ... but that is yet another connection or similarity between vaccines and abortion - I have explored other links in previous posts on this blog.

How threatening could the content of this documentary be that Mr. DeNiro's motives would be questioned? 

Here is his statement of why he wanted to include this film:

“Grace and I have a child with autism and we believe it is critical that all of the issues surrounding the causes of autism be openly discussed and examined. In the 15 years since the Tribeca Film Festival was founded, I have never asked for a film to be screened or gotten involved in the programming. However this is very personal to me and my family and I want there to be a discussion, which is why we will be screening VAXXED. I am not personally endorsing the film, nor am I anti-vaccination; I am only providing the opportunity for a conversation around the issue.” 

 There are two pertinent thoughts that he reveals in what he said - 
     1) he is not "anti-vax"
     2) he thinks it is important to discuss the issue ... and apparently is not afraid to have 
         a multi-dimensional discussion where it is okay to say something more than the ever            so nuanced and officially approved talking point "vaccines are safe and effective". 

Wow. 

He did not even insinuate there is a link between vaccines and anything bad (like autism, let alone anything else). He is, by deductive reasoning, pro-vaccination. He clarifies that screening the film is not the same as endorsing it or its content. He wants to encourage open discussion - what could be more outrageous than that! 

From his statement it does seem he would be in favor of more research to determine variables that influence risk of developing autism - like research that isn't tainted by conflict of interest, fraud, deceit, faux placebos (a contradiction in terms to say the least) and poor design, among other issues. Perhaps he might even support research that might lead to some answers - like a study comparing vaccinated with unvaccinated - something that has never.been.done. 

Vaxxed: From Cover-Up to Catastrophe will be screened Sunday April 24 at 2:00pm at the SVA Theater in NYC. I hope it is well attended. I am not much of a movie goer myself - but 
if I lived in the NYC area I would probably make an exception for this. 

Here's the trailer: 

Update (Mar 26, 2016 @ 7pm) - apparently the TFF has caved and will no longer screen 
the film. Pitiful. It would have been a terrific platform for a "discussion" - those who hold 
to vaccine orthodoxy seem to be afraid to talk about the what just may undermine that orthodoxy.