By Michael Ventura
DNAinfo Senior Editor
MANHATTAN — The plume of volcanic ash from Iceland that has air traffic across Europe and the Atlantic at a standstill may also disrupt the Tribeca Film Festival.
Many of the stars and filmmakers of the 85 films featured in the festival, which starts Wednesday and is one of Manhattan's premiere events, are stranded in Europe due to flight delays caused by the ash, the New York Times reported.
“The film festival is not just about showing films,” Tammie Rosen, vice president for communications at the festival, told the Times. “It’s about having the filmmaker here and having that post-screening Q. & A., that chance to meet with the audience.”
Festival organizers were trying to reroute the filmmakers around the plume and, if that wasn't possible, working to have them participate remotely "by satellite or other means," the paper said.
Meanwhile, the volcano, which has been erupting since Wednesday, may cause the city to lose $250 million in tourism revenue, the Daily News reported, as the ash cloud has prevented nearly 12,000 people from visiting the city.
"The people we were expecting are not coming and not spending money at restaurants," Marjan Inbar, a spokeswoman for NYC & Co., the city's tourism agency, told the News.
NYC & Co. estimates that for every 1,000 European tourists who cancel their trips, the city will lose $1.5 million, the News reported.
The agency has offered 15 percent discounts on hotels and transportation into Manhattan for airline passengers stranded in the city who were not put up by their carriers.
But there was some good news for travelers Monday morning. The New York Post reported that the ash cloud was starting to clear and that some flights to Europe would resume. Flights to the UK remained grounded Monday morning.
"I've been stuck here three days," Italian tourist Giancarlo Fontano, who's staying at JFK Airport, told the Post. "Home, sweet Italy, home."
