Playback: The Brooklyn Watch Party

Playback: The Brooklyn Watch Party, Brooklyn’s newest two-day film festival celebrating the borough’s artists, storytellers, and communities, will take place November 6–7, 2026 at BAM (Brooklyn Academy of Music). Co-hosted by Spike Lee, iconic Brooklynite and award-winning filmmaker, and Clara Wu Tsai, owner of New York Liberty, Brooklyn Nets, and Barclays Center, the inaugural festival is being produced by filmmaker Nicholas Ma (Won’t You Be My Neighbor, Unfinished Business), in association with BAM.

The festival’s film lineup was selected by special guest curators GRAMMY Award-winning musician Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson; Emmy Award-winning actor, director and writer John Turturro, who stars in the upcoming film The Only Living Pickpocket in New York; and founder and executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative Bryan Stevenson.

On Friday, November 6, Playback's opening night will begin at 6:00 pm with a celebratory procession with the curators and New York Liberty's Ellie the Elephant, including introductions from Nicholas Ma and Spike Lee, before a screening of Crooklyn (1994), Lee’s deeply touching portrait of the city. In partnership with The Soapbox Presents, the screening will be followed by a talkback with Lee and Crooklyn stars Alfre Woodard, Zelda Harris, Cinqué Lee, Joie Lee and more.

The curators’ selections will screen later Friday evening and on Saturday, November 7, and they’ll be joined in conversation by clinical psychologist and star of Paramount+’s Couples Therapy Dr. Orna Guralnik; writer Jia Tolentino; comedian, actor, and writer Wyatt Cenac; award-winning director and mother of NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani Mira Nair; and Dr. Howard Stevenson, clinical psychologist, UPenn professor, and the brother of Bryan Stevenson.

Throughout the day on Saturday (11:00 am – 5:00 pm), Playback and The Soapbox Presents will host a FREE afternoon block party outside BAM, featuring music from Soul Summit and Bring Your Own Vinyl, the work of artist Katie Merz, as well as games, food, drinks, and more.

To purchase tickets visit https://www.bam.org/film/2026/playback.

Visit www.playbackbk.com for more details and festival programming schedules.