United 93, a film based on the events on the fourth hijacked plane, will have its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival next month, reports Reuters.

Written and directed by Paul Greengrass (The Bourne Supremacy), the film is billed as a drama about the crew and passengers of the flight that crashed in Pennsylvania on Sept.11, and their families on the ground. It unfolds in real time from takeoff to hijacking.

Tribeca was founded by Robert De Niro in 2002. Opening films in previous years have been comedies like About a Boy and Down with Love. The choice of United 93 this year marks Tribeca’s return to its original focus.

“The festival was basically created eight months after September 11 and it was to give our neighborhood something to look forward to and to help the renewal, and to do that you need to laugh,” said co-founder Jane Rosenthal. “We found ourselves for several years saying we need a comedy. In year five, we need to remember.”

Some of the relatives of those who died on the flight are expected to attend the premiere.

“It is never easy to relive the events of 9/11, yet I support United 93 as a tribute to the heroism of my brother and the 39 other passengers and crew who collectively chose to say ‘no’ on that fateful day,” Gordon Felt, who lost his brother Edward, said in a statement.

The festival will run from April 25 to May 7.






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