Tribeca Festival films go behind the scenes in fashion, dance and theater

By Patricia Reaney NEW YORK (Reuters) – From final fittings at a famous Parisian fashion house to rehearsals for a young choreographer’s new work for the New York City Ballet and a global tour of “Richard III,” documentaries at the Tribeca Film Festival give viewers the film equivalent of a backstage pass. “Dior and I,” which opens on Thursday, follows creative director Raf Simons, 46, as he prepares his first couture collection for Christian Dior, and uncovers similarities between the Belgian designer and the French founder of the famous Parisian fashion house. “There were all these uncanny things,” said New York-based, French-born director Frederic Tcheng about the two men, both shy, reserved and inspired by the arts. Using voiceover excerpts from Dior’s 1956 memoir “Christian Dior & I,” Tcheng introduces viewers to Dior, both the man and the fashion house he created.