# Lucy Schulman
**Lucy Schulman** is a 2026 American comedy-drama-romance film written, directed by, and starring Ellie Sachs in her feature directorial debut. Set in New York City, it follows Lucy Schulman, a woman in her late twenties who, after a crushing breakup, moves back in with her eccentric single father and works through bad dates, false starts, and an almost-too-close bond with her dad.[1](https://tribecafilm.com/films/lucy-schulman-2026) The film premiered at the Tribeca Festival in June 2026, and Aero Films acquired North American distribution rights with a theatrical release planned for early 2027.[2](https://darkmode.wppool.dev/www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/lucy-schulman-david-cross-hasan-minhaj-ellie-sachs-release-1236714751/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Year and length | 2026; 94 minutes; comedy, drama, romance; English; United States[1](https://tribecafilm.com/films/lucy-schulman-2026) |
| Filmmaker | Written, directed by, and starring Ellie Sachs, her first narrative feature[1](https://tribecafilm.com/films/lucy-schulman-2026) • [3](https://nextbestpicture.com/lucy-schulman/) |
| Premiere | World premiere at the Tribeca Festival on June 5, 2026, in the U.S. Narrative Competition, the festival's 25th anniversary edition[4](https://www.greenroomnewyork.com/Article.aspx?ID=19539) • [5](https://www.nywift.org/2026/06/05/from-set-to-screen-katherine-filaseta-and-ellie-sachs-celebrate-lucy-shulman-at-tribeca/) |
| Principal cast | Ellie Sachs as Lucy; David Cross as her father Peter; Thomas Mann as James; Hasan Minhaj as Nikhil[3](https://nextbestpicture.com/lucy-schulman/) • [6](https://www.theaureview.com/watch/lucy-schulman-tribeca-film-festival-review/) |
| Distribution | Aero Films acquired North American rights; theatrical release planned for early 2027[2](https://darkmode.wppool.dev/www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/lucy-schulman-david-cross-hasan-minhaj-ellie-sachs-release-1236714751/) |
| Producers | Fernando Loureiro, Guilherme Coelho, Morwin Schmookler, and Gabriel Amaral; production company Tigresa[1](https://tribecafilm.com/films/lucy-schulman-2026) |
## Spoilers
### Plot and themes
The film opens with Lucy's long-term boyfriend Nikhil ([Hasan Minhaj](https://www.edgepedia.org/hasan-minhaj)) breaking up with her just before a dinner party the couple is hosting, after Lucy discovers sexts on his phone with a contact saved as "maybe Blair." Rather than confronting him, she critiques the quality of the messages and begins editing them, an introduction to a character who instinctively softens her own pain into accommodation.[6](https://www.theaureview.com/watch/lucy-schulman-tribeca-film-festival-review/) After the breakup she moves back in with her father Peter ([David Cross](https://www.edgepedia.org/david-cross)), a single dad who raised her alone, and works at a bookstore while going on a run of unsuccessful dates.[3](https://nextbestpicture.com/lucy-schulman/) • [7](https://www.femalegazefilmclub.com/filmreviews/tribeca-film-festival-2026-review-lucy-schulman)
An early narration recounts Lucy's childhood obsession with two mallards at [Central Park](https://www.edgepedia.org/central-park), birds she and her father visited every Sunday morning; when one year only one duck returned, the remaining bird looked sad and lost. Reviewers identify the anecdote as the film's emotional blueprint, a story about a woman who has defined herself through other people.[3](https://nextbestpicture.com/lucy-schulman/) • [6](https://www.theaureview.com/watch/lucy-schulman-tribeca-film-festival-review/) A later romance with James ([Thomas Mann](https://www.edgepedia.org/thomas-mann)), an artist, develops while Lucy is not looking for one, and the film frames her problem as codependency and self-erasure rather than a lack of romance; it ends with Lucy happily single, just as her sense of an independent self is starting to form.[3](https://nextbestpicture.com/lucy-schulman/) • [6](https://www.theaureview.com/watch/lucy-schulman-tribeca-film-festival-review/)
The father-daughter relationship is the element most reviews single out. When Lucy cries, Peter cries too, "like a yawn," as he explains; critics describe Cross's performance as warm, unexpectedly tender, and the film's real engine.[3](https://nextbestpicture.com/lucy-schulman/) • [6](https://www.theaureview.com/watch/lucy-schulman-tribeca-film-festival-review/)
## Production and release
Sachs began writing the script around June 2024, describing it as vignettes about a messy New York City woman written to console herself at a low point; after about two months she decided the material could be a film and completed a draft in January.[8](https://moveablefest.com/ellie-sachs-lucy-schulman/) She was not new to Tribeca: her short film *Proof of Concept*, starring [Richard Kind](https://www.edgepedia.org/richard-kind), screened at the festival in 2023.[4](https://www.greenroomnewyork.com/Article.aspx?ID=19539) Sachs also directed herself in the lead role, a dual role that Second Assistant Director Katherine Filaseta, a New York Women in Film & [Television](https://www.edgepedia.org/television) member, supported on set by protecting Sachs's preparation time as an actress.[5](https://www.nywift.org/2026/06/05/from-set-to-screen-katherine-filaseta-and-ellie-sachs-celebrate-lucy-shulman-at-tribeca/)
The crew includes cinematographer Barton Cortright, production designer Anna Murphy, and composers Giosuè Greco (music) with editors Kate Pedatella and Henry Hayes.[1](https://tribecafilm.com/films/lucy-schulman-2026) After the festival premiere, Aero Films acquired North American rights, covering the United States and Canada, from a deal negotiated by UTA and Knol Hanly Garrett for the filmmakers and co-founder Ryan Pallas for the distributor; Pallas called it a "distinctly New York comedy."[2](https://darkmode.wppool.dev/www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/lucy-schulman-david-cross-hasan-minhaj-ellie-sachs-release-1236714751/) • [9](https://www.thebrief.news/en/standard/article/25671/aero-films-buys-lucy-schulman-for-early-2027-release) • [10](https://www.newsminimalist.com/articles/lucy-schulman-comedy-sets-2027-release-6288dee3) As of late September 2026 the film was not yet streaming, renting, or available for purchase online.[11](https://www.moviefone.com/movie/lucy-schulman/DvKLHnucgHwALDkik7tOr5/where-to-watch/)
## Reception
The Tribeca program notes describe a low-stakes film by design, "big-hearted and sharply funny," in the vein of *Frances Ha*.[1](https://tribecafilm.com/films/lucy-schulman-2026) Reviews have been broadly favorable with recurring qualifications. Rotten Tomatoes lists six critic reviews.[12](https://static.rottentomatoes.com/m/lucy_schulman) IndieWire's Christian Zilko gave it a B-, writing that the stakes of each scene feel low but that whatever scene a viewer walks back into is enjoyable.[12](https://static.rottentomatoes.com/m/lucy_schulman) Sara Clements of Next Best Picture scored it 6/10, praising the father-daughter chemistry while finding the second-half romance between Sachs and Mann lacking in chemistry.[3](https://nextbestpicture.com/lucy-schulman/) Peter Gray of The AU Review gave 3.5/5 and called it "the kind of modest indie that sneaks up on you emotionally."[6](https://www.theaureview.com/watch/lucy-schulman-tribeca-film-festival-review/) • [12](https://static.rottentomatoes.com/m/lucy_schulman) The Female Gaze Film Club gave it an A-, comparing it favorably to *Frances Ha* and *Sleeping with Other People*.[7](https://www.femalegazefilmclub.com/filmreviews/tribeca-film-festival-2026-review-lucy-schulman) On IMDb the film held a rating of 8.0/10 from 17 votes.[13](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt37603774/)
## References
1. [Lucy Schulman, 2026 Tribeca Festival program page](https://tribecafilm.com/films/lucy-schulman-2026)
2. [David Cross, Thomas Mann, Hasan Minhaj's Comedy 'Lucy Schulman' From Ellie Sachs Lands Release (Exclusive), The Hollywood Reporter, September 29, 2026](https://darkmode.wppool.dev/www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/lucy-schulman-david-cross-hasan-minhaj-ellie-sachs-release-1236714751/)
3. ["Lucy Schulman" – Review, Next Best Picture, Sara Clements, June 5, 2026](https://nextbestpicture.com/lucy-schulman/)
4. [Lucy Schulman Premieres at Tribeca, Green Room New York, Kimberly Burke, June 7, 2026](https://www.greenroomnewyork.com/Article.aspx?ID=19539)
5. [From Set to Screen: Katherine Filaseta and Ellie Sachs Celebrate Lucy Shulman at Tribeca, New York Women in Film & Television, June 5, 2026](https://www.nywift.org/2026/06/05/from-set-to-screen-katherine-filaseta-and-ellie-sachs-celebrate-lucy-shulman-at-tribeca/)
6. [Lucy Schulman is a modest, sentimental indie that sneaks up on you emotionally: Tribeca Film Festival Review, The AU Review](https://www.theaureview.com/watch/lucy-schulman-tribeca-film-festival-review/)
7. [Tribeca Film Festival 2026 Review: "Lucy Schulman", Female Gaze: The Film Club](https://www.femalegazefilmclub.com/filmreviews/tribeca-film-festival-2026-review-lucy-schulman)
8. [Tribeca 2026 Interview: Ellie Sachs on Something That Can Stand on Its Own in "Lucy Schulman", The Moveable Fest](https://moveablefest.com/ellie-sachs-lucy-schulman/)
9. [Aero Films Buys Lucy Schulman for Early 2027 Release, The Brief](https://www.thebrief.news/en/standard/article/25671/aero-films-buys-lucy-schulman-for-early-2027-release)
10. ['Lucy Schulman' Comedy Sets 2027 Release, News Minimalist](https://www.newsminimalist.com/articles/lucy-schulman-comedy-sets-2027-release-6288dee3)
11. [Lucy Schulman (2026) – Where to Watch, Moviefone](https://www.moviefone.com/movie/lucy-schulman/DvKLHnucgHwALDkik7tOr5/where-to-watch/)
12. [Lucy Schulman, Rotten Tomatoes](https://static.rottentomatoes.com/m/lucy_schulman)
13. [Lucy Schulman (2026), IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt37603774/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Comedy and romantic films (individual works) › Comedies of 2026 and later › Titles K to Z*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 21, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license