Hollywood comes to the Hudson on Wednesday, when the 8th annual Tribeca Film Festival kicks off.

The festival was started in 2002 to help Lower Manhattan after the September 11th terrorist attacks.

This year's event includes 46 short films and 85 features, including the world premiere of "Whatever Works," Woody Allen's first New York-set film in five years.

Also premiering at the festival is the independent film "TiMER." Its director says she's thrilled to show her movie for the first time in New York.

"It's fantastic to have it here," said the film's writer and director Jac Schaeffer. "I mean, New York is such a town where everyone loves film and there's so much excitement in the air, so it's really a tremendous place to premiere a movie. It's incredibly exciting."

The Tribeca Film Festival runs through May 3rd. For more information, call 212-941-2400 or go to TribecaFilm.com.