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WE STRANGERS by ANY VALIA
AWARDS:
WINNER: GRAND JURY PRIZE, BEST NARRATIVE FEATURE, New Orleans Film Festival
WINNER: GRAND JURY PRIZE, BEST NARRATIVE FEATURE, New Hampshire Film Festival
WINNER: GRAND JURY PRIZE, BEST NARRATIVE FEATURE, Gary Black Film Festival
WINNER: GRAND JURY PRIZE, Seattle international Film Festival
WINNER: BEST PERFORMANCE for KIRBY as RAY MARTIN, Woods Hole Film Festival
WINNER: HONORABLE MENTION, Atlanta International Film Festival
WINNER: SPOTLIGHTED FILM, Provincetown International Film
Festival
SYNOPSIS:
Rayelle (Kirby Howell-Baptiste), a young commercial cleaning woman living in Gary, Indiana, is offered a second job cleaning the homes of several rich, suburban families. To blend into her new surroundings, she inadvertently tells one white lie, which then flips the power dynamic in curious ways…
WE STRANGERS is an assured debut feature, written and directed by Anu Valia, with a standout performance by Kirby. This absorbing character study smartly delves into the world of identity and privilege, showing us the challenges that are baked into navigating different spaces.
WORDS FROM ANU VALIA:
“I've always been interested in the seemingly small consequences of larger societal structural trappings. WE STRANGERS explores themes of class boundaries, racial constructs, and what happens when we venture into worlds we weren't born into.I want to examine what assimilation does to a person. When you are forced to learn the rules of someone else's game, you bend yourself to the majority's will, and that inherently takes away your ability to deeply, truthfully, be who you are. Assimilating is a means of survival, but it also creates a constant discomfort that I am all too familiar with, and it is my goal to capture that feeling in a film.”
REVIEWS:“Far and away the Best Film of 2024, superior to anything that hascome out of Hollywood”Art Fuse“
..Valia makes an aesthetically striking feature debut that may impresseven more with the clear eyes she brings to the trickle effect of privilege, envisioning the ability to say no as a luxury that those toilingaway in the lowest rungs of society simply can’t afford”
“When any film taking on race and class concerns runs the risk of being wearisome, ‘We Strangers’ proves invigorating as it captures the distance between people of different social strata and closes the gap on the dizzying individual experience of navigating America as a minority.”Variety“
We Strangers’ boasts the kind of accomplished production values rarely seen on such a small-scale directorial debut. It’s sleek without ever being slick, managing to exist within Ray’s new world of material comforts without ever becoming a product of it. IndieWire“
‘We Strangers’ will make you think, process and really dive deep intoa conversation on the intersection of race and class. This is a film checking out with a friend or with a group so you can sit back and havea spirited discussion.”Black Girls Nerds“
For a directorial debut, Valia impressively achieves qualities of the masters: the illusory dream-state of
Apichatpong Weerasethakul, the cunning storytelling and social satire of Bong Joon Ho.”The Austin Chronicle“Navigating thorny moments with irony, We Strangers shows how some people see only what they want, no matter the signs before Them.”Alliance of Women Film Journalists
”We Strangers” is a film that will stay with viewers for a long time,even if there aren’t supernatural forces at play.”“Valia’s morbidly funny script explores the ever-tricky world of assimilation, race and class dynamics and shines through Kirby’s performance, as she plays the mischievous and strong-willed cleaner with ease.”Character Media
“The film feels dark and unsettling at times, but it also ramps up theabsurd as Ray continues to take advantage of the Patel and Laichfamilies. However, by the end, everything feels like a piece of a puzzlecoming together to construct a story with a strong message.”
Mochi Mag
Kirby HOWELL BAPTISTE - as RAY
Sarah Goldberg - as TRACY
Maria Dizzia - as JEAN
Kara Young - as MARI
Tina Lifford - as WILLIE
Hari Dhillon - as NEERAJ
And introducing Mischa Reddy as SUNNY
Charlotte Hornsby - as Cinematographer
James Codayannis - as Editor
Erica Hart - Director of Casting
AMELIA STEELY - PRODUCTION DESIGN
BRENDAN BURNS - POST SUPERVISOR
Produced by
WINGATE MEDIA
IRONY POINT
KILLJOY FILMS
MIRMADE
PIGASUS
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