Part of Doc Stories film series
Stray
Ticket buyers and pass holders will have access to stream this film within a limited window of time, and views must be completed within 24 hours of starting. The live Q&A will take place on this page, and a video recording will be posted here shortly afterward. Visit our FAQ for more info.
PROGRAM DETAILS
Film Available to Stream
Thu, Dec 3 at 12:01 am – Sun, Dec 6 at 11:59 pm PST
Live Q&A
Fri, Dec 4 at 8:30 pm PST
Q&A
Director Elizabeth Lo is expected for the live Q&A on Friday, December 4 at 8:30 pm PST.
Description
The world of three stray dogs commingling among the inhabitants of the sprawling city of Istanbul is the subject of Elizabeth Lo’s beguiling documentary feature debut. The viewer is thrust into their world as they wander the busy thoroughfares and city streets of Istanbul subsisting on scraps of food and finding temporary shelter and companionship with a group of young Syrian refugees squatting in an abandoned building. With an expressive musical score by Ali Helnwein and sound design by Ernst Karel, this stunning, observational, and immersive film creates a dynamic portrait of a country in turmoil.
“Stray is a critical observation of human civilization through the unfamiliar gaze of dogs and a sensory voyage into new ways of seeing. Through their canine eyes, we are shown a human world ruptured by divisions along class, ethnic, and gender lines. It is at this intersection that Stray seeks to shed light on Turkey’s societal convulsions through the observations of Zeytin and her companions — both human and nonhuman.” —Elizabeth Lo
Elizabeth Lo was in Stanford University’s graduate documentary program when she made her short Hotel 22 (SFFILM Festival 2015), the winner of CAAMFest’s Student Film Award. Her other short films include Treasure Island (2015), Last Stop in Santa Rosa (2015), Bisonhead (2016), Notes from Buena Vista (2016), The Disclosure President (2016), and Mother’s Day (2017). Stray is her feature debut. In 2015, Filmmaker magazine named her one of its “25 New Faces of Independent Film.”
Film Details
Language Turkish
Year 2020
Runtime 73
Country USA/Turkey
Director Elizabeth Lo
Producer Elizabeth Lo, Shane Boris
Editor Elizabeth Lo
Cinematographer Elizabeth Lo
Music Ali Helnwein
Print Source Magnolia Pictures