STRAYS To Premiere As Part of New York Shorts International Film Festival

Strays is now an official entry in The New York Shorts Film Festival, screening Sunday, October 13 at 6:00 pm.

The 13th annual New York Shorts International Film Festival will feature nearly 300 short films, special events, talks, retrospectives films, and tributes with honored guests.

Shamsul is an Uber driver earning money to send home. Spend a day in his cab and truly see what the diversity of New York looks like. To avoid feeling truly alone in this city he befriends a stray cat ... or rather the cat befriended the stray Shamsul. Underneath STRAYS is a strong character study of the 21st Century immigrants plight deftly played by James Rana.

"Strays" tells the story of a Pakistani immigrant living alone in Coney Island and the many small encounters that shape his life.

New York Shorts is one of the largest exhibitors of short-form cinema in North America and the largest short film festival in America on the East Coast.

A qualifying film festival for the Canadian Screen Awards, presented by The Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television.

"Strays" tells the story of a Pakistani immigrant living alone in Coney Island and the many small encounters that shape his life.

STRAYS has also been accepted in to the Newport Beach Film Festival honoring Christoph Waltz and the Teaneck International Film Festival.

James Rana is an award winning performer/writer/and producer. He trained as a clown and juggler, beginning his career as a street performer. He received his MFA from Trinity Rep Conservatory. On Broadway, he was an original cast member of The Band's Visit, winner of 10 Tony awards, including Best Musical. He spent two years in The Band's Visit's National Tour. His Off-Broadway, Regional, National and International credits include: The 1st National Tour of The Kite Runner, The Royal Shakespeare Company, Red Bull Theater, The Shakespeare Theater Co., The Kennedy Center, Huntington Theatre, SpeakEasy Stage, Classical Theatre of Harlem, Ensemble Studio Theater, Denver Center, Theatreworks Silicon Valley, Pan Asian Rep, Worth Street Theater, East Lynne Theater, Contemporary American Theatre Festival, Shakespeare & Co., Actors Shakespeare Company, Germany's Bonn Biennale and the Globe Neuss, Toronto's David Mirvish Theatre, Luna-Stage/">Luna Stage, Coney Island USA, and Comedysportz.

He starred in the award-winning short A Girl Like You with A Boy Like Me (Accolade Award). Other film and television appearances include guest-starring roles on "Law & Order:SVU," "Madam Secretary," "Chicago Fire," "The 72nd Tony Awards," "Third Watch," "One Life To Live," The War Within, The Assassin, Swim Little Fish Swim, and sketch characters for "Conan O'Brien."

Filmmaker/Choreographer Or Schraiber was born in 1992 in the city of Jerusalem, where he studied at the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance. In 2010, Or joined the Batsheva Dance Company, with whom he danced for seven years. In 2017, Or moved to New York City to study acting at the Stella Adler Studio. In 2018, he co-choreographed and starred in Boaz Yakin's feature film 'AVIVA'. In 2019 Or joined 'The Band's Visit' National Tour.

Throughout the years, Or has and appeared in numerous films, choreographed with his partner, Bobbi Jene Smith, numerous original dance works for some of the world's finest companies (including the Paris Opera Ballet, Royal Danish Ballet, Ballet BC, Ensemble Batsheva, L.A. Dance Project, to name a few), and directed various award-winning short films and music videos.

Or made his off-broadway debut in 2023, choreographing (in collaboration with Bobbi) 'Danny and the Deep Blue Sea'. Or is a founding member of the American Modern Opera Company.