STRAW 2025: A Mother’s Silence Was Louder Than a Siren
A haunting look at grief, survival, and a mother’s quiet collapse in a world that never gave her room to fall.

Evading the police, Issa and her brother Tomas seek shelter in a secluded orphanage in the forest. But the siblings’ safe haven soon reveals itself to be a hellscape controlled by a sacrificial cult in thrall to a fearsome nocturnal deity.
A haunting look at grief, survival, and a mother’s quiet collapse in a world that never gave her room to fall.
'Living' dives into many themes that we can all understand regardless of our cultural backgrounds. We can see this through the shared similarities between 'Ikiru' and 'Living'.
'Ganja & Hess' is a 1973 experimental horror film, written and directed by the visionary auteur Bill Gunn. It was meant to be a straightforward blaxploitation film – but director Gunn had grander ambitions.
Evan Goldman, a child of divorced parents, is planning a memorable bar mitzvah for his 13th birthday. However, middle school has a few obstacles along the way.
This captivating film can only be truly appreciated by seeing it firsthand. There are not enough words to describe the terrible beauty one experiences while watching it.
Some people’s first introduction to Mira Nair might be as New York mayor Zohran Mamdani’s mom. But with her insightful direction of 1991’s Mississippi Masala, Nair shows how much she deserves to be known as an artist. Delivering a nuanced portrait of a romance between a Black man and an Indian woman living in the South, Nair explores the complications each character faces, giving both equal weight.