We Strangers marks the feature film directorial debut of Anu Valia and set in post‑industrial Gary, Indiana, it follows Rayelle “Ray” Martin played by Kirby Howell‑Baptiste – a housekeeper who finds her quiet life upended by a spontaneous lie: she claims she can speak to the dead.
Along with Howell‑Baptiste, the ensemble cast includes Hari Dhillon as Dr. Neeraj Patel, Maria Dizzia as Jean Laich, Sarah Goldberg as Tracy Patel, plus Tina Lifford, Kara Young, Paul Adelstein, and Mischa Reddy.
We Strangers made its world premiere at the 2024 SXSW, and went on to screen at other festivals including Atlanta, Seattle, Bentonville, Filmfest München, Galway Film Fleadh, Sidewalk, and the Hamptons International Film Festival where it won multiple awards. It opens in theaters on August 22, 2025, via Quiver Distribution.
Inspired by Valia’s own childhood in Gary, Indiana, where the film is set, We Strangers follows Rayelle (Kirby Howell-Baptiste), a young commercial cleaning woman who 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. This absorbing character study smartly delves into the world of identity and privilege, showing us the challenges that are baked into navigating different spaces.
Anu Valia offered insight into the film, revealing, “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. Assimilating is a means of survival, but it also creates a constant discomfort… and it is my goal to capture that feeling in a film.”
Watch the official trailer for We Strangers.
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