Elizabeth Lo’s acute study of Istanbul strays is both a love letter to dogs and a piercing inquiry into humanity.  Turkey’s support of wild street dogs has it bursting with independent pups that peacefully live on their own terms.  It hasn’t always been this way however -- the country has had mass killings of strays since 1909 -- but thanks to extensive and effective protests, it is now illegal to euthanize or confine strays.  From the first moment in STRAY, Lo graces the screen with a close-up of Zeytin, whose elegant lashes and playfully twitching eyebrows scream ‘leading lady’.  One can’t help but feel a soul-baring affinity with the fearless Zeytin as she searches for kindness while wandering the streets of Instanbul.  It’s a tough town, but the young outcast quickly proves to be a savvy survivor, who’s somehow managed to make sense of the city’s one-of-a-kind chaos.  Zeytin is not alone in her excursions -- in her pack are also the caring doggie Nazar and timid puppy Kartal, as well as a trio of homeless, heartbreakingly adrift Syrian refugee boys who take life one day at a time.  Throughout the mostly wordless STRAY, reveals not only the wholesomeness of humans’ best friends, but also the soulful voice of an exciting new filmmaker with enormous moral queries on her mind.  WINNER! Best International Documentary at 2020 Hot Docs.