Oscar Nominee’s The Cat Man Eshete Trailer Previews Timely Refugee Movie | Exclusive

ComingSoon can exclusively reveal the trailer for The Cat Man Eshete.

The Cat Man Eshete is a new short documentary that comes from Oscar nominee Laura Checkoway. Checkoway received an Oscar nomination for her documentary short Edith+Eddie at the 90th Academy Awards.

Check out the exclusive The Cat Man Eshete trailer below (watch more trailers and clips):

What happens in The Cat Man Eshete trailer?

“The film tells the extraordinary story of Eshete, who escaped Ethiopia’s civil war on foot as a young man and is now a devoted caretaker of a feral cat colony in Brooklyn, New York,” a description of the documentary short reads. “Eshete has become the heart of a close-knit community, despite living on the fringes. This intimate documentary is equally a portrait of community care with a supporting cast of New Yorkers who help care for the cats — and for each other.”

In addition to directing, Checkoway also produces the short film alongside Margo Mars and Thomas Lee Wright.

Checkoway said in a statement, “What started with a ‘hello’ from a gentleman surrounded by cats on a street in my neighborhood has grown into a priceless slice of city life and beyond the film, Eshete and I have become dear friends. In all my work, I’m committed to highlighting our humanity, especially people who are often misunderstood, and deepening our understanding of one another and ourselves.”

Parts of the film were filmed in New York City and Eshete’s hometown of Gondar, Ethiopia.

The Cat Man Eshete will hold its Brooklyn premiere at the Brooklyn Film Festival at 6 p.m. ET on June 4, 2025. It will make its worldwide broadcast premiere “ahead of World Refugee Day on Al Jazeera English’s award-winning series, Witness, on June 16, and begins streaming globally, including in the U.S. and Canada.”