three days for three thousand dollars. He also wrote and performed music for the film. However, he became disillusioned by the response to the film and stopped work on it. With encouragement from his stepfather, he finished the final edit and screened the film at the Anthology Film Archives in Manhattan. He received a strong response, and the film was accepted for the 1995 Cannes Film Festival. The film was screened to standing-room only crowds. Impact on Diesel's career At age 27, Diesel "would drive around [Los Angeles] with VHS copies of [the film] in the trunk just in case [he] bumped into someone who could help [him] with [his] dreams". Upon seeing Morgan Freeman outside a Four Seasons hotel, he approached Freeman and handed him a copy of the film. In 1997, Steven Spielberg saw Strays (having already been impressed with Diesel's performance in Multi-Facial) and wrote a role into Saving Private Ryan specifically for Diesel as a result, giving him his first major film role. References External links Multi-Facial film review at Allwatchers.com 1995 films 1995 drama films 1995 independent films 1995 short films American short films American independent films Films about actors Films about race and ethnicity Films directed by Vin Diesel Films produced by Vin Diesel 1990s English-language films 1990s American films