Director’s statement

Immigration has shaped this country in countless ways, yet all too often, immigrants are blamed for its problems. In today’s divided climate, being an international student comes with constant scrutiny. I’ve faced endless forms, visa regulations, and rules that force me to weigh every word I speak, aware that a single misstep could have serious consequences. Every official form labels me an “alien,” a word that makes me feel marked, strange, and foreign. That label isn’t just bureaucratic; it seeps into how people see us, and sometimes, how we see ourselves.

My short film makes that label literal. Eryx, the protagonist, is not just an alien, he’s a living representation of the fear and uncertainty many immigrants carry. By telling this story through a different lens, I want audiences to feel that pressure, that constant sense of being on edge. This isn’t just science fiction, it’s a story about real people and the struggles they live with every day.

Science fiction has always had a way of revealing truths about us. This film isn’t about spectacle; it’s about empathy and understanding. Like Avatar, which used an alien world to explore colonization and exploitation, my film uses Eryx’s story to open a window into the immigrant experience. If viewers care about him, they can begin to see the humanity in people who are too often treated as less. This story is also about the power of the stories we tell, because the way we frame each other in words and images shapes whether we fear one another or recognize each other as neighbors.