Native 2016

Two sets of mixed fraternal twins, Cane Rupert Graves and Awan Leanne Best, as well as Eva Ellie Kendrick and Seth Joe Macaulay, inhabit an unnamed planet where people are linked by telepathic “hive minds” through devices implanted in the back of their necks. Their society is relentlessly logical and utilitarian, valuing efficiency and order above emotion or chaos, and their unique bond gives them an unusually strong telepathic rapport. Because of this closeness, they are chosen for a high-stakes colonization mission to Earth after a space probe transmits Beethoven’s Fifth, which the crew quickly recognizes as evidence of intelligent life—though its true purpose remains unclear, as there appears to be little or no art on their world. The mission is overseen by authorities who confirm that Cane and Eva will pilot the voyage, while Awan and Seth serve as their contact at Mission Control, making each astronaut’s only link to home a direct line to their twin. A live virus is also aboard, adding an ominous layer of risk to the undertaking.

From the outset, Cane’s fascination with music hints at a growing deviation from strict protocol, a development Eva already finds unsettling. After Awan becomes pregnant, she dies along with the fetuses she was carrying, an event that unsettles Cane deeply and pushes him toward displays of humanity that feel both hopeful and dangerous. He begins to seek a closer, more personal connection with Eva, crafting small, tactile symbols—a pendant fashioned from garbage and broken glass for himself and a drawing for Eva—that reveal a longing to understand and be understood beyond their hive-minded conditioning. His distress deepens to the point of considering self-harm, and Eva is forced to intervene when he attempts suicide. Yet even as Eva saves him, Cane’s lingering curiosity leads him to press for physical closeness, despite Eva’s clear reluctance.

As the ship nears Earth, Mission Control, via Seth, instructs Eva to steer the craft toward a body of water near a city and to release a live virus intended to eradicate humanity in preparation for colonization. Cane responds by severing his telepathic connection to the ship, using a shard of broken glass to cut the telepathic receiver from his neck, a desperate bid to regain autonomy. He enters a room that contains what appear to be fetuses in artificial wombs, but the true nature of these devices—or the virus itself—remains ambiguous. He makes a valiant but flawed attempt to shut down the virus program before Eva subdues him and places him in a stasis chamber.

To fulfill the virus’s requirement to interact with human DNA, Eva goes out to extract a DNA sample. She confronts a woman who resists her, and Eva ends the encounter by stabbing her to obtain the necessary DNA. She is troubled by the act, even as Seth continues to push the mission’s agenda. Back in the room with the fetuses, Eva grapples with a harsh, merciless calculus: she tries to rationalize that humanity might be less valuable than her own people because Earth does not share the same “hive mind.” Cane, meanwhile, returns with a shard and tries to enlist Eva’s help, but her resolve falters under the weight of the ethical and existential stakes they face.

The two fearfully confront the ethical paradox of their mission as Eva attempts to justify erasing humanity for the sake of their colony. Cane’s insistence on human connection clashes with Eva’s treacherous duty, and Beethoven’s Fifth resumes its haunting presence, underscoring the alien conflict between art, emotion, and duty. Eva ultimately frees herself from the telepathic leash by severing the neck implant, while Cane and Eva decide to contain the virus aboard the ship rather than unleash it on Earth. As an alarm sounds, they depart the vessel, cut off from their home world and unable to speak the language they once shared with it. In their final moment of mutual fear and tenderness, they acknowledge the uncertainty of what comes next while clinging to a fragile resolve to endure whatever remains.