'' Rakka'' is a 2017 American-

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

military science fiction Military science fiction is a subgenre of science fiction that features the use of science fiction technology, mainly weapons, for military purposes and usually principal characters who are members of a military organization involved in military a ...

short film A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...

made by Oats Studios and directed by

Neill Blomkamp Neill Blomkamp (; born 17 September 1979) is a South African filmmaker. He employs a documentary-style, hand-held, cinéma vérité technique, blending naturalistic and photo-realistic computer-generated effects, and his films often deal with ...

. It was released on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second most ...

and

Steam Steam is a substance containing water in the gas phase, and sometimes also an aerosol of liquid water droplets, or air. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporizat ...

on 14 June 2017.

Plot

Chapter 1: ''World''

In the near future,

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surf ...

will be attacked by technologically superior and highly aggressive reptilian aliens called the Klum (pronounced "klume"). Humanity is nearing extinction with millions dead or enslaved. The Klum transform the Earth in favor of their own ideal living conditions. They do this at first by burning forests and destroying cities. Then they build megastructures that alter the atmosphere by pumping out methane. The gas makes it progressively harder for terrestrial life to breathe. And it warms the climate, which leads to flooding of coastal cities. The story begins in 2020, from the viewpoint of resistance fighters in Texas, a group of US Army soldiers and many others who have banded together. Most human survivors live underground or among ruins. They have barely enough provisions, weapons, and ammunition. The humans fight by using whatever they can against the primary Klum weapon: an omnipresent nanite in their weaponry, and telepathic control over any human that makes direct eye contact with them. The resistance makes "brain-barriers" that block this mind control. The Klum know, however, that a scarcity of materials means a scarcity of brain barriers. They hope, therefore, to win a war of attrition against the human survivors. Some prisoners are living incubators for the Klum's young, which inevitably kills the victims. Others are dissected. Still other humans are converted into human loudspeakers that urge humans to surrender into "conservatories". Very few humans ever escape. After the Klum destroy a militia convoy with an airstrike, one of the surviving soldiers witnesses an angel-like being materialize from thin air. The narration describes ″them″ as mankind's saviours.

Chapter 2: ''Amir & Nosh''

Nosh is a tech-savvy

pyromaniac Pyromania is an impulse control disorder in which individuals repeatedly fail to resist impulses to deliberately start fires, to relieve some tension or for instant gratification. The term ''pyromania'' comes from the Greek word (''pyr'', 'fi ...

and bomb-maker, eking out a living in a scrapyard far from the resistance. The resistance despises Nosh for his murderous glee and demands - giving the sick or suicidal over as bait during his many IED ambushes. They must, however, give in to Nosh's demands to secure the IEDs and the brain-barriers he makes. The resistance stumble across Amir, a mute who has escaped from the Klum. He has extensive cybernetics across his head and shoulders. Amid opposition from her lieutenants, the resistance leader, Jasper, releases Amir from her custody into the care of a resistance fighter named Sarah. Sarah, having lost her daughter to the Klum's experiments, takes a liking to him. She gives Amir food and drink while trying to persuade him to help the resistance fight the Klum by using the precognitive abilities he acquired via the aliens' experiments.

Chapter 3: ''Siege''

Amir recovers physically and mentally. Then, because of his implant, he has a premonition involving a wounded Klum on the run from militia forces. Sarah pleads with Amir to help the militia officers to stop the genocide. The more she talks to him, the more his eyes change, seeing the premonition of the impending attack more clearly. Amir, still mute, foresees the militia successfully shooting down an alien aircraft, and the pilot is the alien on the run. Sarah asks Amir if they will be able to learn how to hunt the Klum and teach them how to fear. Unable to answer, he foresees the Klum telekinetically bashing one of the militia soldiers, disconnecting his brain barrier and causing him to be mind-controlled, turning on his comrades, who are forced to kill him. Sarah tells Amir that he now has the abilities the aliens have and that he is to use them for humanity. Back in the vision, the militia surround the Klum; Jasper orders the militia to cut off its head. The film ends with Sarah urging Amir to use his abilities because he is humanity's last hope.

Cast

Sigourney Weaver Susan Alexandra "Sigourney" Weaver (; born October 8, 1949) is an American actress. A figure in science fiction and popular culture, she has received various accolades, including a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and a Gramm ...

as Jasper * Eugene Khumbanyiwa as Amir *Robert Hobbs as Carl *

Carly Pope Carly Pope (born August 28, 1980) is a Canadian actress. She is best known for her roles on The WB's drama series '' Popular'' (1999–2001), supernatural drama series ''The Collector'' (2004–2005), USA Network's legal drama series '' Suits'' ...

as Sarah *

Brandon Auret Brandon Auret (born 27 December 1972) is a South African actor known for his role as Leon du Plessis in the SABC3 soap opera ''Isidingo''. Early life Auret was born 27 December 1972 in the South African city of Johannesburg. He currently r ...

as Nosh *Mike Huff as Policeman *Owen McCrae as Klum *Connor Page as Child *Jay Anstey as A suicide bomber *Justin Shaw as Man in medical device *Carla Marais as eight-year-old girl *Ryan Angilley as Martinez *Alec Gillis as Militia officer 1 *Ruan Coetzee as Militia officer 2 *Paul Davies as Militia officer 3 *Pieter Jacobz as Militia officer 4

References

External links

*
Oats StudiosOats Studios - Volume 1 - Rakka
on

Oats Studios - Volume 1 - Rakka
on

{{Neill Blomkamp 2017 short films Alien invasions in films Films directed by Neill Blomkamp Films scored by Lorne Balfe 2017 science fiction films American science fiction short films Films set in 2020 Canadian science fiction short films 2010s English-language films 2010s American films 2010s Canadian films