I Know There’s Something Here for You: Pursuit of Relief in Sci-Fi Drama

Sean Robert Kelly’s I Know There’s Something Here for You is a heartfelt drama (with undertones of comedy) about a man’s attempts to die or disappear—anything to lighten the weight of existence. And there’s the extraterrestrial life too.

The film features a heavily contrasted pair of siblings—the sister responsible and grounded, the brother ambitious and anguished—that are brought together once again in adulthood so that one may keep the other from zooming out of the Earth.

It opens on Bryn (Jackie Kelly), finding Marcus’ farewell letter in the mail. A few degrees short of the worst, it is just a goodbye letter instead of a suicide note. After a career setback, and an overall agonising life, Marcus (Kevin Veselka) has withdrawn to make contact with intelligent extraterrestrial life in the hope that he can impress his way out of earthly ties. Less cowardly, as he puts it. Kelly and Veselka bring a familiarity to their characters that keeps the drama spry rather than maudlin. Their combined performance strikes the crucial balance between mundane resentment and profound affection, wrapped in a 70s look and feel (going beyond the mise-en-scéne and into the specific strains of optimism and despair) that both also embody.

When Marcus’ boxy doodad finally coughs up enough tangible hope with its last sputtering hurrah, the narrative enters a psychedelic sequence, featuring some of the film’s best imaging. The siblings find the sci-fi equivalent of enlightenment within the woods in 1:1 aspect ratio. The importance of Marcus’ efforts takes a backseat to the overwhelming novelty of the shared experience for the duo, previous knowledge and ignorance wiped clean to make room for humbling awe.

I Know There’s Something Here for You reaches for philosophy and abiding love to make a case for continued existence in the face of dread, failure, and most of all, meaninglessness. There is bracing warmth here (and fire-roasted sausages), better than any dose of optimistic talk.

Watch I Know There’s Something Here for You Sci-Fi Short Film Trailer