In commemoration of the 40th anniversary of the sci-fi horror classic Alien, 20th Century Fox will be releasing six official fan-made short films that centered around the iconic Xenomorph. Released in 1979, Ridley Scott’s ingenious concept opened relatively quietly, soon becoming one of the most referenced and genre-setting films to ever be made. The film went on to inspired a generation of sci-fi and horror filmmakers, who’ve driven the alien-on-a-spaceship concept into a nearly banal film topic. To celebrate the Xenomorph’s lasting legacy, the 40th anniversary will further honor the franchise by debuting six fan-made shorts from the newest generation of filmmakers.
After six out of 550 applicants were chosen to create their own concepts surrounding the original film, they will finally see the light of day after being screened at various Comic Con’s across the United States. Each was given exceptional access to the franchise’s lore, along with being allowed to use various creatures and characters as they wished.
Based on the trailer, which can be viewed above, the production of the projects looks to be immense – with the special effects appearing to be just as good as what we’d expect from a legitimate Alien film. The new films include ALIEN: Alone, ALIEN: Containment, ALIEN: Harvest, ALIEN: Night Shift, ALIEN: Ore, and ALIEN: Specimen. The synopses for each short, as provided by the studio, are below:
ALIEN: Alone – Hope, an abandoned crew member aboard the derelict chemical hauler Otranto, has spent a year trying to keep her ship and herself alive as both slowly fall apart. After discovering hidden cargo, she risks it all to power up the broken ship in search of human life.
ALIEN: Containment – Four survivors find themselves stranded aboard a small escape pod in deep space. Trying to piece together the details around the outbreak that led to their ship’s destruction, they find themselves unsure to trust whether or not one of them might be infected.
ALIEN: Harvest – The surviving crew of a damaged deep-space harvester have minutes to reach the emergency evacuation shuttle. A motion sensor is their only navigation tool leading them to safety while a creature in the shadows terrorizes the crew. However, the greatest threat might have been hiding in plain sight all along.
ALIEN: Night Shift – When a missing space trucker is discovered hungover and disoriented, his co-worker suggests a nightcap as a remedy. Near closing time, they are reluctantly allowed inside the colony supply depot where the trucker’s condition worsens, leaving a young supply worker alone to take matters into her own hands.
ALIEN: Ore – As a hard-working miner of a planet mining colony, Lorraine longs to make a better life for her daughter and grandchildren. When her shift uncovers the death of a fellow miner under mysterious circumstances, Lorraine is forced to choose between escape or defying management orders and facing her fears to fight for the safety of her family.
ALIEN: Specimen – It’s the night shift in a colony greenhouse, and Julie, a botanist, does her best to contain suspicious soil samples that have triggered her sensitive lab dog. Despite her best efforts the lab unexpectedly goes into full shutdown and she is trapped inside. Little does she know, an alien specimen has escaped the mysterious cargo, and a game of cat and mouse ensues as the creature searches for a host.
The films will be released week by week via IGN, beginning March 29.
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