After crash landing on an inhospitable planet, an alien searches for a connection. “The Familiar,” directed by Julian Quentin, is a visually stunning sci-fi mood board on identity and otherness. Finding itself in a foreign land with unforgiving terrain, the otherworldly being observes strange sights: a family of four picnics in the middle of a rocky landscape; a group of blindfolded individuals march in place on large outdoor stairs. While the alien struggles to connect, it starts to experience unpleasant symptoms and become desperate for relief. Crafted with beautifully stark black and white images, Quentin’s film is a potent, self-assured vision, a cosmic metaphor for life as an outsider. -KA. Director: Julian Quentin. Cast: Markus J. Bachmann & Biniam Graffé. DOP: Linda Schefferski. Composer: Roman Jungblut.