EIFF 2026: Out There
Simon Ryninks's comedy about a UFO-obsessed community in Wales might not have the budget of a Steven Spielberg extraterrestrial epic, but it has the same heartwarming sensibility
Out There begins with a young girl and her father sitting on a blanket and gazing up at the stars, wondering about aliens and quoting Carl Sagan to each other. It’s a lovely scene that sets a warm, inviting tone, which director Simon Ryninks maintains throughout. It might not have the big budget spectacle of this summer’s other big extraterrestrial adventure, but its heart is pure Spielberg – never losing sight of the fact that its story isn’t really about what’s going on up in the stars, but about the people down below, sharing a moment of wonder.
Out There takes place in Caradoc, a sleepy (and fictional) seaside town in Wales that once found itself in the public eye thanks to a spate of UFO sightings. Years later, 16-year-old Maz (Nerys Amber Stocks) has become convinced that extra-terrestrial forces are responsible for her father’s disappearance and sets out to uncover the truth with her obliging bestie Elis (Tom Moya) in tow.
They soon discover, as all alien enthusiasts hope to, that they’re not alone. A self-styled ufologist named Bryn (Aneurin Barnard) joins their search while local spiritualist/souvenir salesman/weed dealer Shifty Griff (Michael Sheen) is enlisted to provide his expertise. Griff feels more like a sitcom character than anyone else in the movie, an eccentric small business owner who could easily set up shop next to Basil Fawlty or Bernard Black, much to either man’s chagrin. There are moments when Sheen’s performance actually threatens to get a little too broad, but then he throws out a one-liner in his finest Fireman Sam accent and wins you right back around.