United States of Aliens (U.S. Aliens)
United States of Aliens (U.S. Aliens) (2019)
Starring and created by: Aalisha Sheth and Nikkita Duke
Television’s representations of immigrants tend to extremes. Stories are either violent and dramatic tales of strife and woe, or quirky episodic comedies about heteronormative families.
This is not the case in the provocatively titled United States of Aliens (U.S. Aliens) co-created and written by Nikkita Duke and Aalisha Sheth, who were both MFA students at Northwestern University at the time.
In the comedy series, Indian and Nigerian single women navigate their misadventures of culturally assimilating into everyday American life. The series is an unfiltered look at the experiences of international students in America who live in deep uncertainty, caused by the lack of care and support extended by universities, financial institutions and sometimes one's own neighbors. They also poke fun at the ways immigration distances people from their loved ones back home, in ways that are both emotionally difficult, technically challenging, and sometimes freeing.
“We had never seen that point of view represented in a way,” Nikkita said of the show’s focus on young women from different cultures supporting each other while navigating the U.S. in an educational institution.
Despite their presence at a university with its ornate surroundings, both characters face issues surviving due to money and access to care. This is partially based on the creators’ real experiences. Uduak’s main storyline is trying to get money to pay for a broken laptop, which is critical for her completing her studies. As an immigrant, she doesn’t yet have a social security number, so getting credit or student loans are not really options. “Financially speaking, you may as well not exist,” a bank official tells her. So she participates in a university research study for some cash, but it turns out she gets a voucher instead. As Uduak contends with financial struggles, Rishita is flirting with a fellow “Thronie” or Game of Thrones fan. But her hookup is neither smooth nor sexy as she'd seen in the American television shows she grew up watching in India. Her bed frame breaks down, creating a noisy interruption that causes alarm to a white female neighbor and condo association member, who reprimands her for being loud and mispronounces her name. Upon learning that Rishita comes from India, the neighbor further imposes a fetishized orientalist gaze upon Rishita, whilst exclaiming that she has always wanted to travel to the east. “Her face gave me happy vibes but her words were killing me,” Rishita tells Uduak of her attempt to understand white Midwestern cultural norms.
“How do you survive when you’ve totally been outside?” Nikkita said of the character’s position in the story. Telling the story towards the end of a two-year program, the creators wanted to ask themselves how they figure things out.
Ultimately, the show serves a pedagogical function to prospective students from outside the United States who aspire to come to the United States, introducing them to some challenges they may not foresee.
“The show is a how-to guide for people coming here who don't have anyone,” Aalisha said. By focusing the series on cross-cultural friendship, ”it’s almost like the support system that they're creating while surviving individual experiences.”