A New York couple, Rachel (Emilia Clarke, Game of Thrones) and Alvy (Chiwetel Ejiofor) live in a not-so-distant future where technology provides ever-more comfortable living. A rising tech company executive, Rachel lands a coveted spot at the Womb Center, which offers couples a convenient (and shareable) maternity by way of detachable artificial wombs, or pods. But Alvy, a botanist with an affection for nature, prefers a natural pregnancy. And yet, as Rachel's AI therapist puts it, why is that "natural?"

A social satire of tech-mediated parenting, Sophie Barthes' third feature brings a funny, philosophical sensibility to her questioning of society's giddy pursuit of convenience, our increased distance from nature, womb envy and the commodification of… everything. Premiering at the Sundance Film Festival in 2023, this sci-fi romantic comedy explores issues around parenthood (particularly motherhood) that continue to evolve as post-Roe laws affecting reproductive healthcare change across the country.

Introduction by director Sophie Barthes and Professor Matthew Garcia.

Part of the Children of Cuaron: Speculative Fiction Through Cinematic Futures Conference, sponsored by the Department of Latin American, Latino & Caribbean Studies.

D: Sophie Barthes, France, 2023, 1h50m