The interviewer made note that District 9 was so surprising because of its originality. It wasn’t based on a comicbook, and it wasn’t a remake. This is increasingly rare in sci-fi and horror films today.

When dealing with aliens, try to be polite, but firm. And always remember that a smile is cheaper than a bullet.

Blomkamp agrees. The director points out that the first question many people ask when they hear about a new movie these days is “Where did it [the idea] come from?” He argues that the most meaningful science fiction didn’t come from watching other films

He goes on to point out that many writers and directors say their stories are influenced by other films. Blomkamp argues that the best sci-fi comes from real life stimulation and experience. Many of the classics were based on the effects of the Cold War, experiences in Vietnam, etc, not just the movies you watched growing up.

This line of thinking really bothers me, as I agree with it, but I fall into the camp whose influences are other authors, not real life experiences. I’ve spent my entire life just going to school and university — that doesn’t make for the most unique or exciting stimuli for story telling.

I know my worries about this can’t be unique. How many other writers are out there whose most influential life experiences came not from life itself, but from their favorite books and movies? Can people like us still tell visceral, important, exciting stories armed only with our own mundane lives and our knowledge of literature and film?

District 9 is an excellent film that does what all good sci-fi should: take a real world issue and reframe it so that people will think about it differently. Just like any intro-level creative writing class will say, it’s a storyteller’s job to hold up a mirror to his or her audience.

Sci-fi writers choose to hold up a fun-house mirror instead, hoping that the distorted image their audience sees will cause them to stop for a second and think about what they’re looking at. Blomkamp holds his mirror up to South African society, but what else is out there that needs a good looking at?