

There Was Nobody Here We Knew
Special | 9m 21sVideo has Closed Captions
A Virginia, middle-aged immigrant couple contemplates alien life and searches for answers.
In early quarantine, a Pakistani couple in northern Virginia bicker and ruminate about extraterrestrial and terrestrial border-crossings of multiple kinds, after spotting what they believe is a UFO outside their home. 'There Was Nobody Here We Knew' is as much about finding answers as it is about looking inward to understand how we arrived at where we are and where we are headed.
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Support for Reel South is made possible by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Center for Asian American Media and by SouthArts.

There Was Nobody Here We Knew
Special | 9m 21sVideo has Closed Captions
In early quarantine, a Pakistani couple in northern Virginia bicker and ruminate about extraterrestrial and terrestrial border-crossings of multiple kinds, after spotting what they believe is a UFO outside their home. 'There Was Nobody Here We Knew' is as much about finding answers as it is about looking inward to understand how we arrived at where we are and where we are headed.
Problems with Closed Captions? Closed Captioning Feedback
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Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorship[somber music] - Yeah up there, up there.
Up there, somewhere there.
- Yeah.
- [Waleed] You see it?
- Yeah - It's a UFO.
- Technically speaking, they are outside many windows, but we feel that because the, the angle that they are pointing the ship is on that window because we are on the site.
So from that point, we feel that they are looking at us, but maybe they're looking at other similar windows, but we don't know that's the mystery.
- [Riffat] They come when it's getting dark.
Oh, I spotted a long time ago.
It's been like last year, then it disappeared and it started to come back again.
[Riffat] And you guys were looking somewhere else and it was right above.
- Why do you think it's here?
- I have no idea.
And it's not a star for sure, definitely something else it's not a satellite either.
- Do you guys believe in aliens?
- I do but sometimes I've really, something's wrong.
- What do you mean something's wrong?
- Sometimes we think that it's more fictional, but then when you see the UFO close by then the fiction becomes reality.
- You guys don't believe in UFO's?
Washington DC zero, Virginia five, Maryland two.
See?
Nobody believes that but, there are UFO's.
- I went out and waved at them.
After three or four waves, the light switched off.
- [Riffat] He probably get scared that you're not, that there's another alien.
- We are aliens to them, so they may think that we are aliens.
- Like this, take me to your leader - [Waleed] Alien sign?
- We should plan a family trip to Roswell, so you guys can see your friends.
- Don't take it likely this is serious.
- That was the good old times, when we used to go and visit Pakistan.
Everybody was there my mum was dancing in the background.
- It was not about living back then, it was more about getting education.
I was not planning but then found out that there were competition for scholarships, so I applied.
- Don't lie okay - When I came, I said, we have to go back after three years.
You said, no, no, I'm going to work for a year or so, and we'll go back.
That day never came.
So we ended up being here.
Yes, I did have regrets leaving Pakistan at that time and coming to the country where you don't know anybody, there was nobody here we know.
- There was a lot of hard work and, sacrifice.
[somber music] ♪ - What are you looking for?
- Binoculars to binoculars or the ones that go up.
- Telescope?
No, No, No binoculars.
- I see the tip, I see the tip.
The top of that cloud, you see?
- I'm sure the alien exist, somewhere in this universe.
They have their own life and they're struggling you know maybe, there is a wall between, humans and the other aliens.
- Once an alien always an alien.
- I'm not an alien anymore, now I have become a citizen.
♪ Woo-hoo ♪ I voted.
He wants to burn the gas and go and chase the UFO.
- No but, question -- unless we go and explore, we will always have this little feeling of, why didn't I do this?
One thing is very clear today we are going and drive in that direction and chase them.
When we call them just wait, if they come out, just wait.
- What do you mean?
- We are getting close to the alien, we will put the masks up, we don't want them to recognize.
In the U.S 50% are born Americans so they don't really care, they don't have any idea what the real world is.
They are stuck in their own little bubble.
- [Riffat] What are you doing?
- Stepping, I'm really ready, now you get ready, okay?
Okay.
A little spec there but, no they won't like this space.
- Show me.
Can't believe now we are seriously looking for this stupid UFO and it's not showing up.
[ominous music] ♪ [music fades to crickets] - I don't think we have luck today, but we'll come back, we'll come back.
[ambient driving sounds] - What advice would you give the aliens?
- Yeah, I will tell the alien okay, get ready to jump into the pool and, learn how to swim.
That's what I did.
[somber music] ♪ - It's a nice and beautiful type of UFO [hysterical laughs]
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Support for Reel South is made possible by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Center for Asian American Media and by SouthArts.