As linguists at Web-Translations, we facilitate communication across borders and overcome language barriers. That is why it is fascinating to see how communication and language barriers are tackled in film. One genre in which we can often find invented languages or communication barriers is science fiction. After all, science fiction can often involve high-stakes circumstances, like threats to planetary life and contact with alien species. Protagonists might need to find a way to understand a situation or collaborate to tackle a common problem.
The science fiction film, Arrival, is a prime example of a film with language as a central theme. It brings a spotlight to the work of linguists and their role in deciphering language and fostering communication. The main protagonist is a linguistics professor who must find a way to understand why alien spaceships have landed on Earth. A more recent film that broaches linguistics and the language barrier, is Project Hail Mary, released in 2026 and directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller.
Project Hail Mary
The film Project Hail Mary is an adaptation of the science fiction book written by Andy Weir. The narrative centres on a secondary school science teacher, Ryland Grace, who ends up being recruited to investigate what he discovers to be a type of alien microbe, Astrophage, that is steadily consuming the sun. Recruited for his knowledge of molecular biology, Grace becomes the sole survivor onboard the Hail Mary spacecraft. Grace encounters an inhabitant of the planet Erid, Rocky, whose species is equally endangered by the Astrophage. To save both their planets, learning to communicate and overcome the language barrier becomes critical.
Mechanics of the Language
Rocky uses the Eridian language. This is a language formed of musical tones, which in the book are depicted as musical notes. A good comparison to a tonal language is Mandarin Chinese. In this case, words with the same spelling can mean different things depending on the tone used when verbalising the word. Differently to this though, Eridian can use multiple tones at once to form a chord. The tones are luckily within the range that humans are able to perceive.
First Steps in Establishing Communication
Grace and Rocky first communicate by miming actions, using gestures, and mimicking each other’s movements. Rocky creates models, which he uses to act out certain actions or communicate concepts. For instance, he creates models of Grace, the spaceship, and the molecule oxygen. They also start to establish basic concepts such as numerals and reading the time, bringing out objects such as their own variations of a clock.
Computer Software
Dr Grace uses a computer system to translate Rocky’s language and create a more efficient way to communicate. Grace types in terms in English and uses a kind of software to record Rocky’s translation in Eridian. To begin with, Grace plots the word “one”, pointing to the numeral on the clock and recording Rocky communicating the equivalent term in Eridian, before continuing to collect a list of vocabulary. With this system, they do not need to worry about learning how to actively produce one another’s language, but rather just listen and understand. The software translates in real-time so that the two can communicate efficiently.
Cultural Knowledge
Throughout the film, Grace and Rocky broach areas of communication such as humour. When Rocky tells Grace he has been with his mate for 186,3 years, Grace remarks that he is in the honeymoon phase. When Rocky doesn’t understand, Grace has to explain the concept of a joke. Later in the film, Rocky is able to communicate humour, joking that Grace is “bravest human I have ever met”.
Other phrases could also only be understood from experience with the language in context. When Grace says “see you later” as they are saying goodbye to return to their planets, Rocky is perplexed since they are not expecting to see each other again. Grace explains these turns of phrase that are not familiar to Rocky.
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30 September 2026 14:07