In the Stars

"In the Stars" is the third episode of the Star Wars: Visions Volume 2 that premiered on Disney+ on May 4, 2023. It is made by the Chile-based animation studio Punkrobot Studios and directed by Gabriel Osorio. The short took inspiration from the art and culture of the indigenous peoples of Patagonia in southern Chile, using the Galactic Empire as an allegory for the colonial oppression Chileans had faced and the sisters Koten and Tichina connections to each other and the Force to represent the people's ties with nature and their collective memories.
==Official description==
Two sisters, the last of their kind who live in hiding on their ravaged land, squabble about how to survive with the Empire encroaching. On a water run, the sisters must fight back when they are discovered.
==Plot summary==
===Survivors of a genocide===
The episode opens with a young girl named Tichina gazing at the stars, which are obscured by the clouds. The person watches as some mushrooms glow brightly, releasing light into the stars before shriveling away. Overhead, a TIE fighter fitted with a green searchlight approaches Tichina. Tichina reaches her hands out in an attempt to attack the starfighter with her Force powers but her older sister Koten pushes her out of harm's way.
Tichina protests against Koten's interference but the older sister counters that it almost had her. The two sisters continue their travels as snow falls over a barren rocky landscape. Later, the older sister warns her younger sister about conserving water. Tichina still wants to honor their mother's memory by visiting her stone. There, she mixes water with a container containing a mystical golden powder that causes the rock paintings to come to life.
Tichina reminds Koten that their mother told them that they inherited her powers. She recalls that they lived a happy life until the Galactic Empire arrived, symbolized by an Imperial Star Destroyer. Imperial forces exploited their planet for its mineral resources, repurposed their water for industrial purposes, and poisoned the natural environment with chemicals. Their mother hid them to keep them safe before leading their people in a rebellion against the Empire. Despite her Force powers, Koten reminds Tichina that their mother was no match for the Empire and perished.
Tichina believes that their mother became a star along with the other rebels. She thinks that she and Koten are the last of their people. Koten is upset with their mother for leaving them behind. Tichina believes they are not alone but the other sister differers. The rock drawings disappear. Tichina says she can feel her behind all that smoke. As the paintings fade away, Koten explains that the paint fades away without starlight. Koten reassures Tichina that she is here for her and will never let anything bad happen to her. She gives Tichina her share of water but it is empty.
===The heist===
Koten decides to get water from a nearby Imperial facility, which borders a lake. She plans to infiltrate the facility. Tichina wants to follow but Koten believes that she is strong enough to fight the Empire. Tichina grabs her oar from Koten and knocks her to the ground. Koten snarls and grabs the oar, causing Tichina to fall. Tichina insists that she can help with her Force powers and says she is like her mother. Koten disagrees and says that such recklessness is dangerous. She reminds Tichina that she will always get the water while Tichina stays hidden. Koten rows away, leaving a sulking Ticina behind.
Under the cover of nightfall, Koten rows her boat into the banks of the Imperial complex. She sneaks in through a large drain that leads inside the factor. Koten climbs up a tall circular platform that leads to a deep well that is full of fresh water. She drains water into a cylindrical tank. However, Koten hears the ring of klaxons. Using her macrobinoculars, she finds that Tichina has disobeyed her orders and been captured by two Imperial factory workers.
Koten attacks the two Imperial workers with her electrostaff, knocking them out. After scolding Tichina, they retreat to the drain where they came in only to be blocked by several Snowtroopers. They flee up a mechanical pulley system and flee deeper into the factory. Koten knocks out several workers with her electrostaff but is struck by a worker armed with an electric wrench. Tichina rushes to her sister's aid and knocks down a guard. A second guard attempts to subdue Koten with his electric wrench but is stunned by Tichina, who has stolen an electric wrench. Koten thinks it was luck but Tichina says it was their mother's strength that allowed them to escape.
The two flee pursuing snowtroopers by fleeing up a pulley system that leads to a walkway. They jump onto the mechanical carts. Inside the factory control room, a female Imperial officer expressed shock that the native people survived and deactivates the pulley system. They climb up the carts which are carrying molten metal. Tichina wants to continue the fight but Koten says they have accomplished their mission.
===Fighting back===
Disobeying her sister, Tichina jumps onto the factory floor and attempts to use her Force powers to topple the facility. However, she is captured by several snowtroopers. The Imperial officer confronts her and demands to know what she is doing. Tichina replies that this is their land. The officer counters that the planet's resources belongs to the Empire. A horrified Koten watches as a snowtrooper attempts to throw her sister over the edge. Koten intervenes and attacks several snowtrooper sentries with her electrostaff. Though she takes down three, she is unable to stop the snowtrooper from throwing Tichina over the edge.
However, Tichina is able to slow her fall with the Force. Koten pulls her sister to safety. The Imperial officer dispatched an AT-ST walker against the two sisters. The two sisters decide to stand and fight. They use their Force powers to collapse a giant metal tank, storing the water. The Imperial officer and her snowtroopers are caught up in a flood that destroys the factory and washes away the Imperial forces. The two sisters survive the flood with Koten carrying her sister to safety.
===Never alone===
Later in the morning, Tichina wakes up and tells her sister that she believed they could beat them. Koten agrees and hugs her sister. With the Imperial factory destroyed, the two sisters witness the glowing stars, which causes the vegetation to glow luminously. Their mother's stone glows luminously with hands and paintings. Tichina says that their Mom was there and looks right. Koten says her sister was right and that they will never be alone.
==Credits==
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==Notes and references==
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