Billed as an "emotion picture", Dirty Computer tells the story of android Jane 57821 and her struggles as she "attempts to break free from the constraints of a totalitarian society that forcibly makes [her] comply with its homophobic beliefs".

[1] The film was produced by Wondaland, Monáe's multimedia production company, and was directed by Andrew Donoho and Chuck Lightning, with the music video portions of the film directed by Donoho ("Django Jane"), Lacey Duke ("I Like That"), Alan Ferguson ("Crazy, Classic, Life", "Make Me Feel"), and Emma Westenberg ("Pynk", "Screwed").

[8] On February 1, 2019, Wondaland released a director's cut of Dirty Computer that added an additional thirteen minutes of interviews with Monáe and the picture's creative teams.

[4] In a positive review for Thirty, Flirty + Film, Cate Young wrote that the film and its companion album "complement each other perfectly", adding that the two work together to "create a new synergistic, world in which revolution is demanded as a means to survival and the lives of black queer people are central and will be defended ... what Monáe created here is a feminist statement of intent, and it should be celebrated.

"[9] Stephen Abblitt of Medium called the short film "a stunning, provocative culmination of, or conclusion to, a decade-long science-fictional aural exploration by Monáe of love, identity, sexuality, revolution, time travel, and androids".