Lately, with being confined at home for so long, I’ve developed a new hobby—which you might remember from my previous post: watching foreign films. These are non-English-speaking films that happen to be on Netflix. It’s just become my greatest pleasure to explore the world through films—because, apparently, we don’t have the liberty to actually explore these days. Spanish films and series, in particular, have become a personal favourite for me, but I’ve also tried to venture into other languages as well to see what other countries have got to offer. Aside from that, I don’t know about you, but I love short films as well.
So I’ve also compiled some really great short movies that you wouldn’t find on any of the streaming services—don’t worry, I’ve included links on where you can watch these films as well! These films vary greatly from the absolutely comedic to the heart-wrenchingly dramatic, so whatever it is that you like, I hope you’ll find it here.
Lately, with being confined at home for so long, I’ve developed a new hobby—which you might remember from my previous post: watching foreign films. These are non-English-speaking films that happen to be on Netflix. It’s just become my greatest pleasure to explore the world through films—because, apparently, we don’t have the liberty to actually explore these days. Spanish films and series, in particular, have become a personal favourite for me, but I’ve also tried to venture into other languages as well to see what other countries have got to offer. Aside from that, I don’t know about you, but I love short films as well.
So I’ve also compiled some really great short movies that you wouldn’t find on any of the streaming services—don’t worry, I’ve included links on where you can watch these films as well! These films vary greatly from the absolutely comedic to the heart-wrenchingly dramatic, so whatever it is that you like, I hope you’ll find it here.
Such a vivid story like life itself, it’s a mix of comedy and drama—both being incredibly effective in getting you to guffaw or have streams run down your cheeks. The story tells of a new-found bond between a man, his daughter and granddaughter as they go on a road trip across Spain and try to find the true love from his youth. With his Alzheimer’s diagnosis, it suddenly becomes crucial for him to find this woman before he forgets everything.
Coloured with witty comedy, mismatched relations between the three relatives and an incredible character growth—particularly in the daughter, this story had me laughing out loud and bawling helplessly on the floor. It’s the first film brushing up with Alzheimer’s that I’ve watched, which doesn’t put the disease as the centrepiece of the whole plot—which I find somewhat refreshing—yet at the same time doesn’t make light of it either.
Available on Netflix
Such a vivid story like life itself, it’s a mix of comedy and drama—both being incredibly effective in getting you to guffaw or have streams run down your cheeks. The story tells of a new-found bond between a man, his daughter and granddaughter as they go on a road trip across Spain and try to find the true love from his youth. With his Alzheimer’s diagnosis, it suddenly becomes crucial for him to find this woman before he forgets everything.
Coloured with witty comedy, mismatched relations between the three relatives and an incredible character growth—particularly in the daughter, this story had me laughing out loud and bawling helplessly on the floor. It’s the first film brushing up with Alzheimer’s that I’ve watched, which doesn’t put the disease as the centrepiece of the whole plot—which I find somewhat refreshing—yet at the same time doesn’t make light of it either.
Available on Netflix
There’s an irony, I find, in finding a German-speaking movie about the modern Jewish culture. Set somewhere in Switzerland, the story follows a young man named Motti—short for Mordechai—who is at the age where his mother keeps playing cupid for him, impatient to get him matched to some good, Jewish girl in the area. Motti, however, is more interested in a shiksa—meaning “non-Jewish girl”—in his class at uni. It’s a real gritty coming-of-age film, dealing with parental pressures and cultural identity, coupled with hilarious comedy and breaking-the-fourth-wall actions from Motti himself.
I would give trigger warning to this film, due to the overbearing mother—as it could hit too close to home for some people. For someone who isn’t at all familiar with the Jewish culture, it gave me a good glimpse of the community from the inside, without being all too serious and/or making fun of it. It actually surprised me to find that it’s not all too different from some of the religious Islamic communities here in Indonesia as well.
Available on Netflix
There’s an irony, I find, in finding a German-speaking movie about the modern Jewish culture. Set somewhere in Switzerland, the story follows a young man named Motti—short for Mordechai—who is at the age where his mother keeps playing cupid for him, impatient to get him matched to some good, Jewish girl in the area. Motti, however, is more interested in a shiksa—meaning “non-Jewish girl”—in his class at uni. It’s a real gritty coming-of-age film, dealing with parental pressures and cultural identity, coupled with hilarious comedy and breaking-the-fourth-wall actions from Motti himself.
I would give trigger warning to this film, due to the overbearing mother—as it could hit too close to home for some people. For someone who isn’t at all familiar with the Jewish culture, it gave me a good glimpse of the community from the inside, without being all too serious and/or making fun of it. It actually surprised me to find that it’s not all too different from some of the religious Islamic communities here in Indonesia as well.
Available on Netflix
This is an Indonesian movie with such immaculate production quality, yet somehow we don’t get to see a lot of movies like this in this country. Ironic, isn’t it? A Netflix original, the movie was never released in Indonesia and—correct me if I’m wrong—there wasn’t much news about its online release in mainstream media in Indonesia.
If you like The Raid and/or The Raid 2—personally, I’ve only seen the latter—you might want to check this one out. Involving a lot of the same cast, a good amount of action-packed scenes and Asian-style fighting, this movie offers the story of a man going on the run as he is hunted down by the Southeast Asian Triad.
Locally, this film would never have made it to screening as it contains so much violence, profanities and controversial topics, i.e. alcohol, drugs and crime. Such a shame, it’s a masterpiece and we don’t get to own it.
Available on Netflix
This is an Indonesian movie with such immaculate production quality, yet somehow we don’t get to see a lot of movies like this in this country. Ironic, isn’t it? A Netflix original, the movie was never released in Indonesia and—correct me if I’m wrong—there wasn’t much news about its online release in mainstream media in Indonesia.
If you like The Raid and/or The Raid 2—personally, I’ve only seen the latter—you might want to check this one out. Involving a lot of the same cast, a good amount of action-packed scenes and Asian-style fighting, this movie offers the story of a man going on the run as he is hunted down by the Southeast Asian Triad.
Locally, this film would never have made it to screening as it contains so much violence, profanities and controversial topics, i.e. alcohol, drugs and crime. Such a shame, it’s a masterpiece and we don’t get to own it.
Available on Netflix
This film was extremely hard for me to watch, as a Muslim myself, especially because the main character has an entirely opposite perspective and opinions to my own. Layla comes from a Moroccan family, although she was born and raised in Amsterdam—yet, somehow, she still gets exposed to extremists and welcomes radicalisation with open arms.
It is a pure form of torture to watch this one, as we follow Layla moving deeper and deeper into the arms of jihadists, but I fought the urge to turn it off. It’s important, I find, to explore other people’s mindsets and points of view, to understand the way they think, to know why they make the decisions that they do—it gets us to the very core of their being and turns them into human beings just like us in our eyes. Which is why I applaud the filmmakers who created this, as I find it an incredibly important film to watch, especially today. For introduction, you may want to try this TED talk beforehand.
Available on Netflix
This film was extremely hard for me to watch, as a Muslim myself, especially because the main character has an entirely opposite perspective and opinions to my own. Layla comes from a Moroccan family, although she was born and raised in Amsterdam—yet, somehow, she still gets exposed to extremists and welcomes radicalisation with open arms.
It is a pure form of torture to watch this one, as we follow Layla moving deeper and deeper into the arms of jihadists, but I fought the urge to turn it off. It’s important, I find, to explore other people’s mindsets and points of view, to understand the way they think, to know why they make the decisions that they do—it gets us to the very core of their being and turns them into human beings just like us in our eyes. Which is why I applaud the filmmakers who created this, as I find it an incredibly important film to watch, especially today. For introduction, you may want to try this TED talk beforehand.
Available on Netflix
If there is only one movie that you decide to watch from this list, this is the one I’d recommend the most. Not going to lie, I only just watched this one recently and I was instantly blown away. The story follows a 21-year-old man named Jin-seok who just moved into a new home with his parents and beloved older brother. One day, his brother got abducted as they were taking a midnight stroll, but he returned unscathed 19 days later, yet somehow Jin-seok felt his brother changed—is it even his brother?
This film is incredibly well done, I find. It’s filled with numerous mysteries that got you questioning what’s real and what isn’t—which makes the reveal at the end all the more satisfying. The truth behind everything is so heartbreaking and, truthfully, quite depressing—I wouldn’t recommend this for easily-triggered people. If you love suspense and psychological thriller, give this a go!
Available on Netflix
If there is only one movie that you decide to watch from this list, this is the one I’d recommend the most. Not going to lie, I only just watched this one recently and I was instantly blown away. The story follows a 21-year-old man named Jin-seok who just moved into a new home with his parents and beloved older brother. One day, his brother got abducted as they were taking a midnight stroll, but he returned unscathed 19 days later, yet somehow Jin-seok felt his brother changed—is it even his brother?
This film is incredibly well done, I find. It’s filled with numerous mysteries that got you questioning what’s real and what isn’t—which makes the reveal at the end all the more satisfying. The truth behind everything is so heartbreaking and, truthfully, quite depressing—I wouldn’t recommend this for easily-triggered people. If you love suspense and psychological thriller, give this a go!
Available on Netflix
This short Spanish stop-motion film is part of this year’s Guadalajara Film Festival and was shown for 7 days through the We Are One Festival channel on Youtube. Cerulia is a grown woman currently trying to sell her childhood home, which was so hard to do. One day, she receives news that the house is finally sold, so she goes to visit it for one more time for old time’s sake. Unfortunately, her memories have something else in mind.
Incredibly eerie, with a crooked, gothic feel about the whole set and characters, this 13-minute long film gave me chills without even a single jump scare. I love the cinematography of it all, offering something quite different from other stop motions that I’ve watched. Until the end, it is still pretty much shrouded in mystery, lingering in your thoughts for hours afterwards.
Part of We Are One Global Festival
This short Spanish stop-motion film is part of this year’s Guadalajara Film Festival and was shown for 7 days through the We Are One Festival channel on Youtube. Cerulia is a grown woman currently trying to sell her childhood home, which was so hard to do. One day, she receives news that the house is finally sold, so she goes to visit it for one more time for old time’s sake. Unfortunately, her memories have something else in mind.
Incredibly eerie, with a crooked, gothic feel about the whole set and characters, this 13-minute long film gave me chills without even a single jump scare. I love the cinematography of it all, offering something quite different from other stop motions that I’ve watched. Until the end, it is still pretty much shrouded in mystery, lingering in your thoughts for hours afterwards.
Part of We Are One Global Festival
Here is a beautiful metaphor wrapped in an incredibly cute 3D animation. Lasting for less than 7 minutes, it is unexpectedly powerful and, at least for me, was subtly moving. The story starts when a boy named Finn finds a group of really cool friends who have stains on their body, much like he does. While he thinks these stains are beautiful, his friends beg to differ and, slowly, we too find out what these stains actually are.
I love the metaphor-induced storytelling, the style of the illustration and the beautiful music to accompany the scenes. It’s almost unbelievable that this was a graduation project, not a masterpiece created by a small studio in France. What’s more intriguing is the story behind the animated film, as it is very simple to create something so heartbreaking.
Available on Youtube
Here is a beautiful metaphor wrapped in an incredibly cute 3D animation. Lasting for less than 7 minutes, it is unexpectedly powerful and, at least for me, was subtly moving. The story starts when a boy named Finn finds a group of really cool friends who have stains on their body, much like he does. While he thinks these stains are beautiful, his friends beg to differ and, slowly, we too find out what these stains actually are.
I love the metaphor-induced storytelling, the style of the illustration and the beautiful music to accompany the scenes. It’s almost unbelievable that this was a graduation project, not a masterpiece created by a small studio in France. What’s more intriguing is the story behind the animated film, as it is very simple to create something so heartbreaking.
Available on Youtube
By far, the longest short that is on this list, this is an Austrian piece. It spans for 30 minutes and rather slow-burning in the storytelling. The story follows a teenage girl named Coco who desperately wants to gain fame through her videos on Youtube, resulting in her creating an entirely fictitious world online while her real life crumbles apart. It makes me feel somewhat uneasy to see the lengths she’d go to in order to pursue her fame and glory—which may or may not even come.
Personally, I find the ending to be quite unsettling, what with the lack of closure and I can’t help but to wonder if it all just goes on and on and on. What’s more unsettling is knowing that this could or have easily happened to young boys and girls across the globe, with social media presence and online fame feeding false hopes and terrible role models for teenagers everywhere.
Available on Youtube
By far, the longest short that is on this list, this is an Austrian piece. It spans for 30 minutes and rather slow-burning in the storytelling. The story follows a teenage girl named Coco who desperately wants to gain fame through her videos on Youtube, resulting in her creating an entirely fictitious world online while her real life crumbles apart. It makes me feel somewhat uneasy to see the lengths she’d go to in order to pursue her fame and glory—which may or may not even come.
Personally, I find the ending to be quite unsettling, what with the lack of closure and I can’t help but to wonder if it all just goes on and on and on. What’s more unsettling is knowing that this could or have easily happened to young boys and girls across the globe, with social media presence and online fame feeding false hopes and terrible role models for teenagers everywhere.
Available on Youtube
In less than 16 minutes, this short film manages to get me so invested in the story and characters so much. The film starts out with an Afghan man and woman who meets up in a restaurant in London for their first date. Slowly but surely, you start to see their different backgrounds and their current circumstance. Yes, it starts out pretty awkward—anyone who’s ever gone on a blind date will surely relate—but it gets so much better soon enough.
In such a short amount of time, it manages to squeeze in a metaphor about their condition, some awkward moments, a conflict and a cute cross-cultural interaction between the woman and a stranger from another table. I love the colour grading used in this whole film as well as the subtle hint at how different the man and woman’s upbringing are, although they both belong to the same ethnicity—really give a spin on the meaning of race and culture.
Available on Youtube
In less than 16 minutes, this short film manages to get me so invested in the story and characters so much. The film starts out with an Afghan man and woman who meets up in a restaurant in London for their first date. Slowly but surely, you start to see their different backgrounds and their current circumstance. Yes, it starts out pretty awkward—anyone who’s ever gone on a blind date will surely relate—but it gets so much better soon enough.
In such a short amount of time, it manages to squeeze in a metaphor about their condition, some awkward moments, a conflict and a cute cross-cultural interaction between the woman and a stranger from another table. I love the colour grading used in this whole film as well as the subtle hint at how different the man and woman’s upbringing are, although they both belong to the same ethnicity—really give a spin on the meaning of race and culture.
Available on Youtube
A simple story told in quick, montage-like scene cuts using only clever angles and suitable music to portray the changing mood of the story. With no dialogues at all, this Dutch short film is able to deliver its message to everyone from across the globe, although still keeping a few typically Dutch qualities to it.
The story follows a middle-aged couple who usually spend their day in very specific routines—breakfast in silence, the husband goes to work by bike, the wife cooks dinner as he comes home, they read in bed after dinner and the wife goes to sleep first. Pretty humdrum, wouldn’t you say? One day, the husband is inspired to get red curtains to spice up their sex life, after seeing a prostitute on his new bike route to work. And then things started to go south. I love the cinematography of this film very much, using simple cuts and transitions to depict dynamics. Simple, yet really clever.
Available on Youtube
A simple story told in quick, montage-like scene cuts using only clever angles and suitable music to portray the changing mood of the story. With no dialogues at all, this Dutch short film is able to deliver its message to everyone from across the globe, although still keeping a few typically Dutch qualities to it.
The story follows a middle-aged couple who usually spend their day in very specific routines—breakfast in silence, the husband goes to work by bike, the wife cooks dinner as he comes home, they read in bed after dinner and the wife goes to sleep first. Pretty humdrum, wouldn’t you say? One day, the husband is inspired to get red curtains to spice up their sex life, after seeing a prostitute on his new bike route to work. And then things started to go south. I love the cinematography of this film very much, using simple cuts and transitions to depict dynamics. Simple, yet really clever.
Available on Youtube
Any foreign films you’d like to recommend?
