11 Awesome Short Films If You Always Doze Off Within The First 30 Minutes Of A Movie
Big entertainment comes in short films.
By Jasmine Chea — 13 Sep 2022, 06:02 PM
Sometimes you just want to curl up after work with a nice movie and enjoy your evening
But how many of us are guilty of never finishing a movie because we've fallen asleep by the time the plot thickens, thus missing the action and drama completely?
Well, if that sounds like you, maybe short films are more of your speed.
Here are 11 films that are less than an hour long but will have you engaged for every second of them:
1. Avarya (20 minutes and 4 seconds)
In Avarya (2019), the Earth as we know, is gone.
And this man is on a mission to search for a planet that is just like planet Earth. Embarking on a journey through the stars together with his robot that was assigned to help him in his quest, the man will soon discover that finding a twin Earth may not be as easy as one might think.
Directed by Gökalp Gönen, this award-winning Turkish film features gorgeous graphics and evokes a sense of insignificance in the audience as the protagonist journeys through the wide expanse of the universe.
You can watch it here.
2. Less Than Human (6 minutes and 9 seconds)
Shot through a first-person point of view, Less Than Human (2017) is an animated short film about humanity recovering from a zombie outbreak. The zombies have since been cured but reside in secluded camps, away from society.
A journalist and cameraman venture into one of the camps to find out if the zombies have truly been cured or are still "less than human".
This short film was made and directed by a group of third-year character animation and computer graphics (CG) art students at the Animation Workshop/VIA University College in Viborg, Denmark.
You can watch it here.
3. Lights Out (2 minutes and 41 seconds)
Lights Out (2013) proves that you don't need two hours to produce a good horror film. In just over two minutes, this story builds up tension and suspense like no other and has birthed many mainstream horror films that have adopted the same concept.
We follow a lady who is about to hit the hay and turn off her lights for the night when she notices that she may have a "guest" following her to her bedroom.
Directed by David F. Sandberg, this film has won him the 'Best Director' award in the 'Who's There Film Challenge' and 'Best Short Horror Film' in the Fright Meter Awards.
You can watch it here.
4. Haikal (16 minutes and 56 seconds)
Haikal (2018) tells a story about a young Malaysian boy, named Haikal, who just wants to make friends and fit in with his peers at school. Unfortunately, he speaks neither Bahasa Malaysia nor Mandarin, resulting in his classmates refusing to befriend him.
Follow Haikal in his journey in making friends in his class and how his multi-racial parents help him solve his woes about being the odd one out at school.
You can watch it here.
5. He Took His Skin Off For Me (11 minutes and 21 seconds)
How far would you go for the ones you love?
In He Took His Skin Off For Me (2014), this strange love story depicts the sacrifice a man makes for his girlfriend, wherein he takes his skin off for reasons unknown. From there, he attempts to live life as he usually does but soon realises it may have been a bigger sacrifice than he initially thought.
Note: This short film contains themes of blood and sexual intercourse.
You can watch it here.
6. Hotarubi No Mori E (45 minutes)
An oldie but a goodie, Hotarubi No Mori E (2011), or "Into the Forest of Fireflies' Light" tells the story of a young girl named Hotaru who meets a strange young man named Gin in the forest during the summer who never seems to be without his mask.
The two individuals form an unlikely friendship and grow closer each time Hotaru visits Gin in the summer, with Gin never allowing Hotaru to touch him for some reason.
This anime love story is based on a one-shot shojo manga and is guaranteed to make you feel warm and fuzzy on the inside and get your waterworks going at the same time.
You can watch it here.
7. Human Form (11 minutes and 33 seconds)
South Korean body-horror film, Human Form (2014), portrays the troubling beauty standards that many young girls have to live up to in order to be considered "pretty".
Watch how far one girl feels she needs to go to be accepted into a beauty-obsessed society that goes above and beyond to change their looks.
This movie delivers a short but effective message on the topic of body image and self-esteem and the extreme measures one would do to be beautiful.
You can watch it here.
8. Let's Eat (8 minutes and 30 seconds)
No matter what we are doing or how old we are, eating together with family remains a tradition in most cultures, especially the Chinese.
In Let's Eat (2014), peer into the lives of a Chinese-American mother and daughter duo who keep each other company and enjoy home-cooked meals with one another. As both grow older, each experiences their own hardships and struggles as most people do. However, it's nothing a hot meal can't fix.
Let's Eat delves into a child's struggles of growing up and a mother's woes of trying to keep everything as it was. A certified heart-warmer, this short film will teach you what's really important in life.
You can watch it here.
9. Cornetto Cupidity - Kismet Diner (9 minutes)
Cornetto Cupidity - Kismet Diner (2013) weaves a lovely story of a shy waitress named Laura who has a beautiful voice and sings the the songs she writes for the restaurant's diners.
While everyone enjoys her voice and performances, there is a young, handsome man who doesn't seem to be interested in her performance at all. Find out why this mysterious patron never seems to give Laura a second glance and what she does to get his attention.
You can watch it here.
10. Pa (19 minutes and 22 seconds)
Growing up can be tough for most of us. But it's probably not as tough for us as it is for our parents, who watch us go on with our lives whilst they take a step back.
In Pa (2018), we see how easily we can be swept up in the motions of daily life and forget that as we grow older, so do our parents. This touching Singaporean film is just the reminder we need to hold the ones we treasure close to us and that the time we have with them is shorter than we think.
You can watch it here.
11. Other Side Of The Box (15 minutes and 22 seconds)
Directed by Caleb J. Phillips, Other Side Of The Box (2018) starts off innocent enough with a couple having fun cooking in the kitchen when an old friend drops by with a gift for them. Strangely enough, their friend tells them NOT to open the box.
Things start to get strange and scary when they decide to do the exact opposite of what their friend tells them to do – open the box. Inside they find...
You can watch it here.
