5 Eye-Opening Short Films
The Academy Awards are coming up on Sunday, and most people haven’t seen all the nominated films—especially when it comes to the category of Best Documentary Short Subject. But the five films up for this award pack a lot of power in their brief running time, and several are available to watch free. While covering a range of topical issues, they all have something to say about tolerance and compassion.
“A Night at the Garden” (directed by Marshall Curry)
Themes: history, white supremacy, mob mentality
Story: Though this film consists of black-and-white archival footage from 80 years ago, it seems strikingly relevant today. It disconcertingly shows an enthusiastic crowd of 20,000 people in New York City’s Madison Square Garden in 1939 at a pro-Nazi event—which was billed as a patriotic, pro-American rally.
Running time: 7 minutes
Where to watch: anightatthegarden.com
“Black Sheep” (directed by Ed Perkins)
Themes: racism, abuse, identity, adolescence
Story: This documentary juxtaposes raw and reflective interviews with Cornelius Walker, a British man with Nigerian heritage, with dramatic reenactments of his school days, when his family moved outside London and he found himself one of the only black kids in the area. Tormented by racist bullying, he ultimately winds up imitating and ingratiating himself with his attackers—copying their accents, using bleaching cream on his skin, getting blue contact lenses, and adopting their violent behavior—in order to fit in and survive.
Running time: 27 minutes
Where to watch: The Guardian’s YouTube channel
“End Game” (directed by Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman)
Themes: dying, end-of-life decisions, caregiving
Story: How do we want to spend our final days? What happens if our family members have differing opinions about the plan? Can we accept the fact that death is part of life? This film poses such questions as it follows several people at the end of their lives—some in a hospital palliative care unit, others at a hospice center—along with their loved ones and the doctors, nurses, social workers, and chaplains working to support the physical and emotional process of dying.
Running time: 40 minutes
Where to watch: Netflix
“Lifeboat” (directed by Skye Fitzgerald)
Themes: refugee crisis, humanitarian aid
Story: A German nonprofit group tries to rescue rafts of refugees who are fleeing human trafficking via the Mediterranean Sea. Near the start of the film, we hear a voiceover montage of news announcers: “People are risking their lives to sail from North Africa to Europe.” “As many as 900 migrants were said to be on board; only a handful survived.” “It’s just the most recent tragedy of migrants trying to reach Europe.” “Lifeboat” takes us out of the headlines and into the heart-wrenching reality of these refugees’ experience, suggesting the suffering they endure both before they try to escape and after.
Running time: 34 minutes
Where to watch: The New Yorker’s YouTube channel
“Period. End of Sentence” (directed by Rayka Zehtabchi)
Themes: empowerment of women and girls, entrepreneurship, cultural practices
Story: In India, menstruation is a taboo subject, and many girls drop out of school after they first get their period because they have no access to sanitary pads or tampons. When a group of female villagers begins to manufacture and distribute pads, they change their habits, their earning power, and their lives. (Kudos to the students at Oakwood—a school in our hometown of Los Angeles—who raised the money to supply the pad-making machinery and funded the film through Kickstarter with the help of their English teacher, Melissa Berton, as well as launched a nonprofit, The Pad Project.)
Running time: 26 minutes
Where to watch: Netflix
Update: “Period. End of Sentence” received the Academy Award.
