Imagine you have only 20 minutes before your next Zoom call, or you’ve just finished travelling, or are you spending your Sunday trying to find something worth watching but are not ready to devote two hours to it. This is where short films are invaluable; however, most people do not know how to find good ones consistently.
For years, I thought that most short films were literally student films that people didn’t really watch voluntarily; rather, they were just no-name student films or films that would have been developed into a feature but fell short in quality, and the producers decided to cut them back to save on production costs. Once I began looking for actual quality movies on VKdeo, I found out that I had totally wrong misconceptions regarding short films.
VKdeo has an absolutely enormous repository of short films that span virtually every category, including every style, genre and production level. Everything from five-minute experimental short films to twenty full-length narrative films, documentary shorts and animated short films. The issue with VKdeo is not being able to find tons of short films to watch; rather, it is sifting through literally thousands of options to find a good one that makes spending your time worth-while.
After far too long of clicking through tons of films and wasting my time, I found the formula for creating a collection of short films that I LOVE. These five simple steps will prevent you from wasting time finding your new favourite short films while eliminating the need to sift through countless short movies that don’t deliver.
Figure Out Which Categories Actually House Quality Short Films
When you go into VKdeo and type “short film” in the search box, you will probably fail in finding a good short film. Just by searching under this term you will receive trillions of unorganized results. You will give up before you find any good ones.
Instead, look at VKdeo’s content categories to see where short film content is concentrated in various categories. It will cut your time in half when you have good information on where to start your search rather than randomly searching everywhere.
The “movies” section looks like the best spot to find short films; however, it is the best starting point. When you click this section, you will see that it’s organized with more than just a list of every movie together. You will naturally find a good number of short films because the uploader has put them in the mood or entertainment category. I find approximately 60% of all my favorite shorts from browsing this section only; this is the place you want to be to easily find great short films.
Make sure you check the “Entertainment” section as well because it contains many of the different types of content that don’t easily fit into the category of movies or entertainment. An example of this type of content is if someone uploaded a short film in a way that doesn’t fit into the classification of entertainment or movie. For example, the entertainment category has a lot of these short films as well; examples include experimental short films, comedic sketches that turn into a 15-minute narrative (the sketches created by the comedian within the sketch), music videos that started as breakout musical acts and ended up as short films, performance art through video. There is a lot of junk in these sections when you are searching for content; however, these sections offer genuine short films if you are dedicated to looking through the sections.
If you’re into the medium of animation, spend some time on “animation,” as it is home to some of the most stunningly creative and visually appealing short films being produced today. There are so many amazing and diverse short films in this category that range from student thesis projects, to professional studio test projects, and independent artists who are pushing the limits of visual storytelling. I have watched animated short films in this category that completely changed my view about how to tell stories.
The “Films & Shows” section can be confusing, but it is a great resource for finding series of short films in the form of anthology collections, and serial work that don’t fit under the umbrella of a feature-length film. If you are looking to explore directors who create multiple related shorts or themed collections, check out this resource.
If you want to explore international short films, they can be found across several different categories such as entertainment, movies, and Films & Shows, and you should keep an open mind in each section about viewing subtitled content. Some of the best short films I have viewed have come from filmmakers in Korea, Japan, Thailand, and Europe, yet never get viewed in the U.S. and Canada.
Many of the “True Crime” and “Documentary” elements of various categories contain some great non-fiction shorts also. They are not narrative fiction; however, they certainly qualify as short films, and are either 10 – 30 minutes long, providing an in-depth examination of a particular incident or topic. If you are looking for a realistic story presented through cinema, you can find them in this section on a continuous basis.
Here’s my current method of working: on Sundays I will take 20 minutes and browse the Movies section of the website, filtering to see only those that were added in the past 5 -30 minutes ago, then going through Animation and finding out what animations were added recently. Finally I will go through the Entertainment section and look for unusual or experimental titles. By following these steps I get my results much quicker than if I were just searching randomly.
Develop Your Eye For Production Quality Signals
Not all short films that you find on VKdeo are going to be worth your time. While some of them may just be poorly acted or poorly produced, other films may be kept from being seen at all due to poor technical execution, and still others may simply be well thought out but are still impossible to enjoy due to technical flaws. If you have the ability to find high-quality films before clicking play, you can avoid frustration and wasted time.
One of the best places to look for quality indicators is in the thumbnail. While professional short films use well-composed image-based thumbnails that are designed to be poster-like, such as a carefully framed shot, correct lighting, and an easily readable title card if the image contains text, these types of thumbnails will almost always indicate that whoever uploaded the film cares about how it is presented, which usually means they also care about the film.
In comparison, many uploads will show a thumbnail that was just a random screenshot taken from somewhere in the film, and often times they are also poorly lit, and/or have a blurry picture or are shot in such a way as to capture an awkward moment of a person’s performance. Usually, the lack of concern for how a thumbnail image looks is indicative of a lack of concern for how the film is produced. Although this is not an absolute rule, the correlation is strong enough to be used as a guide when trying to determine quality.
If you take the time to look, there is usually enough information about a film in the video description to help you determine if the film is worth your time. The higher quality uploads usually contain the title of the film, the name of the director of the film, the production year, and a brief synopsis. Many times, the higher quality films will also provide the names of the cast, and will often mention any festival screenings of the film or awards received. The more detail you find in the film description, the more likely it is that the person uploading the film cares enough to provide additional information about the film to help you determine whether or not to watch it.
When it comes to reviews, look out for titles that are nothing but dull or empty spaces; these types indicate low effort went into whatever was uploaded. I generally skip films with non-descriptive or poorly described titles unless they’re exceptional in some way.
For narrative shorts, duration can significantly impact quality. Based on my experience, three examples of good narrative short lengths would be: between 8 and 25 minutes; less than five minutes tend to be sketches vs. complete stories and over 30 minutes can also suffer from pacing problems (due to not being turned into features).
Also check how many different resolution options there are for long-form shorts before you commit. Take a look at the player settings and see what quality is offered. Typically, any film that was uploaded in 1080p or higher has been created by people who value how their projects appear. Conversely, a short clip that’s at the maximum of 480p would look terrible if you’re viewing it on anything larger than a cell phone; not much thought seems to have been put into the project.
Festivals listed in the title or description indicate how serious the production was. Descriptions containing specific phrases such as “Official Selection Sundance,” “Best Short Film Toronto,” or listing the name of a festival, indicate that the project was submitted to competition and recognised accordingly (though not all films made into festival screenings will necessarily be amazing). Still, it’s a good way to filter for quality film production, and I would recommend it as a general rule of thumb.
Master Search Techniques For Finding Exactly What You Want
Occasionally, there is a time when you’re not just roaming around looking through films on the internet but rather have an idea what type of short film that you’re looking for, and quickly want to locate that exact film on VKdeo by using the correct phrasing in your user inquiry.
When searching for a short film of a certain genre, make a more specific description rather than searching for a broad category of “short film”. For instance, instead of searching “drama short film”, use “character study short films” or “family drama short films” will produce much more relevant results by narrowing the search to the actual sub-genres you are looking for; the closer that your search is to the actual film terminology of the films you want, more closely aligned will be your results to your expectations.
When searching for your films look to use multiple search terms that closely represent what you are searching for in order to find the intersection between those films. For example, searching for “sci-fi thriller short film”, “romantic comedy short films under 15 minutes”, or “documentary short films about music” will produce numerous movie results, but you will find that you will be narrowing down those results to exactly what you want to discover.
If you are looking for a more polished finished product to watch, when you search for your films look to add production quality search terms along with the other terms you are using to find your films. Search terms such as; “award winning short films”, “festival short films”, “professional short films” will generally produce much better results and closer to the types of films you may be looking for, as compared to finding amateur smartphone videos; I would estimate that I use those terms at least half the time I search for my films, as they greatly improve my results.
When you want to find films that represent contemporary versus classic shorts, you could do a date search for shorts. For example, by adding “2024” or “2025” to your search query will move your results to more recent uploads, which can be critical in finding films that are dated by their film-making style and or cultural relevance. Conversely, adding the terms “classic short films” or searching specific decades in determining what films you want to explore in film history will use this same technique.
If you’ve ever been familiar with the directors or production companies who produce short films, then you know how well they’ll work for you in your own searches. Some filmmakers make an entire career out of making only short films, and looking for them specifically on VKdeo can result in finding their entire body of work.
Also, conducting thematic searches based on things besides genre can yield interesting results. If you search for short films based on themes like identity, grief, immigration, technology, etc., there are multiple genres of films, but they are still similar in emotional/conceptual areas. This way gives you access to films that may not appear if you filter them only through their genre.
Film festivals are also great ways to conduct searches. If you do a search for “short film” and include either “Sundance” or “Cannes,” you will get a list of films that were shown at those two and that have subsequently been uploaded to VKdeo. The film programmers for each festival have spent time curating those films, so it’s like you’re leveraging their expertise.
Searching for negative space is more creative and doesn’t have an official negative keyword option on VKdeo, but you can find ways to get close to it. If you’re looking for short films that contain piano music but keep getting tutorial type videos instead, try including “performance” or “concert” to help filter your search results to true performances and not just instructional videos.
Build A Sustainable Organization System That Actually Works
VKdeo has a variety of organizational tools that are often overlooked by users, resulting in them missing out on great opportunities. Just by using playlists and the watch function, you can go from randomly discovering shorts to curating shorts that you enjoy watching.
Creating genre based playlists of shorts that you have previously seen and loved means that when a friend asks you for a recommendation or you want to see something particular, you can look at your curated lists of films as though they were your own film festival.
More importantly though, when you create playlists, you should base them on your viewing context, rather than only by genre. For example, having a playlist titled “Quick Morning Inspiration” (5-10 of uplifting shorts that I watch while drinking coffee) is much more helpful to me than having a playlist called “Drama.” I have created playlists based on my actual viewing behaviours, like “Lunch Break Escapes,” “Thought Provoking Evening Viewing,” “Background Content for Chores,” and “Intensive Weekend Focus.”
The Watch Later function is a great tool to help you manage your discovery from your consumption. For example, during your random Tuesday afternoon browsing session, you find 7 interesting shorts but only have enough time to watch one right now. You add the other 6 to your Watch Later list. Then when you are ready to watch at the end of the week, all you have to do is go to your Watch Later list rather than try to remember what you saw 3 days ago.
To clean up your Watch Later list regularly, take time every Sunday to review it and delete any videos that no longer interest you. Having 200 shorts in your Watch Later list can create decision paralysis when trying to choose what to watch. With only 15-20 shorts that have been vetted, you will consistently use your Watch Later list.
By subscribing to channels that consistently upload or curate good-quality short film content, new viewing options will appear on your subscription feed without having to search actively for them each time you want to watch.
You can tag your favorite shorts with reactions or comments as a way to bookmark them. If you finish watching a short that truly resonates with you, you can react to it or take notes about what you liked about it to remind yourself later when you are trying to remember films that made an impact on you. By filtering your viewing history by “reacted to,” you can create a highlight reel of your favorite films.
When you find amazing shorts outside of VKdeo, share them with others. VKdeo makes it easy to share via social links and direct URLs. Sharing great shorts with your friends gives them an opportunity to see what they will enjoy. I will share by sending two to three shorts per week based on what I think each friend would like best.
Engage With The Community To Unlock Hidden Discoveries
The community features and comment sections of VKdeo provide depth of exploration that cannot be achieved by simply browsing the application using algorithms. By participating in the ecosystem, you will be much better able to locate high-quality content.
Look for information in the comment section before and after viewing the short film. Scanning the comments section prior to watching a video will help you determine if it is worth your time by evaluating the reactions of previous viewers. For example, you can find out if the overall quality of the short film is acceptable by the responses of multiple prior viewers; it can also provide additional insight into common themes of the short films; these can be performance-related, cinematographic, or story-related. After viewing the short film, you should read the comments to uncover details you missed the first time you watched the video, examine different interpretations of the same material, and perhaps discover the filmmaker explaining some of their creative decisions.
Make sure you take time to leave meaningful comments about the short films that had an impact on you. Be sure that they are not simply “this was great”; rather, provide very specific observations as to what made them great, how they affected you, and what choices were made during the production of the film. Many creators respond to reviews of their films, especially independent short filmmakers; therefore, you may be able to engage in meaningful dialogue regarding narrative decisions or production issues with the entertainment creators you contact.
Become acquainted with the recommendation “threads” found within the comments of the short videos. Other users of VKdeo who have already watched the short often recommend similar products in the comments section (e.g., “If you enjoyed this, then you will enjoy this other filmmaker’s work” or “This film is similar to a short film by the same filmmaker that was released last year”). Since recommendations from other users are based upon their individual experience and filmmaker’s personal assessments, they usually can recommend shorts better than an algorithmic assessment, which normally provides recommendations based on trends and statistics across multiple viewers.
You can track filmmakers throughout their entire filmography by following filmmakers whose style resonates with you. Most directors have made primarily short movies and continue to work in this medium while building impressive collections of their work over many years. By subscribing to a filmmaker’s channel and watching all their short films, you will discover that they produce a consistently high-quality product. If you only watch each short as an independent piece of work, you likely will not realize how consistent they are in producing quality films.
Joining discussions about themes, techniques and cultural backgrounds when they are posted in the comment sections of the films is very rewarding too. Short films often deal with complex issues or employ experimental techniques that have great value in being interpreted collectively. Discussions with other viewers about what a film means, how it achieves its effects, or what cultural references are evident will greatly enhance your respect for the film.
If you see any technical problems with any short’s playback, report them immediately through the website. Since free video sharing services cannot do manual quality control, they rely heavily on user reporting of technical issues for maintaining the quality of the videos. If you find that any short has serious playback issues, audio/video sync problems, MCIDs, corrupted segments or any other major technical problems that could negatively affect its integrity as a video, please bring them to our attention.
Your Short Film Journey Starts Right Now
The VKdeo app is a powerful tool to experience short films. With this tool, users can avoid the aggravation of randomly clicking on the app and instead actively discover short films. The first step to using VKdeo efficiently is to have an understanding of the specific categories in VKdeo that contain quality short films. By doing this, users will not click around aimlessly and will instead utilize the app effectively.
The second step to using VKdeo to find quality short films is to develop the skills necessary to evaluate the quality of the production by reviewing the thumbnail/image of the film, the description, and other signals, before spending time watching the film.
The third step to using VKdeo is to master the search techniques that will help you find precisely the type of films you desire, rather than searching by using general search keywords.
The fourth step is to create an organizational system (i.e., playlists and watch lists) that matches the way you normally view films. The fifth step is to become engaged with the community of creators and viewers that contribute to the ecosystem of short films on VKdeo.
Finally, VKdeo has no financial risks for you as a user since there is no charge to use it. This gives you the opportunity to try new genres of short films that you have never watched before, as well as from countries whose cinema you never knew existed. You can also sample new experimental formats that are typically not available on traditional subscription services because they do not have the similar business model as VKdeo.
VKdeo provides you with a level of access to short films on the platform that is unmatched by any of the paid video platforms. For instance, Netflix typically only releases a collection of short films once or twice a year as a side project. Whereas, YouTube has a collection of short films that are buried among millions of other videos that have limited means of discovery. However, VKdeo has created an actual ecosystem where short films from every genre and level of production can thrive, with the potential to provide content across a much broader audience than would be the case if it were offered on a paid platform.
The next best movie just went down; it is likely from an artist that has evaded your attention like so many items on your Netflix watch list. But you don’t know what you missed until you watch a great short film that is perfect for you! Follow these 5 steps to discover those hidden gems without going down the rabbit hole of “noise.” The way to start is to explore tonight; you’ll invest only 20 minutes and could gain everything by witnessing how successfully short film storytelling can be done if you use a little time and effort.
