Documentary Shorts
Films in this collection
21 films · 5h 3m
El Batán, Small and Pretty
by Angélica Cervera
13m
An inspiring doc about a former small town fighting to preserve its soul
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Tanagokoro
by Masashi Nozaki
30m
How a Japanese chef sparked a fish revolution in the UK
Details
The Number
by Manuela Gray
14m
A doc that looks at the myths and markings of prison gangs
Details
The Tides That Bind
by Nick Natalicchio
21m
A doc about Clint who finds messages in bottles and tracks down the senders
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Games of Survival
by Nicholas Natale
16m
A doc about the annual survival games in Alaska
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Chasing The Vein
by Serena Chloe Gardner
22m
A doc exploring the life of a woman's addiction to heroin from the age of 15
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Plantman
by Tim Astley
9m
The intimately captured story of a humble gardener
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Sometimes It’s Happened
by Ethan Oldham
21m
An inspiring doc about an old man telling some of his stories
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To Be Enjoyed
by Stephen Stinson
17m
The unlikely story of a musician experiencing a life-changing opportunity
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The Night is Black and the Day is White
by Joe McStravick
8m
A doc about a family's experiences of living with an autistic child
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The Last Reel
by Ross McGowan
9m
A doc about cinema projectionists and their future
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The Magicians… of the Merlin Magical Society
by Abdullai Adejumo
28m
A doc that looks into the lives of a group of lovable magicians
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Babyface
by Andy Perez
7m
A super fun doc about a childhood dream of becoming a pro wrestler
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Karma Khazi
by Lee Phillips
13m
An artists becomes a connoisseur of toilet doors
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The Leap Beneath
by Roman Willi
5m
A tiny springtail embarks on a quest for survival beneath the forest floor
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Artificial Dreams
by Steve Conway
16m
A documentary about a filmmaker's dilemma of being commercially successful
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2099
by Ben Hall
7m
In 2099, five of the oldest citizens are interviewed about the 21st Century
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San Esteban: Freedom, Mysticism and Nopales
by Francisco Herrera
28m
A doc about rural Mexico, where heritage and modern forces reshape coexistence
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The Simplicity of Happiness
by Erwin Darmali
10m
An inspiring doc about finding happiness in yourself
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My Journey to Switzerland
by Gianluca Sarbo
4m
A doc about a search that led a young Spaniard to Switzerland
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The Afghan Plasterer
by Christina Ruloff
5m
A short doc about an Afghan finding work and goals in Switzerland
Details
Real lives, real places, free to watch.
A documentary short has nowhere to hide. There is no plot to fall back on and no ending to invent. Someone lets a camera in, and what comes out has to be true and has to be worth your time. These are the ones our editors keep coming back to.
It opens with El Batán, Small and Pretty, a Mexican town holding on to what it is, and Tanagokoro, the Japanese chef who changed how Britain handles fish. From there it runs through the myths and markings of prison gangs in The Number, a man who finds messages in bottles and goes looking for the people who wrote them in The Tides That Bind, and a gardener filmed up close in Plantman.
Some run a few minutes, some closer to half an hour. Every one is a finished film, free to watch, with no subscription and no sign-up.
Frequently asked
What is a documentary short film?
A documentary short tells a true story in a few minutes. Real people, real places, no script. The films here run from a few minutes to around half an hour, and each one is a finished film rather than an extract from something longer.
Are these documentaries free to watch?
Yes. Every film on Klipist is free to watch, with no subscription, no sign-up and no ads.
Where do these documentaries come from?
They are submitted by their own filmmakers and picked by our editors. This collection brings together films from the United Kingdom, the United States, Mexico, Switzerland, Japan, Spain, Indonesia, Ireland and South Africa.
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Crime and thriller shorts that turn on a single choice. Once it’s made, there’s no way back.
Comedies that stay in the room a little too long. The laugh comes from the silence after.
Mystery shorts that hand you a question and let you sit with it.
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