Spanish-language Content Recommendations: My Favorites
Listen up, advanced Spanish learners! We all know nothing can be more frustrating than trying – and failing – to find good stuff to watch. That’s why I decided to compile an ongoing list of my top Spanish-language content recommendations. Only the best of the best made it on this list, every one of these gets five stars from me. Enjoy!
Some of these recs may require parental advisory, not be suitable for children, or contain triggering material. Please proceed at your own risk and make informed decisions.
TV Shows
El tiempo que te doy 🇪🇸
- Spain
- Drama, romance
- Netflix
- 1 season, 10 episodes
- Why you should check it out: Each episode is eleven minutes long, which hit just right for my short attention span. Told in a mixture of present day and flashback, with gradually more present day and less flashback, the main character’s breakup with her boyfriend unfolds, letting us see the leadup and the aftermath. It’s atmospheric and raw, beautifully acted, and if you’ve ever lost somebody – it doesn’t have to be a partner or a breakup – you’ll resonate with it. But don’t worry, there’s a current of hope running through it. It’s not too depressing.
Los Espookys 🇺🇸
- U.S.
- Comedy
- HBO
- 2 seasons, 12 episodes total
- Why you should check it out: A group of aimless twentysomethings navigate careers, relationships, and coming-of-age while trying to start a business that provides spooky set dressing and acting for parties and special events. It handles universal problems with an absurdist humor that doesn’t detract from the authenticity. A little spooky, mostly silly, and emotional when it hits too close to home.
Movies
El laberinto del fauno (Pan’s Labyrinth) 🇪🇸🇲🇽
- Spain-Mexico
- Dark fantasy
- Why you should check it out: Against the backdrop of the early years of the Franco dictatorship, a young girl discovers a fantastical world and must complete three trials under the guidance of a faun to gain her birthright as princess of the underworld. Beautiful practical effects and creature design immerses you in the world and you find yourself getting drawn into the fantasy just as the protagonist does to escape the horrors of the fighting and her abusive stepfather. A very dark fairy tale and period piece.
Una película de huevos 🇲🇽🇦🇷
- Mexico-Argentina
- Comedy, family
- Why you should check it out: Some eggs go on an epic adventure to escape being eaten for breakfast and to realize their dreams to become chickens. Absolutely hilarious, and the action doesn’t drag for even a second. And psst, it’s available on YouTube!
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See also: 4 sequels (that I haven’t watched yet because the first one was so good as a standalone)
Books
Cartas abiertas 🇨🇴
- Columbia
- Literary fiction (novel)
- Juan Esteban Constaín
- Why you should check it out: Some morally grey individuals fabricate evidence for a hundred-year war between Belgium and Boyacá, Columbia, so that a peace agreement can now be signed. Because wouldn’t that be so romantic? Taking ‘do it for the meme’ to another level. So well-written, a joy to read.
Noches de Navidad 🇪🇸
- Spain
- Fantasy (short story anthology)
- Patricia García-Rojo (and others)
- Why you should check it out: Take the Christmas season and add witches, lesbians, and murder. Each female author creates a unique but cohesive atmosphere of festivity and magic – there’s bound to be a story in here that strikes your fancy!
Podcasts
El Gran Apagón 🇪🇸
- Spain
- Sci-fi
- Audio drama
- 3 seasons, 25 episodes total
- Why you should check it out: A solar storm triggers a global blackout! Told through snippets of found footage audio collected by our narrator, we get a peek into what occurred in the darkness. Drama, intrigue, and chills. Not too scary, but exciting. Great audio production quality and acting.
La cuarentena de nunca acabar 🇲🇽
- Mexico
- Nonfiction (mental health)
- Anthology of personal stories read by a single narrator
- 1 season, 11 episodes
- Why you should check it out: The narrator creates a calming atmosphere in each episode, as if he’s telling you a bedtime story. The stories bring attention to issues different people struggled with during the COVID-19 pandemic, but each ends optimistically, reminding us that we’re in this together and to remain hopeful. Worth a revisit in dark times.
YouTube channels
Lira Ecfrástica 🇪🇸
- Spain
- Book and lifestyle content
- Why you should check it out: Each video is beautifully shot and creates a cozy, cute, whimsical atmosphere in the north of Spain. Relax with vlogs, book talks, and brujería. Bonus points for having a taste in books that overlaps enough with mine that I get some good book recommendations out of it!
- See also: Un cronopio en el jardín podcast (longer talks with a greater focus on the publishing industry)
