The days of cassette and DVD players are long gone. To watch movies these days we have various options available from cinema trips to downloading shows and cable to streaming the videos online. This article aims to show you where and how to watch an Ethiopian film online.
Now there is so much video content in the world and there are undoubtedly some streaming giants that are the best platforms for watching movies online. Unfortunately or fortunately, depending on whether you’re a movie seller or a voracious consumer, these huge platforms tend to have very little local content.
Consider Netflix, which expanded into Africa this year. Most of the content on the platform is from the West, with only a few African nations represented with very limited local content.
While these Western films sometimes appeal to us and eat up a large chunk of our airtime, there are only a few days when nothing resonates quite like stories made for us by our people.
Local content is necessary because everyone likes to see people as they are reflected in the media they consume. It’s also necessary for people to actually watch local content to encourage film sellers and filmmakers to keep making films.
Besides consumer reluctance, the cinema houses in Ethiopia are barely enough and there have been numerous allegations of corruption from the managers of the existing cinema houses.
Fortunately, cinema success is not the only hopeA film producer who earns money with his films. As platforms like Netflix and even Nigeria’s Iroko TV have shown, it is possible to monetize films by putting them online. It may be difficult for people to spend money to watch an Ethiopian film, but watching an Ethiopian film online is still a very viable option.
So the big question: Where and how can people watch an Ethiopian film online?
Netflix Ethiopia:
It might not be as much as a voracious movie viewers would like, but Netflix offers so many Ethiopian movies on its platform. An example is “All of Us” by director Emily Abt. Although most of the film was shot in the US, it has close ties to Ethiopia and Africa in general. it follows Mehret Mandefro, a young Ethiopian-American doctor as she works on a research project into high rates of HIV infection among black women.
Soderetube.com:
SodereTube is an Ethiopian news and entertainment site. It started as a blog in October 2012 but became a news and opinion site by January 2011.
Girum Assefa website also features films and videos from Ethiopia. Both the articles and the videos are moderated and approved by the editors and therefore adhere to the standards of the community.
If you download the Sodere app, you can watch new movies for free. Another option is sodereondemand.com, which allows for different subscription levels for different levels of access.
EthioGrio.com:
Touts himself as the “premier destination” for Ethiopians in the pop culture and entertainment diaspora, with a loud voice that’s edgy, hilarious, politically conscious and utterly unique. “More important for us right now is that they also have a film section that offers the possibility of Ethiopian films, African films, Eritrean films and trailers.
Tewnet.com:
Watch an Ethiopian film online at tewnet.com – a site that offers the best selection of an Ethiopian film. Just follow the steps to create an account and watch the video.
Tanamedia.com:
You can also watch any Ethiopian movie online at tanamedia.com – a website that offers the best selection of Ethiopian movies and music. Just follow the steps to create an account and watch the video.
Fanotube.com:
Fanotube.com offers Ethiopians multidimensional access to the entertainment and information they want. It is a non-political source for videos of Ethiopian news, drama and music.