8 Best Movies from Ethiopia to Watch First

8 Essential Films from Ethiopia

Ranked native cinema in Ethiopia’s own creative voice.

1. 

   1. Teza

   ጤዛ · 2008

   An idealistic Ethiopian intellectual who studied in Europe returns home under the brutal Derg regime of Mengistu, only to find his dreams for his country shattered and himself powerless and displaced. Haile Gerima's sweeping, mournful epic of exile and disillusionment.

2. 

   2. Harvest: 3,000 Years

   ምርት ሦስት ሺህ ዓመት · 1976

   Blending documentary and drama, this meditative film immerses us in the daily lives of poor Ethiopian peasants toiling under a feudal landlord, its quiet power drawn from the timeless rhythms and injustices of their existence. A landmark of African cinema.

3. 

   3. Lamb

   2015

   Sent to live with distant relatives in the Ethiopian highlands after his mother's death, a gentle boy brings along his beloved pet sheep — but as a holiday feast approaches, he must find a way to save his friend. A tender, beautifully shot coming-of-age tale.

4. 

   4. Difret

   2014

   When a bright fourteen-year-old girl is abducted on her way home from school to be forced into marriage, an old custom in rural Ethiopia, she defends herself with a rifle, and a pioneering young lawyer takes up her landmark case. Based on a true story.

5. 

   5. Adwa

   አድዋ · 1999

   This documentary epic recounts the 1896 Battle of Adwa, when Ethiopian forces, many armed only with spears, decisively defeated an invading Italian colonial army — a rare and resounding African victory over European imperialism. Haile Gerima's stirring historical account.

6. 

   6. Price of Love

   2015

   A devout young Addis Ababa taxi driver's life is upended when his cab is stolen and he becomes entangled with a prostitute, forcing him to confront his own past and what love truly costs. A gritty urban drama.

7. 

   7. Blood Is Not Fresh Water

   1997

   Framed as a personal and political history, this essayistic documentary traces Ethiopia's story and the roots of its Rastafari movement from Haile Selassie's 1930 coronation through the fall of the monarchy in the 1970s.

8. 

   8. Faya Dayi

   2021

   This hypnotic documentary drifts through the highlands of Harar, immersing us in the rituals of khat — the mildly narcotic leaf that is both a Sufi sacrament and Ethiopia's biggest cash crop — and the dreams and hardships of the people whose lives revolve around it.