It’s a girls’ night in and we’re flicking through the streaming services. There are too many options, and out of the corner of my eye I feel judged by the dust-covered pile of DVDs and West Wing boxsets that sit desolate and forgotten. We don’t have disc drives on our laptops, let alone a DVD player.
It’s a quiet Friday night, but as we debate what to watch, there’s nothing quiet about it. After endless back-and-forths, high emotions and verbal cat fights, a winner emerges: a French sitcom, Plan Coeur (“Hook-Up Plan”).
Only a few years ago, foreign language cinema was a cliche – it was something for people who wore black turtlenecks and wrote poetry. But European films and TV shows have gained popularity with the masses of young people who now scroll Netflix looking for something new to watch.
Hits like Lupin and Die Kaiserin have been eagerly binge-watched by my friends, many of whom hadn’t considered foreign language media before. The Spanish crime drama Money Heist has recently dominated the UK Netflix top 10.
For younger generations chronically online, international streaming services have made foreign language media mainstream. Gen Z pop culture is littered with international reference points that connect young people to new places and people. Growing up, I remember a single French film that graced the shelves of our family DVD collection. Now, with shows available in a plethora of languages, all available at the click of a button, casually learning a language has never been more accessible.
As someone trying to improve my own skills, I’ve found it easier (and cheaper) to find films, TV shows and podcasts instead of buying books. If I don’t like it, I can stop. If I’m struggling, I can slow it down or use subtitles.
Unlike the commitment of buying DVDs, streaming is more accessible and less intimidating. Chatting to a friend, she explained she was hesitant to take up a friend’s recommendation to watch a show with subtitles, but she was ultimately glad she did. It made her realise how much we take for granted shows and films in English, and how much we miss when we let the language barrier stop our progress.
For my half-English, half-French flatmate it’s also been a way of connecting with her dad’s culture. Being able to watch TV shows and films at the click of a button has helped her to feel an affinity with her French family. “100% it’s because it’s so accessible,” she says, a keen advocate for Netflix’s French offerings. She also says her cousins’ superior English compared with her French is due to their consumption of American and British media.
My flatmate has also dabbled in Spanish – a culture and language she’d never considered, or studied, before. Someone recommended a film, and she enjoyed it, and just like that a whole other world of media and opportunity opened up. “Thank goodness for subtitles,” she said.
While many of my friends are embracing this wide selection of TV shows and films, learning the languages is another challenge altogether. The number of people studying modern foreign languages at university is dropping, as is the number taking them at GCSE and A-level.
Despite the craze of apps like Duolingo, fewer people are taking the study of languages seriously. Subtitles, Google translate and a government that doesn’t value the arts are stifling the development of formal language learning, and with it the opportunity for young people to connect to the world around them.
Chatting to friends, few seem determined to master a language they have liked consuming online. They may have enjoyed the culture’s offerings, but the comfort of subtitles and the complexity of languages prevent them from going further.
This is disheartening, and even frustrating for those of us who point out that “it’s never been easier to learn”. But I think there’s still room for hope: young people are consuming new media from across Europe and the world. It’s a small step, but a vital one, to keep us connected.
Abigail King is a student writer based in Edinburgh
