Bajo la cama
2012 · 12m · España
Directed by David Zabala, Paul Urkijo Alijo
Genres: coming-of-age, fantasy, mystery
Tones: surreal, tender, whimsical
Martín's socks disappear every night, drawing mockery at school and blame at home, and he must face his fears to discover who or what is causing the mysterious disappearances.
Picked by Zoe
The scouts
A disappearing-socks premise could've been twee nightmare fuel, but Zabala and Alijo refuse the easy magical-realism beat—instead they're genuinely interested in how childhood shame works, which is weirder and scarier than any monster reveal.
The film situates itself thoughtfully within a lineage of European children's cinema (the restraint, the formal compositions, the refusal of sentimentality), executing its tonal balance between whimsy and dread with considerable precision.
The entire short hinges on a single directorial choice—keeping the camera locked on Martín's face during the reveal, prioritizing his emotional reckoning over spectacle—and that commitment to character over easy visual payoff is what makes 12 minutes feel complete.