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Learn Hardcore Portuguese (Brazil): Este filme é curto. - This movie is short.

Hardcore Portuguese (Brazil)
/Lesson 13
/Este filme é curto.

Este filme é curto.

Word

Este filme é curto.

Meaning

This movie is short.

Part of speech

sentence

Pronunciation

Course

Hardcore Portuguese (Brazil)

Lesson

Breakdown of Este filme é curto.

Questions & Answers about Este filme é curto.

What is the difference between este and esse, and why does the sentence use este?

Both este and esse mean something like this/that in English, but there is a traditional distance difference:

este = this, something close to the speaker
esse = that, something close to the listener or not very far from either

In real Brazilian Portuguese, especially in speech, this distinction is often not followed strictly:

Many Brazilians use esse most of the time for both this and that.
este sounds a bit more formal or is more common in written language (texts, essays, manuals, etc.).

Using Este filme é curto is perfectly correct and perhaps a bit more neutral or “textbooky”. In everyday conversation, you’d very often hear:

Esse filme é curto.

Why is it este and not esta?

Because filme is a masculine noun in Portuguese.

Demonstratives must agree in gender and number with the noun:

Masculine singular: este filme, esse carro, aquele livro
Feminine singular: esta casa, essa mesa, aquela porta
Masculine plural: estes filmes, esses carros
Feminine plural: estas casas, essas mesas

So you say:

este filme (this film/movie)
not
esta filme (incorrect, gender mismatch)

Why does the adjective come after ? Can it come before?

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curto

filme

In Portuguese, the default position for most adjectives is after the noun:

filme curto (short film)
livro interessante (interesting book)
casa grande (big house)

So Este filme é curto follows the normal pattern: noun + adjective.

You can put some adjectives before the noun, but it often:

sounds more literary or emphatic, or
slightly changes the meaning

For curto, putting it before the noun (um curto filme) is unusual and sounds off in modern Brazilian Portuguese. You normally keep it after:

um filme curto ✅
um curto filme ❌ (sounds odd/overly poetic at best)

Why is it é curto and not está curto?

Portuguese has two verbs that correspond to to be:

ser (here: é) – used for inherent, more permanent qualities or definitions.
estar (here: está) – used for temporary states or conditions.

The length of a movie is seen as an inherent characteristic of that movie:

Este filme é curto. = The film’s length is short as a defining quality.

Está curto can be used in other contexts with curto, especially for clothes or hair, where “too short” is usually implied and can change over time:

Minha calça está curta. = My pants are (too) short (for me) now.
Meu cabelo está curto. = My hair is short now (but it can grow).

For a movie’s duration, é curto is the natural choice.

Does curto always mean “short”? Are there other words for “short”?

Curto means short in the sense of short length or short duration:

Common uses of curto:

um filme curto – a short movie
um texto curto – a short text
um caminho curto – a short path
cabelo curto – short hair

Other “short” words:

baixo – short/low in height:
- uma pessoa baixa – a short person
- uma parede baixa – a low wall
pequeno – small (general size), not usually for time:
- um livro pequeno – a small book (physically or in amount of content)

You would not normally say:

um filme baixo ❌
um filme pequeno ❓ (possible in some contexts, but sounds more like “a small(-scale) movie”, not simply “short in duration”)

For length/duration of a movie, curto is the natural choice.

Could I also say O filme é curto or Este é um filme curto? Are they different?

Yes, both are correct, but they have slightly different focuses:

Este filme é curto.
- Focus: this specific film (pointing, or just mentioned in conversation).
O filme é curto.
- More like The film is short, referring to a previously known film (context already clear).
- No demonstrative; just the film.
Este é um filme curto.
- Literally: This is a short film.
- Structure: Este (this) = pronoun, then you identify it: um filme curto.
- Slightly more explanatory or introducing: “This is a short film (as opposed to others).”

All three are grammatical; which you choose depends on context and emphasis.

Why isn’t there a word for it in this sentence?

Portuguese normally does not use a subject pronoun for “it” the way English does.

English: It is short.
Portuguese: (Ø) é curto. – but you practically never say this as a full sentence; you keep the subject (here, Este filme).

In Este filme é curto, the subject is already Este filme, so you don’t need it:

You don’t say: Este filme ele é curto. ❌
You just say: Este filme é curto. ✅

In general, Portuguese is a “pro‑drop” language: subject pronouns (I, you, he, she, it, we, they) can often be omitted when the verb ending shows who the subject is. But “it” as a dummy pronoun (like in It’s raining) simply doesn’t exist in Portuguese. You just say:

Está chovendo. (literally “Is raining.”)

How do you pronounce Este filme é curto in Brazilian Portuguese?

Approximate Brazilian Portuguese pronunciation (IPA):

Este filme é curto → /ˈes.tʃi ˈfiw.mi ɛ ˈkuʁ.tu/

Tips:

E in Este: like e in bed, but shorter: ES‑chi.
st
- i in este: sounds like shtch → ES‑tchi.
filme: FIW‑mi (the l makes a w sound before a consonant).
é: open ɛ, like e in bed.
curto:
- r is usually a guttural sound (like a French or “h‑like” R).
- u like oo in food.
- main stress on CUR: KOOʁ‑tu.

Natural, slow pronunciation:
ES‑tchi FIW‑mi É KOOʁ‑tu

How would I say “These movies are short” in Portuguese?

You need to make both the demonstrative and the adjective plural and masculine, to agree with filmes:

Estes filmes são curtos. – These movies are short.

Breakdown:

estes – masculine plural of este
filmes – plural of filme
são – plural form of é (they are)
curtos – masculine plural of curto

How can I say very short, really short, or quite short about a movie?

Common intensifiers with curto:

muito curto – very short
- Este filme é muito curto.
bem curto – really / pretty short (very common, informal‑neutral)
- O filme é bem curto.
curtinho – “short-ish / rather short / quite short”, but often with a friendly or informal tone:
- É um filme curtinho. – It’s a pretty short little film.

You’ll often hear combinations like:

É bem curtinho. – It’s really quite short (and sounds friendly/casual).

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