Christopher Nolanhas become one of the biggest names in cinema in recent years due to his thought-provoking films, and his directing style can be traced back to his short films.Nolan’s career has been marked by box office hits that blend complexity with mainstream appeal, which often explore similar themes.Memento,Inception, andDunkirkall explore themes of time, memory, and identity, wrapped in a complicated narrative structure.
However, this interest in non-linear stories about complex themes can be seen in Christopher Nolan’s earliest works –Tarantella,Larceny,Doodlebug, andQuay– the four lesser-knownshort films that the famous directorproduced from 1989 to 2015. Ranging from 3 to 8 minutes in length,each short film marks the next step in the director’s early career as Nolan investigated the art of storytelling. It is evident that these shortfilms obviously inspired Christopher Nolan’s other movies, due to their similarities, and it is fascinating to see how Nolan has evolved since.
4Tarantella (1989)
Length: 4 minutes
Tarantellaonly aired once in episode 1313 ofImage Union, a TV series that showcased independent films, on June 26, 2025. The short film follows a man (Christopher Nolan’s brother, Jonathan Nolan) as he experiences nightmares involving spiders and strange visitations from a young Christopher Nolan.Fans of the director have been trying to dig up this lost media for years, due to its prevalence as Christopher Nolan’s first ever movie, but efforts to recover the footage have been thwarted due to copyright issues.
While most ofTarantellais comprised of establishing shots and the story is somewhat loose, it demonstrates Christopher Nolan’s creative flair.
While most ofTarantellais comprised of establishing shots and the story is somewhat loose, it demonstrates Christopher Nolan’s creative flair. There is focus on camera angles and the use of sound, andTarantellaexplores themes that Nolan will use in later works, such as the uncanny unawareness of what is a dream and what is reality, as well as the theme of identity. Surprisingly,Christopher Nolan plays a villain-like character in the short movie, showcasing his first and only role as a main actor in his own film.
3Larceny (1996)
Length: 8 minutes
Larcenywas Christopher Nolan’s second short film, and it was screened at the Cambridge Film Festival in 1996. However, the film has not been released beyond that, so not much is known aboutLarceny. According to various interviews with the people involved,the plot centers around a homeowner during an apartment burglary, featuring a scene where Jeremy Theobald (Nolan’s university friend) argues with a character about a woman, when “a third man bursts out of the cupboard.”Larceny’spremise is likeFollowing, and in a 2014 Vice interview, Nolan talked about howLarcenyhelped him prepare for the feature film:
Most of the information aboutLarcenycomes from a second-hand source, Jeremy Theobald, in Darren Mooney’s “Christopher Nolan: A Critical Study of the Films.” According to Theobald, the script was witty and had a greatChristopher Nolan movie plot twist, which was something that drew him to the project. However, Nolan fans won’t be able to watchLarceny, despite those involved in the production confirming the existence of copies, because Nolan still firmly holds the rights, and he has decided not to release it for unknown reasons.
2Doodlebug (1997)
Length: 3 minutes
Doodlebugis a psychological thriller that Christopher Nolan wrote and directed in 1997, following the story of a man anxiously trying to kill a bug in his flat.The short film was shot using black-and-white 16mm film on a small budget over the course of a weekendand had a three-minute runtime.Doodlebugwas distributed by Alliance Atlantis, for which it received generally positive reviews.
4 Movies That Told Their Stories In Reverse Order Before Christopher Nolan’s Memento
Memento turned its end into its beginning, shocking audiences. But the Christopher Nolan thriller wasn’t the first to tell its story in reverse.
While it is not exactly the most remarkable movie ever,Doodlebughints atChristopher Nolan’s future out-of-order stories, as the end recontextualizes the film. After battling a bug-like creature, the main character finally squashes it under his shoe, yet the twist comes at the end as he finds himself being squashed under the shoe of a larger version of himself.Nolan’s examination of identity inDoodlebugthrough the use of black and white film showcases a distinct Nolan-like flair, offering an interesting perspective into the process of creating his future success.
1Quay (2015)
Quayis Christopher Nolan’s most recent short film, and it was surprisingly released following his rise to fame, unlike previous short films, which were a result of his time as a student at university. However,Quaydiffers from Nolan’s previous work as it is a short documentary, as opposed to a fictional piece. The documentary showcases the works of the animators Stephen and Timothy Quay (the Quay brothers), who Nolan has admired since the early 1990s.
What madeQuayspecial for Nolan is it came completely out of the blue, as the director had never done a short documentary before. Despite Nolan’s inexperience in the format,Quayoffered a well-shot and unique look into the lives of two underappreciated animators, and acted as a tribute from Christopher Nolan, as he has cited them as being an inspiration to him.The short received critical acclaim and Nolan’s name helped to boost the Quay brothers’ work. Alongside the short film,Christopher Nolanalso showcased the restored 35mm prints ofIn Absentia,The Comb, andStreet of Crocodiles.
