Speaker 1: Now, the average person watches more than nine years of TV in their lifetime. But if you are trying to learn a foreign language, then there are only four types of TV shows that you should ever watch. Everything else, well, you can banish it mercilessly. You shall not pass. I've watched hundreds of TV shows over the years to help me learn eight languages, and much of that time was totally wasted until I eventually figured out the four types of TV shows that actually help you learn fast. So in this video, I'm going to tell you what they are so that you don't have to waste your time on the wrong ones and can just become fluent instead. Oh, there's a very cool app as well. So what are these four show types? Well, here is a hint. The first thing you should do is pick TV series over movies. Why? Well, if you just think about length, your average movie runs over two hours, while a TV episode is around 30 minutes. So TV episodes are far more manageable for language learning. They're much easier to soak up and take in. And shorter episodes have other benefits, too. You can watch a single episode a few times over, which is great because repetition is your best friend in language learning. Also, the dialogue in TV shows tends to be simpler than in movies. Question, what kind of bear is best? Plus, you're getting that constant theme going for ages. Bears beats Battlestar Galactica. And the characters? Each character has their own personality and special way of talking. And they stick to it episode after episode, which means you're hearing the same words and expressions over and over. This is absolute gold for language learners. Here's what not to watch. Shows that focus too much on visuals and action, like action-packed thrillers or sci-fi. They may be entertaining, but it's going to be really hard to follow and absorb the language. And news stories? Well, it can be tricky because if you're not interested in what the news happens to be, then it's nothing more than tons of random, complicated vocabulary. But back to the good stuff, TV series. They have that baked in continuity. One episode leads to the next. So if you watch an episode every day, it keeps you hooked, which means you keep coming back, which again is great for learning because now you are being consistent. Congratulations. By the way, if you're wondering who am I to suggest all these things, well, my name is Olly Richards. I'm a linguist and an author. I'm on a bit of a mission to help you get better at languages. You might have seen my storybooks. I'm in shops everywhere. I've got over 20 languages of these things written now. Pretty quite cool. Now, do yourself a favor. Go into your Netflix settings, if you have it, and set your account to the language that you're learning. Don't worry. You'll still see all your favorite shows pop up. But now everything is in your target language. And there is an instant hack for some immersion. By the way, watching a show with subtitles is not cheating. It's actually a smart way to reinforce all those juicy new words that you're going to be hearing. When it comes to subtitles, I generally advise you to keep English out of the picture altogether. You can use English subtitles to follow what's going on. But the problem is that you just end up reading English, which really doesn't help you at all to learn another language. So as a starting point, you can watch the whole show first in English if you want, just to be sure that you understand the storyline. But then switch to the foreign language and put the foreign subtitles on because it's going to help you associate the sounds you hear with the words that you see. There's just one little catch. Sometimes TV from other countries like China or Russia is blocked if you're trying to watch from outside the country. But that is where a VPN can help you access these shows. I personally use one called NordVPN, who are also kindly sponsoring this video. A VPN, in case you don't know, is like a disguise for your Internet. It tricks the Internet into thinking that you are browsing from any country that you want while keeping out those nosy hackers. So if you want to watch some Turkish dramas, well, you can just switch to Turkey and you can stream shows, movies and news like you're actually there. It's a great way to binge watch and pick up some pretty good language skills. NordVPN gives you access to 111 countries and it keeps things super speedy so you don't get any annoying buffering. Best part, it's really quite affordable. And right now you can get four extra months on a two year plan. It's totally risk free. They have a 30 day money back guarantee. There is a link in the QR code here, also in the description below. So head over there if you would like to sign up and ditch those annoying country blockers to just get in the way of your TV habit. Now, if you're serious about learning a new language, this is a game changer. I usually connect to NHK, the national station of Japan, and I watch a couple of hours of Japanese TV on a Sunday morning. I really feel like I'm in Japan. So imagine being able to stream TV anytime from the country where you're learning the language. It really is an absolute gem for language learners. Just one click and you're in Norway, India, Ukraine, wherever you want to be. It's seriously a dream for language learners. So go to NordVPN.com forward slash Olly Richards QR code up here. Link in the description, whichever suits you best and grab this awesome deal. Now, where were we? That's right. If you love comedy, language learning is about to get a whole lot better.

Speaker 2: I don't think so. Here, take a look. These are papers that confirm that I'm the owner of this restaurant.

Speaker 1: Amazing how often this sitcom pops up in searches. A sign that it's probably worth checking out if you're learning Russian. Or maybe you're learning French. That is a cult series in France. Whatever language you're learning, German, Swedish, Arabic sitcoms are an absolute goldmine. Take Friends, for example. Friends is a great show for people learning English because they get to watch ordinary people in their 20s navigating different life problems. What? There's lots of relatable fun and humor. The language is simple, so it's very easy to learn things you can start saying right away. How you doing? I made a video about what everyone's calling the Friends effect. It's quite something. In fact, your comments on that video are the reason why I am giving you a cool PDF that I've created. But we are not at that point yet. If you want a hint, there is a Spanish show called Extra, which is based on Friends. And it is really quite something. In Extra, you've got an American in Spain. He's learning Spanish and makes all the hilarious mistakes that you would expect.

Speaker 3: Soy americano. Tú eres americana.

Speaker 1: His friends correct him, so you actually learn with him. You'll love this if you are a upper beginner in Spanish because they speak so slowly. You can easily follow along what's happening and pick up a shitload of Spanish slang and idioms. Or maybe you're into Scandinavian languages. Well, here is a Norwegian show for you.

Speaker 4: And then there's... Ah, na men. Awkward.

Speaker 1: So why do these sitcoms work? Well, mostly because they are relatable and packed with everyday conversational language. And when you catch a joke in another language, you get a laugh that's an instant win. And that's going to really push your fluency forward. Suddenly you feel like a bit of an insider in that culture, you know? Plus, if you're getting their jokes, it's a sign that you're doing really well. Best part is sitcoms like Extra often come with transcripts online.

Speaker 3: I'm Sam, I'm American. Ah, you're American. Oh, come in.

Speaker 1: You have to do a bit of digging, for example, on fan sites. But if you can find the transcripts printed out and follow along, this really locks in your learning. You get to listen and read at the same time in a format that's convenient for actually learning. In fact, on that point, you should move heaven and earth to get your hands on transcripts. Really, it's such a fantastic learning tool. You will thank me later. But can you learn from shows that are even more outrageous and high stakes? Well, yeah, you can. Here's a world that's gone totally loco.

Speaker 5: Until I lost my mom, I lost my house, I lost my sister. I felt that life didn't make sense until I met you. How fragile love is.

Speaker 6: You're a jerk, and I don't want jerks in our family. I'm not going to accept that you're a criminal.

Speaker 1: There's a popular Spanish telenovela called Amar y Vivir. It's the kind of drama that sucks you in and teaches you slang. And if you love drama, let me give you the best news first. Telenovelas don't only come in Spanish and Portuguese. No, they don't. A lot of countries do similar things. And those Turkish shows have cliffhangers to rival breaking bands. If you don't know what a telenovela is, go and watch Days of Our Lives. And then we'll talk. I have to say, though, the foreign ones are way more fun.

Speaker 7: I love being in front of the grill all day long, because it's not hot.

Speaker 6: Stop complaining that you're in paradise and you don't value it.

Speaker 7: Yes, yes, I'm very happy. This is like the blue lake.

Speaker 1: Telenovelas are packed to the hilt with drama and they give you tons of useful vocabulary along the way.

Speaker 8: I can't take this anymore. I'm fed up. This isn't working. They're making me look like an idiot. We're going back home.

Speaker 1: They usually involve intense emotions, complex relationships, plots full of twists. You get the point. And since the characters often speak clearly and love to repeat themselves, it's a perfect setup for language learning.

Speaker 6: I'm back. Paquita, she's here. What about the haters? Who are they? What do they think of these people? We're going to take on the careers of two great actresses, Lidia San Jose and Belinda Washington. Come on, you're my girl. I'm the baroness of the Jamboree.

Speaker 1: Fun show. So many common expressions to steal. And you can even imitate the pronunciation until you nail it. Now, have you heard of Language Reactor? This is a Chrome extension that you can use for Netflix or YouTube, and it gives you bilingual subtitles so you see both languages at the same time. It's a pretty awesome way to double check that you understand something and even lets you save words to upload to Anki or whatever flashcard system you might be using for remembering words. You know, in the introduction to my short stories books, I showed you these earlier. I talk about how it's important not to look up too many words when you're reading because it can slow your progress through the book. The same thing goes for TV. The real value to watching TV comes from the overall immersion you get in the language, not from pausing to look up every word or even lots of words. Because if you do that, what happens is your progress will just grind to a halt. You might learn a few words here and there, but you won't get the full benefit. So go easy on the study element of this. Anyhow, what is TV show type number two? Yes, there is a French survivor and a Spanish one and a Finnish one. You can literally pick your language when you're in the mood for something more unscripted. Go for reality shows or any other kind of non-fiction for that matter. Why? Two reasons. First, the language that they use in a show that is real will usually be a lot more straightforward, more simple and authentic and probably also faster because there's no one controlling what they say. Emotions tend to come into a tempest flare. It's going to sound like what you'll experience if you fly to the country right now and make some friends. Japanese reality show Terrace House is pretty easy to follow. It's a bit like Big Brother and you really get caught up in the drama. It can get intense and quite mean, actually, but it is raw and a fantastic way to see and hear the language in action in a home environment. I mean, they're not actors, right? So you hear a lot of ums and buts and all the other way that native speakers fumble their own sentences. Second, you're getting heaps of unfiltered clues about the culture. I'm talking like giant doses of natural, legitimate reactions to situations. For example, it's quite interesting to see how younger Japanese people stylize their sentences or wait for turns in conversations or the very gentle apologies. It might not be what's in your textbook, but it is actually how Japanese people talk.

Speaker 5: So I'm going to do a lot of things that I like to do, which is really the same as everyone else.

Speaker 1: Bottom line, reality TV is a powerhouse for language learning. You get a window into real life and that's exactly what makes it valuable. Another side of this is that you need to be able to motivate yourself when learning a language. It's not always easy, right? But these shows can be a fantastic foundational resource when you're feeling stuck, which reminds me what YouTube. Yeah, YouTube is the one place that you can find pretty much anything you like, as you very well know, you're here after all. It's a great place to get reality content, which is 100% what you should focus on. And the subtitles are often right there for the taking. In fact, AI tools for YouTube can get you the transcript automatically. Come to think of it, no, that Spanish show extra that I mentioned, that is on YouTube, too. But listen carefully now. We have some warning captions. Please don't let yourself get distracted. It sounds silly, so it's like a small point, but the dangers lurk everywhere on something like YouTube. It has so many things flashing around trying to get your attention. So if you're on YouTube to learn languages, just make sure you're focusing on the content, because otherwise you're liable to just get distracted. Now, before we carry on to the next type of show here at Story Learning, we teach languages in a way that is a lot like watching a TV series. The story learning method is based on science and literally tens of thousands of students have learned a language this way. So if you're curious, grab your phone, scan this QR code or click the link in the description and you'll get a free tour of this fantastic method. And just because you're awesome, I have also thrown in a free PDF that's full of really cool shows that you can watch in all sorts of languages in the directory. If you can go straight to the the best ones of all, it's your lucky day. It really is. Go and grab that now. Are you ready for show type number three? It's a good one, something a little more serious and definitely more inspired.

Speaker 9: L'histoire que je vais vous raconter commence dans une forêt, quelque part en Tanzanie. C'est un endroit où les hommes ne vivent pas. C'est un monde sauvage.

Speaker 1: You know this voice, right? French singer Johnny Depp's first wife. Listening to Vanessa Paradis talking about nature in French is a great example of using documentaries to learn language.

Speaker 9: Dans certains cas, les conflits entre animaux et humains se sont multipliés. Il a fallu créer des réserves naturelles. Le Botswana abrite un des plus grands parcs au monde, le delta du fleuve Okavango.

Speaker 1: Think about it like this. If you've ever watched a documentary in English, you know the narration is usually super clear and easy to follow, right? Well, the same goes for documentaries in other languages. And you're unlikely to hear much slang, so you get the chance to really absorb the language in a purer form. Yunnan, nian pingjun qi wen da ershi sheshi du, shan gao lin mi, tu di fei wo, yi zhong zhi wu, zi yi sheng zhang. Love this food show in Mandarin. Honestly, just pick a topic you're passionate about, food, nature, history, music, and learn something cool while you're at it. In fact, how's this for interesting? If you learn something new for the first time in a foreign language, your brain is more likely to remember the info in that language. It's called language-dependent memory, which is pretty cool. It's a win-win. Now, before I get to the best kind of show of all, I'm going to sneak in a fun bonus or my Japanese students will really never forgive me.

Speaker 10: I don't like this place. Let's go back, Dad. I'm not going. There's a town in a place like this?

Speaker 1: There's no one here. If you've never watched an anime show before, well, you really should because anime is not just for kids. These shows can get pretty deep with complex storylines, pretty interesting characters, rich dialogue. And what's really cool is you will learn an absolute ton about Japanese culture. If you want a great starter show to try, well, Spirited Away is kind of mind blowing. You can even get some helpful scene breakdowns on YouTube. But even if you're learning Swahili or Dutch or Korean or whatever, the goal is to find stories that align with your interests because shows can reveal a lot more about the language than you think. Anyway, as usual, I've saved the best till last. Now, look, the best kind of show to watch on TV to improve your language skills is Dramatic Drumroll. Well, it's the show that you actually like. And bear with me here. This one is key. You've got to choose shows that you truly enjoy. It sounds obvious, but let's be honest, how often do we push through a boring show or material book or whatever just because we think it will help us learn every textbook? Don't do that. You don't enjoy it. You don't like it. You won't stick with it and you'll end up not learning anything. When I started learning Cantonese, there were so few resources available that I actually turned to TV as my main study tool. And I watched a mega long series called Triumph in the Sky. So actually two versions, two whole series of this show. It was like 48 episodes or so. It was way over my head at the time, but I learned an absolute ton of vocabulary purely from the exposure. And my teacher said that my pronunciation improved by a mile, which just goes to show how much exposure, pure exposure that you can get from diving deep into a TV show. Now, I'll tell you what my trick is. You listening? Keep it easy. I choose shows that I'd be glued to even if I didn't need subtitles, like the Spanish show Casa de Papel. It's insane. I was watching this before it got really famous as Money Heist. I could not get enough of it. And now, well, my Spanish is better as a result. Find something that you love to watch. You will not only learn the language faster, but get this, it could also literally add years to your life. Well, that's right. When you learn the language, your brain changes in very important ways. And that's just one benefit of learning a language. I've got the full story of what happens to your brain when you learn a language over here.