1. Amazon Drones: Last night on “60 Minutes,” Amazon’s Jeff Bezos said the company is experimenting with the idea of delivering packages (in 30 minutes or less!) by drones in a program called Prime Air. “These are effectively drones but there’s no reason that they can’t be used as delivery vehicles,” Bezos told Charlie Rose. Of course, it won’t happen anytime soon, but Bezos said it might become a reality in the not-so-distant future. “I know it can’t be before 2015, because that’s the earliest we could get the rules from the FAA. My guess is that’s probably a little optimistic. But could it be, you know, four, five years? I think so. It will work, and it will happen, and it’s gonna be a lot of fun,” said Bezos. Creepy or cool?
2. Top Indies in iTunes: Each Monday we present you with the most up-to-date list of the top 10 (indie) movies in the iTunes store (combining rentals and purchases). “Blackfish” has finally been bumped out of the #1 spot this week, replaced by “Parkland.” See the full list here. How many have you seen?
3. Cinematographers to Follow: We’ve recently discovered Craft Truck, a wonderful resource for behind-the-scenes information about filmmaking. Alexis at Craft Truck selected 5 cinematographers for follow on Twitter and Instagram. Read the list here — and feel free to add your own suggestions!
4. Animated Documentaries: While they were once seen as anomalous to documentaries, animation, graphics and other visual effects are now considered to be standard devices to help illustrate difficult concepts or simplify complicated information in documentaries, as was the case in “Is the Man Who is Tall Happy?” Michel Gondry’s recently released documentary about Noam Chomsky. Read about how graphics and animation are revolutionizing documentaries here.
5. Stream Them Now: Our TV editor Alison Willmore compiled this amazing list of 10 Worthy One-Season Shows Ready to Binge-Watch on Netflix. Sadly, “My So Called Life” is no longer available, but there are some other shows you may have forgotten–or never heard of in the first place. Check out her list here.
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