Can you think of something we missed? Share your tips!
1. Festival Faves. Dig through the Omaha Film Festival’s archives for links to dozens of films from past OFFs. It’s a curated collection available on Hulu, Netflix, TubiTV and Amazon. Two inspiring documentaries to start with: Pick of the Litter and Biggest Little Farm. Full list available on the Omaha Film Festival’s Facebook page.
2. Film Streams Streams Films. With their two cinemas temporarily dark, bring a bit of the Film Streams experience into your home. Now offering three new indie films still in their theatrical release available for you to stream at home — plus the virtual release of Fantastic Fungi. For each title, a portion of all sales will benefit Film Streams. More information about those opportunities on Twitter.
3. Throw a Netflix Party. You can use an extension for your Chrome browser to synchronize a Netflix movie and group chat with friends. It’s free at Netflixparty.com.
4. Watch and Rank All Physical Copies of Movies in Your Home. You bought hard copies of movies for a reason: What better time than a pandemic to organize your own film festival?
5. Start a “Movie Club” with Friends Over Social Media/Texting. Who needs Hollywood to tell us what to watch? Take turns picking stream-able flicks with friends and discuss. Hit up twitter.com/thereaderfilm if you need discussion questions.
6. Stay Tuned For Classic Movie Reviews. Until theaters reopen, we’ll be posting new reviews of classic movies online each week on Friday. Send suggestions for classics we should cover to film@thereader.com.
7. Watch a Classic Infectious Disease Movie. Everyone is watching Contagion and Outbreak right now, but sci-fi may be more palatable. 12 Monkeys holds up well and features Brad Pitt hitting himself a lot.
8. Best Isolation/Lonely Movies. Given that he’s recovering from COVID-19, we should all spend time with Tom Hanks by spinning Castaway. If you’re more melancholy, give Lost in Translation a go.
9.Watch the Best Omaha Movie. If you have Starz (which you can get through Amazon Prime or cable/satellite), you can watch Out of Omaha, the most important movie about the city ever made.
10. Rent First-Run Movies on Streaming Services. Emma, The Hunt, Onward, and Trolls: World Tour are among tons arriving to pay-per-view sites early (check Vudu.com too).