A nice piece of "magic" from Derek Muller at Veritasium. Perfect for a hot summer day:
When Film Met Magic
When the TIFF Bell LIghtbox Opened in Toronto in 2010, I was invited to perform as part of that celebration. As part of their opening season, they wanted to explore the earliest origins of film and that led them to magicians.
In fact, it was a particular magician, George Melies, who is widely regarded as the father of film editing (and therefore camera tricks.) Before Melies, films were recorded in one continuous take. A feature that we all take for granted now, the ability to take multiple pieces of footage and cut them together to form a coherent narrative, was something he discovered by accident.
Crash Course, an interesting YouTube channel that produces educational contact, did a wonderful piece summarizing this history.
Of course, magicians typically work in the opposite way, going to extreme lengths to produce feats which look like camera tricks. But ultimately, they all come from the same place.
Random Martini Trivia
The British quiz show QI remains one of my favourite programs to watch. They have redefined educational entertainment. Their name is short for Quite Interesting, and the main rule of the show is you get points "for being interesting."
After a year of Magic & Martini I get sent lovely clips like this. Here is some interesting background on Martinis in general, and how James Bond prefers them in particular:
If you're a fan of things British, you will recognize the original host of Whose Line Is It Anyway, Clive Anderson and one of the world's most delightful all around humans, Stephen Fry.
Hidden Messages
Have you ever wondered if you could be persuaded to do things against your will by subliminal messaging (messages which are delivered so quickly that they sneak pass your conscious awareness and feel like thoughts that come from within your own mind.)
Here, a man with a British accent explores the history and science behind them. (Warning, video may contain subliminal messages.)
Seeing the Invisible
Veritasium's Derek Muller shared this video of some astonishing video he took which was able to capture some of the invisible movements around everyday events like lighting a match or rubbing your hands together. Sometimes the invisible needs to be seen to be believed.
Other approaches to magic
Who knows, it could work:
Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal by Zach Weinersmith