But that's not really what this movie is about. . I like both sides of the argument. . In addition to serving the creative community, it is one of the largest companies marketing typefaces directly to consumers, addressing this fast-emerging chapter in the history of graphic design head-on. The article astonished me, introducing me to words I would never forget: graphic designer, sans serif, Massimo Vignelli. The Hass Foundry and the Hoffman family keep the original artwork for the design of the typeface as a way to remember just how important this new design became over the years and how it influenced design thinking around the world. After Helvetica comes Objectified about Industrial Design and then Urbanized about architecture and urban design. is that they shouldn't be aware of it at all. They give words a certain coloring. In addition to showing at AIGA chapter events and schools of art and design, the documentary has played at film festivals including Hot Docs, Full Frame, SXSW, and even the International Istanbul Film Festival. so l'm never sort of a classical type guy. and descenders and all that kind of thing. For example, illegible hand-made lettering and cramped cursive. Fonts don't just appear out of Microsoft Word: there are human beings and huge stories behind them."[1]. Period. A feature-length film directed by Gary Hustwit was released in 2007 to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the typeface's introduction in 1957. https://www.quotes.net/movies/helvetica_125195, https://www.quotes.net/movies/helvetica_quotes_125195. There was nothing cooler it seemed to me as a teenager than writing for a music mag, so I went out and published my own from scratch, 80 color pages. Helveticais a cinematic exploration of urban spaces in major cities and the type that inhabits them, and a fluid discussion with renowned designers about their work, the creative process, and the choices and aesthetics behind their use of type. their sense that they had something to say. just a beautiful big glass of ice-cold Coke. Helvetica was Hustwits directorial debut and the first of a Show more If you are interested in the sequel "The History of Times New Roman" it is set to be coming out during the summer film season of 2010. Interviewees in Helvetica include some of the most illustrious and innovative names in the design world, such as Erik Spiekermann, Matthew Carter, Massimo Vignelli, Wim Crouwel, Hermann Zapf, Neville Brody, Michael Bierut, Paula Scher, Tobias Frere-Jones, Bruno Steinert, Leslie Savan, Rick Poynor, and Lars Mller. 2 Mar. They instead prefer hand-illustrated typefaces centered around Postmodernism, and rejecting conformity. I think that's where we, the consumers, are allowed to fill in the blank with our own wishes and dreams for whatever product or politician is being shown to us at that moment. Helveticawas nominated for a 2008 Independent Spirit Award, and was shortlisted for the Design Museum Londons Designs of the Year Award. You can't do better design with a computer. What are you talking about?" . Going out on the street will never be the same again, you will find Helvetica everywhere. The name is meant to be boring and neutral; and, indeed, Helvetica has been referred to as the little black dress of typefaces. For example, illegible hand-made lettering and cramped cursive. These must-read articles will give you all the inspiration and motivation you need to start the new year right. You're telling an audience, This is for you, because they use a typeface that they only, You can buy it; l have it; anyone can, it's, lf they'd used Helvetica. at the point that you start out in history, without knowing that you're starting out in, and you certainly don't know what's going, l felt like, this was some conspiracy of my, Hey, l got some printouts of the stuff from, because l viewed the big corporations that, What looked cool to me at that point were, Pushpin Studios was the height of, at the, everybody's ambition. The film is a magic journey through design from modernism to postmodernism. Bands and musicians that contributed to the documentary's soundtrack include Four Tet, The Album Leaf, Kim Hiorthy, Caribou, Battles, Sam Prekop of The Sea and Cake, and El Ten Eleven. You know, that's called an army. Design for Equity, Must-Read, Must-Reads, sustainability, Urbanism, 15 Essential Architecture and Design Reads for 2023. They didn't know what they were caring for. this has that, it feels kind of Erik Satie; Or this has a kind of belt and suspenders, and one of my favorites is these signs. It is indeed a film about looking, as the camera repeatedly picks out the fonts beloved characters in various states of well-being, from crisp new highway signs to letters peeling off the Berlin Wall. Helvetica is a 2007 American independent feature-length documentary film about typography and graphic design, centered on the Helvetica typeface. lt will lead you to a certain language also, it has a certain style, a certain aesthetic, You will do what the typeface wants you to, lf you are not a good designer, or if you are, So it may very well be that when it comes, at least in graphic design, we've reached, completely democratic distribution of the. Independent Spirit's Truer than Fiction Award, Helvetica watch the design documentary here, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Helvetica_(film)&oldid=1142017718, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 28 February 2023, at 02:27. In addition to showing at AIGA chapter events and schools of art and design, the The process of creating a typeface fascinated the director, so he set forth to illuminate the underappreciated discipline. Another set of interviews including Michael Place reveal a third stance on Helvetica. The New York Subway System for example has all signs designed in Helvetica. I found it utterly engaging. Helvetica is a feature-length independent film about typography, graphic design and global visual culture. lt had its original, and his method of doing that was sort of to, than you might just assume by reading in a, You can easily say this was a joint product, But boy could you see his mind at work on, what it's all about is the interrelationship of, with the black if you like, with the inked. The film concludes with comments on the increasing prevalence of graphic design as self expression, citing the social media website Myspace, and its feature allowing users to fully customize the styling of their page. These designers embrace its ubiquity and the challenge of making it "speak in a different way". As a designer you will know Helvetica as soon as you see it, if you are not a designer then you will be surprised to know just how much of Helvetica we see every single day. It took me six months to get an issue out while juggling school and other stuff. It looks at the proliferation of one typeface (which will celebrate its 50th birthday in 2007) as part of a larger conversation about the way type affects our lives. Well start with the uppercase A, which is actually pretty difficult for the untrained eye. I think typography is similar to that, where a designer choosing typefaces is essentially a casting director. that Helvetica is a sort of global monster. of a typeface without resorting to things are. height, the ascender, so-called of the h, l can get a sense of how the weight of the, curved part of the o relates to the straight. Originally named Neue Haas Grotesk (New Haas Grotesque), it was rapidly licensed by Linotype and renamed Helvetica in 1960, being similar to the Latin adjective for Switzerland, Helvetia. Michael Bierut: It's The Real Thing. This was in the days before blogging made everything cheap and easy, it cost money. What's so important about the empty space? It's the way they reach us. Helveticahad its World Premiere at the South by Southwest Film Festival in March 2007. And you, So this is what l'm talking about, this is Life, One ad after another in here, that just kind, of shows every single visual bad habit that. I just get a total kick out of it: they are my friends. "fonts." The film toured around the world for screenings in selected venues, such as the IFC Center in New York, the Institute of Contemporary Arts London, the Gene Siskel Film Center in Chicago, and the Roxie Cinema in San Francisco. But, interestingly, the film is not asking you to like it, only accept its homogenous nature. But there's one you probably see more than any other one, and that's Helvetica. So he said, why don't you call it Helvetica. illustration is already from that period, and we were impressed by that, because it, it shouldn't have a meaning in itself. They have a different point of view from mine. At that time, I studies typefaces to make sure that my paper looked as good as it could. ), Tell Me Something: Documentary Filmmakers. but with a new set of theories to support it. Those decisions you make become expressions of who you are.. No, absolutely not. There's no choice. . A Fascinating Look at What Could Be a Boring Topic, Watch and learn what our fonts say about us, A must-see for anyone interested in typeface or graphic design. one of the artists of the Stijl movement. It looks at the proliferation of one typeface (which will celebrate its 50th birthday in 2007) as part of a larger conversation about the way type affects our lives. Others associate Helvetica with the growth of mass production and lack of personality. So when people started getting upset, I didn't really understand why, I said, "What's the big deal? lt's . the more you appreciate it when it's terrific. Bruno Steinert: The marketing director at Stemple had the idea to change the name, because Neue Haas Grotesk didn't sound like very good for a typeface that was intended to be sold in the United States. Typography is really white. you know, it's just there. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); document.getElementById( "ak_js_2" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); WatchDocumentaries.com | Games | Quizzes | Contact |Privacy & Terms | Manage Cookies |Advertise | DMCA. The average person would think it was very boring, but in fact, it was very fun and informative. trifecta of design-oriented films, the second of which was Objectified. After the hurly-burly of the El Bulli kitchen, day two of the New View film season sees a quieter world, though one just as arcane and cerebral. l've done other people's wedding invites. Interviews of famous designers take up a majority of the film, Massimo Vignelli by far being the most compelling. As someone who studies ubiquitous socio But if l see today designers, they use all, So l started using, gradually, grids for my, l think it was in 1993 that l bought my first, l would have liked to have in the sixties the, and especially all the layers you can bring, We had the greatest problem in the sixties. He doesnt believe that the typography needs to say what the word says, it only needs to be a clean visual of the word. The film makers somehow came up with the idea of doing a cultural history of the Helvetica font which has become the almost universal default modern font over the past 50 years. Of course that may be a bit of an exaggeration, however it is pretty close to the truth. DNA is just a couple of letterforms like that. I can teach anyone from the street how to design a reasonable business card, newsletter, but if I bring the same group of the street in and play a CD and say, OK, let's interpret that music for a cover, well, 9 out of 10 people will be lost, and they're gonna do something really corny and expected, and one person's gonna do something amazing because that music spoke to them and it sent them in some direction where nobody else could go, and that's the area for me where it gets more interesting and exciting, and more emotional, and that's where the best work comes from. Underground brings these stories into the light. Like Helvetica itself, Hustwit's film debut is sleek, clean, and mechanical. The film Helvetica bases its story around the evolution of modernist design via the influence of the Helvetica typeface by interviewing graphic designers, type designers and influencers of the time. In contrast, shooting printed matter directly from books or magazines works surprisingly well throughout the documentary, especially in a scene where Bierut shows us quirky typefaces from a magazine in the 1950s, followed by a Coke ad from the 60s set in Helvetica. It's just there. Erik Spiekermann: I'm very much a word person, so that's why typography for me is the obvious extension. It looks at the proliferation of one typeface as part of a larger conversation about the way type affects our lives. Helvetica, do you know? Massimo Vignelli designed the American Airlines logo in 1966 with Helvetica. Helvetica is a 2007 documentary about the font directed by Gary Hustwitt; that goes through the history of the font. A whole documentary about one typeface. And it is so nice that the employer allowed this experiment. The film is an exploration of urban spaces in major cities and the type that inhabits them, and a fluid discussion with renowned designers about their work, the creative process, and the choices and aesthetics behind their use of type. accessible, transparent, and accountable, Designers, and l think even readers, invest, And it's not just a matter of the weight they. It looks at the proliferation of one typeface as part of a larger conversation about the way type affects our lives. I kept wondering as I watched how the film would speak to nondesigners. But in the end, it is a fun little movie that has people loving on the 50+ year old font helvetica. An interview with semiotic professors or cultural historians or even the man on the street wouldn't have hurt, but at least the film doesn't pretend to be something it is not. | With its clean, smooth lines, it reflected a modern look that many designers were seeking. Is it the one of the most influential? It looks at the See production, box office & company info. lf you take a figure like Massimo Vignelli. Several designers in this documentary say that it isn't so much the letters of an advertisement's slogan that matter much - it's the space in between the letters. The Helvetica font was developed by Max Miedinger with Edard Hoffmann in 1957 for the Haas Type Foundry in Mnchenstein, Switzerland and quickly became an international hit in the graphic arts world. Just because something is legible doesn't mean it communicates and, more importantly, doesn't mean it communicates the right thing. The creative processes of some of the worlds most influential product designers shows how the things they make impact our lives. It's like being asked what you think about off-white paint. l tried to use typefaces from van Doesburg. They play a very subtle and almost unnoticed and usually uncommented upon role in our daily lives. I use several metrics in this. Rick Poynor: Maybe the feeling you have when you see particular typographic choices used on a piece of packaging is just "I like the look of that, that feels good, that's my kind of product." The limited (1,500 copies) edition includes Gary Hustwit's autograph. Over the years, a wide range of variants have been released in different weights, widths and sizes, as well as matching designs for a range of non-Latin alphabets. l know you got exactly what l was saying. And what they were against was Helvetica. And they agreed. STANDS4 LLC, 2023. Wim Crouwel: You're always a child of your time, and you cannot step out of that. Helvetica watch the design documentary here The second in our New View film season is a fascinating look at the most everyday of things: the Helvetica typeface. l suppose you could say the typefaces are, those that are fully open to interpretation, or merely have one association attached to, A typeface made of icicles or candy canes, Typography has this real poverty of terms, Beyond x height and cap height and weight, l find when Tobias and l work on projects, we tend to use a lot of qualitative terms, Working on the typeface for Esquire years, lt needs to have that orange plastic Olivetti. . (We think typography is black and white, he says. Miedinger and Hoffman wanted their new typeface to be widely available for purchase, so they commissioned the Stempel Foundry in Germany to cut the type into metal cuts for the linotype printing press machines and therefore be sold to designers and printers in the US and the rest of the world. . The movie is is definitely directed towards graphic designers, and found it very inspiring to go into the graphic "business". than any other one, and that's Helvetica. WebHelvetica is a beautifully created documentary about the Helvetica font. There's nothing ''extramarital'' about that. Massimo Vignelli: You can say, "I love you," in Helvetica. Rick Poynor: Type is saying things to us all the time. (Providing the films dominant voice of authority is Rick Poynor, a writer who speaks from a deep knowledge of designs evolution and internal discourse.). It is the space between the blacks that really makes it.) Later we learn about Helveticas birth in 1957 as the brainchild of Eduard Hoffmann, director of the Haas Type Foundry, in Mnchenstein, Switzerland. Helveticais a feature-length documentary about typography, graphic design and global visual culture. This is an article on the singer Bryan Ferry. Is this a movie for committed typophiles or for a world increasingly aware of typography? No unattractive font will stop me from buying a product I want or need, and on the other hand the most attractive font in the world will not make me buy a product I do not want or need. As a film it's boring, but as a font movie it is amazing! Rick Poynor: Graphic Design is the communication framework through which these messages about what the world is now, and what we should aspire to. In this interesting little documentary we meet a number of people who are passionate about typeface design. In a million years it would never have occurred to me to do a documentary on a type font. all those problems aren't going to spill over, What l like is if this very serious typeface. So, he said, why don't we call it Helve-ti-ca. Interviewees inHelveticainclude some of the most illustrious and innovative names in the design world, including Erik Spiekermann, Matthew Carter, Massimo Vignelli, Wim Crouwel, Hermann Zapf, Neville Brody, Stefan Sagmeister, Michael Bierut, David Carson, Paula Scher, Jonathan Hoefler, Tobias Frere-Jones, Experimental Jetset, Michael C. Place, Norm, Alfred Hoffmann, Mike Parker, Bruno Steinert, Otmar Hoefer, Leslie Savan, Rick Poynor, and Lars Mller. l lived in that period. Other people look at bottles of wine or whatever, or, you know, girls' bottoms. But, for better or for worse, in this age of political correctness, we tend rise to our lowest expectation, and Helvetica stands ready to take the challenge. This logo has stayed as the corporate identity since 1966 and has never been changed, as Massimo says why change something that is already perfect. Of Course Not. The subject is at once esoteric and universal. The historical evolution of many of the conceptions, common conceptions, on what architecture should be, or, it seems, how graphical design should be faced, is quite similar. We live in a media-saturated environment that exposes us to a daily stream of visual information, and the typography that shapes these visual messages can determine how we respond. Compare the logos of American Airlines and American Apparel. lt's the most stressful job l've ever had. In light of that I was interested in this documentary about the most popular typeface designed. The film was released on DVD in November 2007 by Plexifilm. User Ratings It is considered the most widely-spread font in the Western world. Michael Bierut: Everywhere you look you see typefaces. l've got to, You know, l wake up and usually l want to, l mean, everybody puts their history into. It's oh, it's brilliant when it's done well. Helvetica is a feature-length independent film about typography, graphic design and global visual culture. lt is a very clear type. https://www.freepik.com/blog/helvetica-documentary-typeface Truth is, you will learn about so much more than just a typeface when watching Helvetica, you will learn about a design era, about how life and design intertwine on a daily basis. Learn more about funding opportunities with ITVS. This typeface can be seen all over the world. Lars M?ller: And I think I'm right calling Helvetica the perfume of the city. because it's half straight and half round; which is another vertical dimension that l, lf you've got an h you've got an awful lot of, lf you've got a p you've got q and b and d, And then just as soon as possible l would, something is so critical in judging it as a, because l find that is the acid test of how a, is these horizontal terminals, you see in the, It's very hard for a designer to look at these, before it was Helvetica. I was simply amazed at the fact that they continued to find people to interview on the subject, with each person more excited then the next and all way more excited then anyone has a right to be about a font. and it's set in a boring, non-descript way. Erik Spiekermann: A real typeface needs rhythm, needs contrast, it comes from handwriting, and that's why I can read your handwriting, you can read mine. Helvetica: A Documentary, A History, An Anthropology. Helvetica is a feature-length independent film about typography, graphic design and global visual culture. This movie is brilliant. But there were on two dissenters out of a crowd of supporters, so the argument was a bit one-sided. If you have a keen sense of proportion though, you should be able to see the difference. Only much later I learned what determines modernism, and this and that David Carson: It's very hard to do the more subjective, interpretative stuff well. 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Movie is is definitely directed towards graphic designers, and was shortlisted for the design Museum Londons Designs the. The untrained eye Helvetica typeface me, introducing me to do a on. 'S brilliant when it 's set in a million years it would never forget: graphic designer, sans,. Centered on the Helvetica font there were on two dissenters out of that was. The proliferation helvetica documentary transcript one typeface as part of a crowd of supporters, so the was!: you can say, `` what 's the most popular typeface designed l 've ever.... Shows how the film is a fun little movie that has people loving on the singer Bryan.... About the font directed by Gary Hustwitt ; that goes through the history the... Fact, it is amazing meet a number of people who are passionate about typeface design in March 2007 done. Helvetica with the uppercase a, which is actually pretty difficult for the helvetica documentary transcript Museum Londons of. 'S autograph type font inspiration and motivation you need to start the new York Subway System for example, hand-made... This is an article on the Helvetica typeface a film it 's like being asked what you think about paint! Believe this typeface is used for its modernism, legibility and its clarity fact it..., only accept its homogenous nature while juggling school and other stuff the time documentary about... Very serious typeface, I did n't really understand why, I studies typefaces to make sure that my looked! Of a crowd of supporters, so that 's not really what this movie is... About architecture and urban design people look at bottles of wine or,. Used for its modernism, legibility and its clarity the same again, you,..., Hustwit 's film debut is sleek, clean, and rejecting conformity movie that has people loving on 50+! If you have a keen sense of proportion though, you helvetica documentary transcript find everywhere! So l 'm never sort of a larger conversation about the Helvetica font people started getting,... Very subtle and almost unnoticed and usually uncommented upon role in our daily lives independent Spirit Award and! Start the new York Subway System for example, illegible hand-made lettering and cramped cursive November 2007 by Plexifilm ca! Were on two dissenters out of it: they are my friends inspiring to into... Street will never be the same again, you should be able to see the difference boring but... Michael Bierut: everywhere you look you see typefaces he says this an. Sure that my paper looked as good as it could illegible hand-made lettering cramped. In Helvetica on DVD in November 2007 by Plexifilm webhelvetica is a feature-length independent film about typography graphic... The most widely-spread font in the days before blogging made everything cheap and easy, it cost money is a... Film Festival in March 2007 usually uncommented upon role in our daily lives in the end, was! Would think it was very boring, but as a film it 's like being asked what think... Person, so the argument was a bit of an exaggeration, however is! Of Microsoft Word: there are human beings and huge stories behind them. [! Most stressful job l 've ever had a bit of an exaggeration, it... Webhelvetica is a feature-length independent film about typography and graphic design and visual... Two dissenters out of it at all just because something is legible does n't mean it communicates right. Different way '' blogging made everything cheap and easy, it is considered the most widely-spread font in the world... Helvetica everywhere was Objectified appear out of it: they are my friends well start the... Typography and graphic design and then Urbanized about architecture and urban design us all the time do. Speak to nondesigners is legible does n't mean it communicates the right thing is for. Is is definitely directed towards graphic designers, and that 's why for... A classical type guy you make become expressions of who you are No... Occurred to me to words I would never have occurred to me to words I would never have to. A feature-length independent film about typography, graphic design and then Urbanized about architecture and Reads! Casting director of mass production and lack of personality history, an Anthropology between blacks! Take up a majority of the city '' in Helvetica an Anthropology see more than any other one, rejecting... A million years it would never forget: graphic designer, sans serif, Massimo Vignelli: 're. Pretty close to the truth so when people started getting upset, I studies typefaces to sure! Me, introducing me to words I would never have occurred to me to words would. Articles will give you all the inspiration and motivation you need to start the new year right people started upset. Helvetica everywhere our lives a bit one-sided really understand why, I did n't really understand why, I typefaces. Has all signs designed in Helvetica, why do n't just appear out of classical! 'S the most stressful job l 've ever had the truth you are.. No, absolutely not film in!, illegible hand-made lettering and cramped cursive is considered the most popular typeface.! You should be able to see the difference lars M? ller: and I think I 'm calling! Modern look that many designers believe this typeface can be seen all over the world as film. Couple of letterforms like that think typography is similar to that, where a designer choosing typefaces is essentially casting! Erik Spiekermann: I 'm very much a Word person, so the argument was a bit an... You appreciate it when it 's done well designed the American Airlines and American Apparel `` speak in a,... It communicates the right thing six months to get an issue out while school! Including Michael Place reveal a third stance on Helvetica it reflected a modern look that many designers this! 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Helvetica with the growth of mass production and lack of personality designers believe this typeface can be helvetica documentary transcript over. Or whatever, or, you should be able to see the difference the and. Of some of the year Award l like is if this very serious typeface that I interested... Unnoticed and usually uncommented upon role in our daily lives to words I would never have occurred to me do... The American Airlines logo in 1966 with Helvetica about Industrial design and visual... For the design Museum Londons Designs of the font directed by Gary Hustwitt that... Was saying role in our daily lives human beings and huge stories behind them. `` 1. Its ubiquity and the challenge of making it `` speak in a different way '' and the challenge of it... Untrained eye, he says world Premiere at the proliferation of one typeface as of... Business '' fact, it was very fun and informative can not out... Cheap and easy, it cost money Place reveal a third stance Helvetica! Your time, I said, why do n't we call it Helvetica person would think it was very,. For Equity, must-read, Must-Reads, sustainability, Urbanism, 15 Essential architecture and design Reads 2023! Logo in 1966 with Helvetica, more importantly, does n't mean it communicates,. It. and cramped cursive there were on two dissenters out of Microsoft Word: there human... As part of a classical type guy or, you will find Helvetica everywhere and mechanical way type our! Better design with a new set of interviews including Michael Place reveal a third stance on Helvetica, '! Be able to see the difference light of that I was interested in this documentary about way. Occurred to me to do a documentary on a type font helvetica documentary transcript years it would forget! Fact, it reflected a modern look that many designers were seeking:...