helvetica documentary transcript
 11/03/2023
. Their subjects lend a nice sense of immediacy to their dialogs without being too on the edge or too indulgent (save one). Rick Poynor: Graphic Design is the communication framework through which these messages about what the world is now, and what we should aspire to. A documentary about a typeface? going to fit in, you're not going to stand out. This typeface can be seen all over the world. But now it's become one of those defaults, partly because of the proliferation of the, it was the default on the Apple Macintosh, and then it became the default on Windows, which copied everything that Apple did, as, because it's ubiquitous; it's a default. 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. But that's the type casting its secret spell. One is a serious airline company and the other an irreverent clothing company. But that's the type casting its secret spell. Helvetia is the Latin name of Switzerland. (You know, the one that looks like this .) Quotes.net. Typefaces express a mood, . But it almost seems strongerthe other way. 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. probably better than l can explain it now, is that basically there was this group that. l tried to use typefaces from van Doesburg. 13 minute read. the conclusion of one line of reasoning was, l can't explain it l just love, l just like, l just get a total kick out of it. to clear away all this horrible, kind of like, lt must have been just fantastic. 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. I get kicks out of looking at type. He states that a hand-drawn font may be harder to read intentionally to communicate emphasis to the reader. all those problems aren't going to spill over, What l like is if this very serious typeface. They play a very subtle and almost unnoticed and usually uncommented upon role in our daily lives. l don't know. (Providing the films dominant voice of authority is Rick Poynor, a writer who speaks from a deep knowledge of designs evolution and internal discourse.). As someone who studies ubiquitous socio Watch Helvetica here. Related Videos 1:16 Typecast Typecast 1:38 The Frankenstein Theory The Frankenstein Theory 3:16 Borat: Subsequent Moviefilm Trailer 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. And I'm sure our handwriting is miles away from Helvetica or anything that would be considered legible, but we can read it, because there's a rhythm to it, there's a contrast to it. Once it caught on, the typeface began to be used extensively in signage, in package labeling, in poster art, in advertisingin short, everywhere. The film is a magic journey through design from modernism to postmodernism. that Helvetica is a sort of global monster. or two, and if possible we will use one size. So here and there l think with the records, and l think there was one instance, it was, You know, in a more funny direction and in. Helvetica encompasses the worlds of design, advertising, psychology, and communication, and invites us to take a second look at the thousands of words we see every day. twenties, early thirties , than at any time in, in terms of style and so on. They didn't know what they were caring for. There was a time when I was editor, publisher, and writer of a small newspaper in Spain. lt's that idea that something's designed to. The Story of Helvetica How could a film about a font be so good? or aesthetically or culturally or politically. Helvetica hasn't got *any* of that. What are you talking about?" Hoffmann commissioned a former type salesman and freelance designer, Max Miedinger to draw a new typeface based on the nineteenth-century German workhorse Akzidenz Grotesk. With its clean, smooth lines, it reflected a modern look that many designers were seeking. 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. An edited version of the film was broadcast in the UK on BBC One in November 2007, as part of Alan Yentob's Imagine series. The popularity and influence of the Helvetica typeface inspired director Gary Hustwit to film a feature length documentary about design, designers, global design concepts and how typography affects our daily lives; all based on the creation and proliferation of the Helvetica typeface. l certainly can write a few, lt just had all the right connotations we, The 1950s is an interesting period in the, after the horror and the cataclysm of the. Another set of interviews including Michael Place reveal a third stance on Helvetica. And that is about it. l'm not one of those people who is a real, l don't know all the fancy words for all the. l wouldn't say this if l hadn't tried it. The film was released on Blu-ray Disc in May 2008, produced by Matt Grady of Plexifilm. . Helvetica encompasses the worlds of design, advertising, psychology, and communication, and invites us to take a second look at the thousands of words we see every day. It's the way they reach us. The Econ Extra Credit team sat down with David Brancaccio to ask him what he thought of the eponymous documentary. Interviewer: Why, fifty years later, is it still so popular? Subscribe to our mailing list to receive the latest updates, exclusive content, subscription deals delivered straight to your inbox! | 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. So, this subculture of designers produces work that shapes our lives and influences the way we see things. lt, The way something is presented will define, define our reaction to that message in the, So if it says, buy these jeans, and it's a, or to be sold in some kind of underground. However, I felt like there wasn't much to this film. They have a different point of view from mine. It just makes my words visible. Developed by the Haas'sche Schriftgiesserei (Haas Type Foundry) of Mnchenstein, Switzerland, its release was planned to match a trend: a resurgence of interest in turn-of-the-century "grotesque" sans-serifs among European graphic designers, that also saw the release of Univers by Adrian Frutiger the same year. Hello??? Beyond her commentary, however, Helvetica is largely an insiders view of the font. Through the story of a typeface and its influence you can learn even about yourself and how its involved in your own life. It's just it's just there. At that time, I studies typefaces to make sure that my paper looked as good as it could. Helvetica is a 2007 documentary about the font directed by Gary Hustwitt; that goes through the history of the font. 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. But it's also: a musing on the history of modern graphic design. Designers also point out typographic "bad habits" from earlier works around the 1950s which Helvetica tried to fix. The name is meant to be boring and neutral; and, indeed, Helvetica has been referred to as the little black dress of typefaces. It looks at the proliferation of one typeface (which will celebrate its 50th Helvetica is a neo-grotesque or realist design, one influenced by the famous 19th century typeface Akzidenz-Grotesk and other German and Swiss designs. Certain bands l buy. about typography, graphic design and global visual culture. After Helvetica comes Objectified about Industrial Design and then Urbanized about architecture and urban design. And it was many years later that someone explained to me that, basically, there was this group that spent a lot of time trying to organise things, get some kind of system going, and they saw me going in and throwing that out the window, which I might've done, but it wasn't the starting point, that wasn't the plan. Massimo Vignelli: There are people that thinks that type should be expressive. It was 1976, when the advertising critic Leslie Savan published her piece This Typeface Is Changing Your Life in the Village Voice, showing how a font called Helvetica was overhauling the image of garbage trucks and corporate logos. Typefaces express a mood, an atmosphere. Desktop publishing didnt exist, and even graphic designers had little direct access to fonts, relying on expensive typesetting services to get the real thing and muddling along with Presstype, specimen books, and pencil sketches. You know, it seems like air? oh it's brilliant when it's done well. Type is saying things to us all the time. Below is an edited transcript of an interview by James Pallister with director Gary Hustwit at the Boundary Hotel, Shoreditch on the 17 April, the afternoon after the For example, illegible hand-made lettering and cramped cursive. l did a little credit to give thanks to Max, But my wife vetoed that; l had to take it off, l think l fell into the step of Helvetica when, And l really enjoy the challenge of making. Later, other interviewers point out criticisms of Helvetica. We were all a little shocked. it's the whole, the guy who designed it tried to make all. their sense that they had something to say. It is wonderful also that Helvetica can also be free and fun. If you have a keen sense of proportion though, you should be able to see the difference. l did, which believe me, is just the worst job you. A mainstream documentary on the worlds most popular font attests to the ubiquity of graphic design. The average person would think it was very boring, but in fact, it was very fun and informative. Visuals for freedom of expression in Peru, How to create a vector character from sketch. Erik Spiekermann: I'm very much a word person, so that's why typography for me is the obvious extension. This film is a real gift to graphic designers, and it is an eye-opener to a public that cares about fonts more than we might expect. 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. It's a documentary about the creation of the Helvetica font, sure. I found it utterly engaging. Michael Bierut: Everywhere you look you see typefaces. Web. Of course not. 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. just a beautiful big glass of ice-cold Coke. Directed by Gary Hustvit, the film is the first of a trilogy examining elements of contemporary design. Erik Spiekermann: Most people who use Helvetica, use it because it's ubiquitous. And that perfect balance sort of is saying to us - well it's not sort of, it *is* saying to us - "don't worry, any of the problems that you're having, or the problems in the world, or problems getting through the subway, or finding a bathroom all those problem aren't going to spill over, they'll be contained. Massimo Vignelli designed the American Airlines logo in 1966 with Helvetica. and it's set in a boring, non-descript way. It looks at the proliferation of one typeface as part of a larger conversation designing will be still being used in twenty, l got married about three years ago. And the Swiss pay more attention to the background, so that the counters and the space between characters just hold the letters. lt. the meaning is in the content of the text, you know, you find yourself sitting next to, or a train and they ask you sooner or later, but then will say, ''l thought they were all, Since l did some work for Microsoft in the, he didn't push me to follow in his footsteps, when l left school, high school in the UK, l, had a year to fill before going to university, where l spent a year learning what turned. work that was as inspiring as their work, And l wanted to make work that looked like, and l'd go to the local art store, l'd go to, album the way l thought it was supposed to, properly and thing would crackle and break, And Zagorski told me to let go of the press, l realized that type had spirit and could, that it was its own palate, a broad palate to, And l decided l would take the title literally, so l decided what l'd do is list every state, And l didn't have any scientific evidence of, so l decided to base it on the last Reagan. Its use became a hallmark of the International Typographic Style that emerged from the work of Swiss designers in the 1950s and 60s, becoming one of the most popular typefaces of the 20th century. A diatribe (by some) about a font seen It asks easy answers and delivers easy homilies, much like its subject matter safe and accepted and common. illustration is already from that period, and we were impressed by that, because it, it shouldn't have a meaning in itself. Now you might think this is a dry and boring subject (as I did before I saw the film) but it is in fact a fascinating tale of design and it's implications. Because it's there, it's on every street corner, so let's eat crap because it's on the corner. lt brings style with it; every typeface does. His is the first full-fledged interview, and as we see him sketch letters in pencil and talk about the importance of spacing, it is easy to think that the characters are his own invention. They give words a certain coloring. Interviewees in Helvetica include 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, Lars Muller, and many more. On New Yorks packed subways, violations of personal space are unavoidablean inevitability that emboldens more predatory behavior. It really does justice to a topic that is so often overlooked. This would have worked better as a 30 minute special on the Learning Channel then a full length documentary. The widespread use of the Helvetica Typoface is so noticeable that it takes an important place in design history. Helvetica is a feature-length independent film about typography, graphic design and global visual culture. To expect an audience beyond the 20 of us that view fonts as a way of life and find the subject riveting will be asking a lot. l think that the whole image of modernism. Period. Miedinger and Hoffmann set out to create a neutral typeface that had great clarity, no intrinsic meaning in its form, and could be used on a wide variety of signage. lt was a matter of cutting letters in steel, You know, l doubt if l ever got up quite to, So, you know, l could say that really l've, it's ever been made in the fifty, fifty-one, lt's hard to generalize about the way type, But l think that most type designers if they, it tells me, first of all, whether this is a sans, lf it were a serif face it would look like this, here are the serifs so called, these little, Are they heavy, are they light, what is the, is there a lot of thick-thin contrast in the. Vignelli is a lover of Helvetica, for its great legibility and modern design. Helvetica is a documentary that interviews many graphic designers involved in the history or modern usage of the Helvetica typeface. That there are other fonts with greater history, lovelier curves, and more interesting pedigrees seems not to matter. l lived in that period. This movie is brilliant. Hoffmann was the president of the Haas Type Foundry, while Miedinger was a freelance graphic designer who had formerly worked as a Haas salesman and designer. What are you. You are always child of your time, and you, and graphic design, if we still want to call it, And the classic case of this is the social, you care about the clothing you're wearing, or how you decorate your apartment-all of, Well, now it's happening in the sphere of, and there's no reason as the tools become. So it, it needs certain space around it, needs a, it needs very carefully to be looked at the, very small and very tightly done and very. 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 A documentary about typography (including but not limited to the Helvetica font), graphic design, and global visual culture. A visit to favorite graphic designs of years past. It wasn't just a film about a font. There's nothing ''extramarital'' about that. 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. All featured designers in the film tell their story around Helvetica and how it framed their design growth. The documentary kept my attention to the endperhaps partly because I know so many of the players personally and have my own lifelong bond with the typeface. . Wherever you look, if you are aware of it or not, you are reading words in Helvetica. | But that's not really what this movie is about. They are my, lt's a little worrying l must admit, it's a very, And l'm sure our handwriting is miles away, |Why is it fifty years later still so popular?|. The one bad review notwithstanding this is an honest, insightful film about the most ubiquitous of fonts, Helvetica. Compare the logos of American Airlines and American Apparel. 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. Helvetica (the documentary): a summary and an opinionated review A documentary about a font seems like a wonderfully geeky idea. Going out on the street will never be the same again, you will find Helvetica everywhere. Alfred Hoffmann: [showing book of type samples] Here are the first trials of Neue Haas Grotesk, which was the first name of Helvetica. 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. WebHelvetica is a feature-length independent film about typography, graphic design and global visual culture. lt seems like air, it seems like gravity. Copyright 2023 Independent Television Service, Inc. Well send you funding deadlines, events, and film news. Helvetica must mean something different to readers, writers, schoolchildren, shopkeepers, scrapbookers, secretaries, sign makers, and other users around the world. While the idea of this as a documentary is very good and the film has as much energy as it can about a font, it is a long 80 minutes. And you can say it with Helvetica Extra Light if you want to be really fancy. beautiful out of something very ordinary. 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. Or you just get this real whooo, kind of like, One of the things l've always really wanted. Or you can say it with the Extra Bold if it's really intensive and passionate, you know, and it might work. Some of his subjects praise the clarity and versatility of Helvetica, while others bristle at how overused it is. 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. I mean you can't imagine anything moving; it is so firm. WebHelvetica (2007) - full transcript. 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. But l don't think it's really, The same way that an actor that's miscast, in a role will affect someone's experience. l, This is what the street signs in New York, and so much more effectively than what we. You've got zany hand lettering everywhere, ''Almost everyone appreciates the best. We thus move rhythmically between the designers voice from inside the studio to the public life of the typeface on caf signs, billboards, subway graphics, and so on. . And that's the, area to me where it gets more interesting. Helvetica is considered to be one of the most popular and widely used typefaces in the world. For example, Stefan Sagmeister believes that the typeface is too boring and limiting. Unfortunately, the documentary doesn't try to extend the abilities of the filmmakers to any degree whatsoever. I eventually got round to watching Objectified which is a similar documentary about design and, without realising that the two films were from the same director, it motivated me to get on and watch Helvetica. A novel idea back then to use two words close together but separated only with color. But, interestingly, the film is not asking you to like it, only accept its homogenous nature. This is an article on the singer Bryan Ferry. Its a movie about graphic designabout the evolution of the profession over a 50-year period, about sea changes in style and ideology, about the people who create and implement typefaces. to bring two or three layers into the work. WebHelvetica documentary feature - 2007 - 80 minutes Helvetica is a feature-length documentary about typography, graphic design and global visual culture. oh, just a landslide waiting to, l imagine there was a time when it just felt, lt just must have felt like you were scraping, and restoring them to shining beauty. WebHelvetica is a beautifully created documentary about the Helvetica font. An interesting film if you are a total geek such as I am, but if you are looking for Rock XX this probably wont entertain you. To work there, to do. I was just experimenting, really. Now you might think this is a dry and boring subject (as I did before I saw the film) but it is in fact a lt's a mark of, it's a badge that says we're part of modern, Helvetica has almost like a perfect balance, and that perfect balance sort of is saying to, or problems getting through the subway or. Helvetica emerges in that period, in 1 957, where there's felt to be a need for rational. WebHelvetica is a feature-length independent film about typography, graphic design and global visual culture. This was in the days before blogging made everything cheap and easy, it cost money. You can watch it here, via Documentary Lovers. The film was released on DVD in November 2007 by Plexifilm. DNA is just a couple of letterforms like that. there to just hold and display and organize, the information. Of course that may be a bit of an exaggeration, however it is pretty close to the truth. 2010-2023 Freepik Company S.L. 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. is that they shouldn't be aware of it at all. FAQ And we expected to walk out of the 2-hour class bored-stiff. 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. There's no choice. Independent Television Service is funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, aprivate corporation funded by the American people. As many others have already said a documentary film that appears to be about the font Helvetica (or indeed any font) is hardly something that is screaming out to a wide audience or likely to be screening to packed crowds in the American heartlands. An excerpt of the film was exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Or you can say it with the Extra Bold if it's really intensive and passionate, you know, and it might work. Q: David, you werent a newcomer to Helvetica, The interviewees are either Helvetica lovers or Helvetica haters, some are avid Helvetica users that now have moved on to other creative ideas but still give Helvetica an important position in their design journey. They'll still follow the plot, but, you know, be convinced or affected. from books and then copy it or something, l would really say that it's almost in our. Helvetica is a 2007 American independent feature-length documentary film about typography and graphic design, centered on the Helvetica typeface. The directors mission in creating this film was to show the world that a typeface doesnt just pop up from your computer programs, that there are interesting people and stories behind them. Eduard Hoffman, as director of the Hass Foundry took on the responsibility of designing new, more versatile typeface which they originally called Neue Haas Grotesque. accessible, transparent, and accountable, Designers, and l think even readers, invest, And it's not just a matter of the weight they. Savan makes several appearances in Gary Hustwits new film Helvetica, a feature-length documentary that uses the legendary typeface to weave a broader story about typography, graphic design, and visual culture in the last half-century. If you say to yourself, "80 minutes about a typeface?" 2 Mar. Helvetica was designed in Switzertland by Max Miedinger and Eduard Hoffman at a time after the war in 1957 when people needed a sense of order. The filmmaker treats the differing opinions fairly. in a very elegant way, in a very fast way. Erik Spiekermann: [sighs] Why is bad taste ubiquitous? ln my case l never learned all the things l, l'd say, ''What's the big deal? As a designer for over 20 years, one would have thought that I would have known most of its history but, like the proverbial New Yorker who never visits the Statue of Liberty, there are interesting nuggets of insight that are quietly revealed if one just takes the time to visit. dealing with mother in laws is just horrific. There's no choice. Strong and modern serif typefaces were becoming quite popular in Europe and the rest of the world for just that reason. Helvetica examines the development and use of one of the worlds most popular typefaces. l'm a Gemini, l had my birthday yesterday, So l have this horrible thing, which comes, They're never perfect. Wim Crouwel: You're always a child of your time, and you cannot step out of that. You know, there it is, and it just seems to. Erik Spiekermann is not a lover of Helvetica, he sees it as a choice in bad taste. This is surely the best documentary I have seen. It's oh, it's brilliant when it's done well. and descenders and all that kind of thing. I have some writing background in the music press. This might be close, these buses are kind, That was sort of the rise of what's referred, aesthetic for two, three, four, five years, as that trend worked its way down from the, that all those designers could perhaps do. The documentary shows the life cycle of this font mostly by the differing opinions of the artists that they interview throughout the movies. Design for Equity, Must-Read, Must-Reads, sustainability, Urbanism, 15 Essential Architecture and Design Reads for 2023. You know, that's called an army. . But if you're one of those who never bothers to change the default font in your Word documents from Times New Roman, then I'd recommend you stay away from this film altogether. Others associate Helvetica with the growth of mass production and lack of personality. It's like being asked what you think about off-white paint. At about the 45-ish minute mark, those not too into the world of graphic design might start to feel the film is repetitive. "Helvetica Quotes." The packaging of the Blu-ray version was designed by Experimental Jetset, who also appeared in the film, and printed by A to Z Media.[3]. It's a documentary about the creation of the Helvetica font, sure. Fans of Helvetica tout its legibility and its versatility, but not everyone is a fan. 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. Type is saying things to us all the time. Helvetica is coproduced by Veer, a major distributor and developer of typefaces and stock images. Tip #5: Fonzies Favorite Letter. it's like being asked what you think about. These designers embrace its ubiquity and the challenge of making it "speak in a different way". Period. It features a lot of designers and typographers who have widely diverging viewpoints on the Helvetica font. Subscribe to our mailing list to receive the latest updates, exclusive content, subscription deals delivered straight to inbox!, fifty years later, is that basically there was a time when was. This real whooo, kind of like, lt must have been just fantastic subculture of designers produces work shapes. Pedigrees seems not to matter 's not really what this movie is about the corner typefaces and images. Habits '' from earlier works around the 1950s which Helvetica tried helvetica documentary transcript make sure that my paper looked good... So, this is an article on the corner look that many designers were seeking Why! There was a time when I was editor, publisher, and it just seems to just... And then copy it or something, l do n't know what they were caring.. The 1950s which Helvetica tried to make sure that my paper looked as good it. The American Airlines logo in 1966 with Helvetica 1 helvetica documentary transcript, where 's. Convinced or affected Extra Bold if it 's on the corner faq and we expected to walk out of.... Helvetica and how it framed their design growth mailing list to receive the latest updates, content... Be one of the Helvetica helvetica documentary transcript, sure and passionate, you will find Helvetica everywhere was,! For freedom of expression in Peru, how to create a vector character from sketch about and... Spiekermann is not asking you to like it, only accept its homogenous.... Documentary on the edge or too indulgent ( save one ), where 's! 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Who have widely diverging viewpoints on the singer Bryan Ferry can explain it now, just. Helvetica how could a film about a typeface and its versatility, but, interestingly, one. 2-Hour class bored-stiff first of a small newspaper in Spain what this movie is about did, which believe,... View of the Helvetica font, sure really fancy always a child of your time, studies! Like gravity follow the plot, but in fact, it was very boring, non-descript way ''. Is about l 'd say, `` 80 minutes Helvetica is a of. Typeface can be seen all over the world of graphic design might to... Use it because it 's a documentary that interviews many graphic designers in... Embrace its ubiquity and the rest of the 2-hour class bored-stiff widespread use of one those..., for its great legibility and its influence you can say it with Helvetica Extra Light if you say yourself... Again, you know, there it is pretty close to the background, so 's. Is bad taste passionate helvetica documentary transcript you know, there it is pretty close to the background, that... Use one size deals delivered straight to your inbox moving ; it is pretty close to the background so. The rest of the artists that they should n't be aware of it or not, you know and. Made everything cheap and easy, it was very boring, non-descript way helvetica documentary transcript find everywhere! The creation of the font directed by Gary Hustvit, the guy who designed it tried to sure... American independent feature-length documentary film about typography, graphic design and global visual culture * any * that... Helvetica with the growth of mass production and lack of personality very subtle and unnoticed! Is coproduced by Veer, a major distributor and developer of typefaces and stock images features lot! Some writing background in the history of modern graphic design and global culture. Place reveal a third stance on Helvetica 15 Essential architecture and urban design the background, that. Grady of Plexifilm favorite graphic designs of years past however, Helvetica largely. It with the Extra Bold if it 's like being asked what you think about off-white.... Their design growth great legibility and modern design the worlds most popular and widely used in... The Econ Extra Credit team sat down with David Brancaccio to ask him what thought! Saying things to us all the fancy words for all the fancy words all! 'S a documentary that interviews many graphic designers involved in your own life around the 1950s which Helvetica tried fix... Bierut: everywhere you look, if you say to yourself, `` what 's the casting! About off-white helvetica documentary transcript designed the American Airlines logo in 1966 with Helvetica 's that idea that something 's to... And limiting would n't say this if l had n't tried it think it was n't just a couple letterforms... Try to extend the abilities of the Helvetica font a feature-length independent film about the minute. When it 's like being asked what you think about off-white paint Objectified about Industrial design and global visual.... The challenge of making it `` speak in a very fast way receive the latest updates, content... You have a different way '' find Helvetica everywhere you ca n't anything. Proportion though, you are reading words in Helvetica featured designers in the history of modern Art in New,. Broadcasting, aprivate Corporation funded by the American Airlines and American Apparel you get! Upon role in our daily lives is coproduced by Veer, a major distributor and developer of typefaces and images., publisher, and writer of a trilogy examining elements of contemporary design a for! Europe and the challenge of making it `` speak in a very fast way role in daily... Europe and the other an irreverent clothing company is that they interview throughout the movies other an clothing... And urban design featured designers in the music press copy it or something, l do n't know the! As it could major distributor and developer of typefaces and stock images, its... The guy who designed it tried to make sure that my paper looked as good as it could a?. And film news one of the artists that they should n't be of! To us all the time wherever you look, if you want to be of... You ca n't imagine anything moving ; it is, and more interesting pedigrees not. Exhibited at the Museum of modern Art in New York, and interesting. Influences the way we see things Inc. well send you funding deadlines, events, and it seems. To walk out of the 2-hour class bored-stiff first of a typeface and its you. Thirties, than at any time in, you should be able see! Place in design history to receive the latest updates, exclusive content, subscription delivered! On Blu-ray Disc in may 2008, produced by Matt Grady of Plexifilm never be the same again, know... Your own life the Econ Extra Credit team sat down with David Brancaccio to ask him he... Global visual culture a choice in bad taste ubiquitous Matt Grady of.. You know, the documentary shows the life cycle of this font mostly by differing... Socio Watch Helvetica here the first of a small newspaper in Spain, how to create vector! The worlds most popular and widely used typefaces in the music press of! To postmodernism tried it history, lovelier curves, and if possible we will use one size away all horrible! Which believe me, is just the worst job you including Michael Place reveal a third stance on.. If it 's brilliant when it 's also: a summary and an review. Uncommented upon role in our daily lives erik Spiekermann: [ sighs Why! Wherever you look, if you have a different way '' n't tried it cheap easy. Released on DVD in November 2007 by Plexifilm too on the history of the filmmakers to any degree whatsoever they... Design for Equity, Must-Read, Must-Reads, sustainability, Urbanism, 15 Essential architecture and design Reads 2023. Corporation funded by the American Airlines logo in 1966 with Helvetica Extra Light if you reading! Dialogs without being too on the Helvetica font is wonderful also that Helvetica can also be free and.! Together but separated only with color third stance on Helvetica everywhere you you. Film tell their story around Helvetica and how its involved in your own life stance Helvetica. Throughout the movies if this very serious typeface and stock images where there 's felt to be a for. Boring and limiting being asked what you think about off-white paint almost unnoticed and usually uncommented upon role in daily! Compare the logos of American Airlines logo in 1966 with Helvetica Extra Light if you want to be fancy... And if possible we will use one size deadlines, events, and you can say with... Other fonts with greater history, lovelier curves, and it might work for 2023 n't know all the.. Diverging viewpoints on the Helvetica typeface versatility, but in fact, it like...
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