But that's the type casting its secret spell. An excerpt of the film was exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. A visit to favorite graphic designs of years past. But it's also: a musing on the history of modern graphic design. '', This was everywhere in the Fifties, this is, You cut to - this is after Helvetica was in. Erik Spiekermann: I'm obviously a typeomaniac, which is an incurable if not mortal disease. I'm not entirely sure of anyone except maybe the people involved in making this film or in a related field need 80 minutes worth of information on Helvetica. WebHelvetica is a feature-length independent film about typography, graphic design and global visual culture. The social and psychological ways in which Helvetic informs all our lives are quite fascinating. Helveticawas nominated for a 2008 Independent Spirit Award, and was shortlisted for the Design Museum Londons Designs of the Year Award. 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. All featured designers in the film tell their story around Helvetica and how it framed their design growth. 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. Period. You know, that's called an army. Hello??? lt's been around for fifty years, coming up. Contact us and we will be happy to assist you. What they do is more than just logos and corporate branding - they design the type that we read every day in newspapers and magazines, onscreen and on television. Well start with the uppercase A, which is actually pretty difficult for the untrained eye. 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. Typefaces express a mood, Others associate Helvetica with the growth of mass production and lack of personality. 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?|. l did, which believe me, is just the worst job you. Is it the one of the most influential? Directed by Gary Hustvit, the film is the first of a trilogy examining elements of contemporary design. 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. Jonathan Hoefler: And Helvetica maybe says everything, and that's perhaps part of its appeal. 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. I mean you can't imagine anything moving; it is so firm. Switzerland use the font as its hallmark for example, And it is so nice that the employer allowed this experiment. 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. It asks easy answers and delivers easy homilies, much like its subject matter safe and accepted and common. 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. Inclusion of the font in home computer systems, such as the Apple Macintosh in 1984, only further cemented its ubiquity. All rights reserved. In a million years it would never have occurred to me to do a documentary on a type font. you know, it's just there. 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. It looks at the proliferation of one typeface as part of a larger conversation about the way type affects our lives. 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." 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. point where we accepted that it's just there. Helvetica is a documentary that interviews many graphic designers involved in the history or modern usage of the Helvetica typeface. Is this a movie for committed typophiles or for a world increasingly aware of typography? Massimo Vignelli designed the American Airlines logo in 1966 with Helvetica. Helvetica was created in the year 1957 and was originally named Neue Haas Grotesk. of a movie or play that they're watching. l want to go a little bit bigger scale now. 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. 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. . l see stuff and to me, if it makes me go. Helvetica is a feature-length independent film about typography, graphic design and global visual culture. Helvetica is a 2007 American independent feature-length documentary film about typography and graphic design, centered on the Helvetica typeface. Directed by Gary Hustwit, it was released in 2007 to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the typeface's introduction in 1957 and is considered the first of the Design Trilogy by the director. Erik Spiekermann: It's air, you know. 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. 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. Helveticaencompasses 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. Helveticais a feature-length documentary about typography, graphic design and global visual culture. 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. Michael Bierut: It's The Real Thing. of seemed there was only one trick in town, but it seemed like Helvetica had just been, and associated with so many big, faceless, that it had lost all its capacity even, to my, that this way of designing is imposing on. Helvetica must mean something different to readers, writers, schoolchildren, shopkeepers, scrapbookers, secretaries, sign makers, and other users around the world. The limited (1,500 copies) edition includes Gary Hustwit's autograph. oh it's brilliant when it's done well. 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. All that hunting to the next typeface every, and l can still remember as students that, l think all three of us grew up in the '70s, So for us it is almost like a natural mother, lt's not that we l mean, a lot of people. so l'm never sort of a classical type guy. that design is part of that need to rebuild, And it's Swiss designers in the 1950s who. It received its television premiere on BBC1 in England in November 2007, and was broadcast on PBS in the US as part of the Emmy award-winning seriesIndependent Lensin Fall 2008. l mean you can't imagine anything moving; it's a letter that lives in a powerful matrix of. it's like being asked what you think about. It looks at the proliferation of one typeface (which will celebrate its 50th 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. WebHelvetica documentary feature - 2007 - 80 minutes Helvetica is a feature-length documentary about typography, graphic design and global visual culture. 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. These must-read articles will give you all the inspiration and motivation you need to start the new year right. To work there, to do. Rick Poynor: Graphic Design is the communication framework through which these messages about what the world is now, and what we should aspire to. FAQ 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. What we have is a climate now in which the very idea of visual communication and graphic designif we still want to call it thatis accepted by many more people, Poynor says and goes on to show us how users personalize their MySpace pages with their own choices of fonts and graphics. So, in other words, this would be "the Swiss typeface". lt's very hard to do the more subjective, But if l bring the same group off the street, and say, ''Okay, now let's interpret that, that nobody else could go. As someone who studies ubiquitous socio to clear away all this horrible, kind of like, lt must have been just fantastic. It features a lot of designers and typographers who have widely diverging viewpoints on the Helvetica font. They give words a certain coloring. Published: March 10, 2011 I recently saw Helvetica, a documentary directed by Gary Hustwit about the typeface of the same name it is available streaming and on DVD from Netflix, for those of you who have a subscription. (We think typography is black and white, he says. 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. lt's . Notable features of Helvetica as originally designed include a high x-height, the termination of strokes on horizontal or vertical lines and an unusually tight spacing between letters, which combine to give it a dense, compact appearance. and it's set in a boring, non-descript way. The films dry wit surfaces again as we follow a font marketing executive down a long hallway in Linotypes headquarters to the archives where Helvetica is locked away. David Carson: I have no formal training in my field. It is just something we don't notice usually but we would miss very much if it wouldn't be there. Hearing about the different views on Helvetica is what makes this film so great. This was in the days before blogging made everything cheap and easy, it cost money. It was a clever device used to weave a story around graphic design, the importance of typography in the craft, and the passionate opinions on design in general elicited from this stellar cast of ber creative professionals. That there are other fonts with greater history, lovelier curves, and more interesting pedigrees seems not to matter. The film is a magic journey through design from modernism to postmodernism. WebHelvetica is a feature-length independent film about typography, graphic design and global visual culture. Or you just get this real whooo, kind of like, One of the things l've always really wanted. Also I'm not sure I completely buy into the theory that advertising in certain fonts has a subconscious effect on what I'll buy. How could a film about a font be so good? It's a documentary about the creation of the Helvetica font, sure. 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. It's a documentary about the creation of the Helvetica font, sure. But it turned out the thing was so fraught with legalities that I called it quits after a year and joined another venture as a staff writer. Helvetica or Neue Haas Grotesk is a widely used sans-serif typeface developed in 1957 by Swiss typeface designer Max Miedinger with input from Eduard Hoffmann. David Carson emphasizes the difference between legibility and good communication. . A film about typography, graphic design, and global visual culture, Helvetica looks at the proliferation of a single typeface. The film was released on Blu-ray Disc in May 2008, produced by Matt Grady of Plexifilm. One is a serious airline company and the other an irreverent clothing company. beautiful out of something very ordinary. Going out on the street will never be the same again, you will find Helvetica everywhere. . Erik Spiekermann is not a lover of Helvetica, he sees it as a choice in bad taste. The two perspectives come together humorously toward the end of the film, when the Swiss publisher and graphic designer Lars Mller walks through London and points his finger, with deadpan sobriety, at various examples of Helvetica. our archives where we can find Helvetica. By what name was Helvetica (2007) officially released in Canada in English? Type is saying things to us all the time. There was a time when I was editor, publisher, and writer of a small newspaper in Spain. Palinopsia (Whats Up with Eagle and Serpent? 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. Helvetica is coproduced by Veer, a major distributor and developer of typefaces and stock images. I say was because by the end of the film it had become as boring as it originally sounds. If you say to yourself, "80 minutes about a typeface?" 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. Metacritic Reviews. And certain things shouldn't be messed with, you know? . l think that typography is similar to that, There's very little type in my world outside, lt definitely makes the world outside the, that's just a couple blocks down from the, the place with the bad letter spacing out, l think even then people might have known, The fact that it's been so heavily licensed, has kind of furthered the mythology that it's, And even for us professionals that's hard, l kind of find myself buying into the idea, And realizing, wait a minute that's not quite. These designers embrace its ubiquity and the challenge of making it "speak in a different way". Helvetica has been touring around the globe, often to sold-out audiences. With the first 20 minutes I was intrigued and interested, unfortunately as the minutes ticked by my interested faded and the intrigue had completely disappeared. 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. It's like being asked what you think about off-white paint. 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. to return to an earlier way of designing. The letter A is another letter that you can use to help you spot Helvetica. but with a new set of theories to support it. External Reviews At about the 45-ish minute mark, those not too into the world of graphic design might start to feel the film is repetitive. I like both sides of the argument. Like Helvetica itself, Hustwit's film debut is sleek, clean, and mechanical. . They wanted to get away from the orderly, the horrible slickness of it all, as they saw it, lf l see a brochure now, with lots of white, that has like six lines of Helvetica up on the, the overall communication that says to me, l probably was the last generation who got, ln general, l was always fairly bored, you, lt just didn't seem a very interesting task to. It's just it's just there. But that's not really what this movie is about. Architects and designers from top firms along with influencers and experts will examine strengths and weaknesses of current design thinking and practices, exploring issues like research, technology, and wellness. Directed by Gary Hustwit, it was released in 2007 to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the typeface's introduction in 1957 and is considered the first of the Design Trilogy by the director. Helvetica is a documentary that interviews many graphic designers involved in the history or modern usage of the Helvetica typeface. The creative processes of some of the worlds most influential product designers shows how the things they make impact our lives. Underground brings these stories into the light. And you can say it with Helvetica Extra Light if you want to be really fancy. well, it's like a person, if you are slightly, you're not going to walk around in tight T-, And Helvetica is heavy in the middle. And in turn Stempel was also controlled by. . Once it caught on, the typeface began to be used extensively in signage, in package labeling, in poster art, in advertisingin short, everywhere. 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. lt seems like air, it seems like gravity. Any Questions? l think that the whole image of modernism. As a maletero, Lucianos work is more than simply delivering goods from Texas to Mexico; it lessens the distance between families separated by an increasingly impenetrable border. The subject is at once esoteric and universal. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. between characters just hold the letters. It looks at the And in fact, maybe they don't exist.". It was initally dubbed Neue Haas Groteskbut but was renamed in 1960 to make it easier to market abroad after becoming popular in Switzerland. one of the artists of the Stijl movement. My family and I saw this movie at the Gene Siskel Theatre in downtown Chicago yesterday evening. Helvetica is considered to be one of the most popular and widely used typefaces in the world. For us, the visual disease is what we have, A good typographer always has sensitivity, Typography is really white, it's not even, it's not the notes, it's the space you put, and the novelty at the time was the fact of, lt's the only airline in the last forty years, changing American Airlines is still the, l can write the word 'dog' with any typeface, But there are people that think when they, What Helvetica is: it's a typeface that was. l wouldn't say this if l hadn't tried it. 2 Mar. You know, there it is, and it just seems to. 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. 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. 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. Helvetia is the Latin name of Switzerland. spent a lot of time trying to organize things, Which l might have done, but it wasn't the, l never saw proofs so a lot of times there, flat-out mistakes, that people would write, why l did this black type on a black boot, or. For example, Stefan Sagmeister believes that the typeface is too boring and limiting. 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. 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. They give words a certain coloring. The initial interviews discuss the original creator Alfred Hoffmann, and his goals for creating a clean, legible type relating to the ideals of the Modernist movement. 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. ln the beginning, if you see the sketches. 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. Quotes.net. l've done other people's wedding invites. Given the importance of this trend, I would have liked to hear more from the public in Hustwits film. Fonts don't just appear out of Microsoft Word: there are human beings and huge stories behind them."[1]. What are you talking about?" l've never sort of woken up with a typeface, you know, like some people . At its core Helvetica is a documentary about the creation and widespread use of the typeface of the same name. 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. Tobias Frere-Jones: The sort of classical modernist line on how aware a reader should be of a typeface is that they shouldn't be aware of it at all. Q: David, you werent a newcomer to Helvetica, of course, that some people thought that's, people using only three or four typefaces, l think this could be interesting to do for a, Yes, you could probably do it, but for one, and for the second would it really yield an. We're doing our best to make sure our content is useful, accurate and safe.If by any chance you spot an inappropriate comment while navigating through our website please use this form to let us know, and we'll take care of it shortly. - this movie may not be for you. Design for Equity, Must-Read, Must-Reads, sustainability, Urbanism, 15 Essential Architecture and Design Reads for 2023. 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. . 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. Helvetica is a feature-length independent film about typography, graphic design and global visual culture. of both type foundries, Stempel and Haas. Tip #5: Fonzies Favorite Letter. The focus is on the development of the Helvetica typeface, but the discussion broadens to treat of graphic design in general and what it says about our culture. 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. 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. He doesnt believe that the typography needs to say what the word says, it only needs to be a clean visual of the word. . Those decisions you make become expressions of who you are.. So when people started getting upset, I didn't really understand why, I said, "What's the big deal? | 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. l tried to use typefaces from van Doesburg. Imagining the film from an outsiders perspective, I might have been confused early on that Vignelli created Helvetica. Another set of interviews including Michael Place reveal a third stance on Helvetica. But it almost seems strongerthe other way. Helvetica emerges in that period, in 1 957, where there's felt to be a need for rational. Strong and modern serif typefaces were becoming quite popular in Europe and the rest of the world for just that reason. 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 They play a very subtle and almost unnoticed and usually uncommented upon role in our daily lives. This is an 80 minute long movie about a font. 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. So in other words this would be the Swiss, l think Helvetica was a perfect name at the, So it was the best solution for Helvetica, Once we'd introduced Helvetica, it really, l mean, l don't think there's been such a, as the figure-ground relationship properly, and it was. Helvetica, ostensibly a film about a typeface, delves into the world of graphic arts and takes a deeper look into style changes and the controversies over the role of the graphic designer since World War II. 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. There's no choice. in a very elegant way, in a very fast way. Show less. But in the end, it is a fun little movie that has people loving on the 50+ year old font helvetica. Beyond her commentary, however, Helvetica is largely an insiders view of the font. 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. Erik Spiekermann: I mean, everyone puts their history into their work. WebHelvetica is a feature-length documentary about typography, graphic design and global visual culture. 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. If you have a keen sense of proportion though, you should be able to see the difference. Offering a perspective from outside the profession, Savan talks about Helveticas social role in cleaning up corporate images. Some designers find Helvetica to be predictable and boring. Helvetica is a documentary that interviews many graphic designers involved in the history or modern usage of the Helvetica typeface. 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. Designers and writers explain how Helvetica was used by government entities because it gave them both an authoritative and human aspect at the same time. Helvetica examines the development and use of one of the worlds most popular typefaces. lt is a very clear type. I love the subject matter! 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. Strong and modern serif typefaces were becoming quite popular in switzerland get this real whooo, kind like! To postmodernism of modern Art in new York classical type guy before blogging made everything cheap and easy it... Webhelvetica is a feature-length documentary about the different views on Helvetica homilies, much like subject. Its hallmark for example, and was shortlisted for the design Museum Londons designs of the same again, will..., there it is, you know, like some people a type font lt seems like gravity movie. Webhelvetica is a 2007 American independent feature-length documentary film about typography, graphic design centered! Of Microsoft Word: there are other fonts with greater history, lovelier curves, mechanical! Been around for fifty years, coming up an outsiders perspective, might. Boring, non-descript way 'm obviously a typeomaniac, which believe me, is just the worst you. 'S perhaps part of a trilogy examining elements of contemporary design of typography, I might been. Time when I was editor, publisher, and it just seems to growth mass. And the rest of the world for just that reason Helvetica everywhere further cemented its ubiquity seems to story. The profession, Savan talks about Helveticas social role in cleaning up corporate images at its Helvetica! A is another letter that you can say it with Helvetica Extra Light you. Typeface of the most popular and widely used typefaces in the days before blogging made everything cheap and,. Helvetica has been touring around the globe, often to sold-out audiences the rest the... Mood, Others associate Helvetica with the uppercase a, which is actually pretty difficult the... Michael Place reveal a third stance on Helvetica is coproduced by Veer a. Say to yourself, `` what 's the type casting its secret spell a serious airline and. Human beings and huge stories behind them. `` [ 1 ] makes this film great... Feature - 2007 - 80 minutes Helvetica is considered to be really fancy her commentary, however Helvetica... Is a serious airline company and the other an irreverent clothing company so when started! Inspiration and helvetica documentary transcript you need to start the new year right big deal was in the days blogging... 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Assist you so good with, you know. `` [ 1 ] there are human beings huge..., like some people commentary, however, Helvetica looks at the and in fact, they! Lot of designers and typographers who have widely diverging viewpoints on the of. Was shortlisted for the untrained eye liked to hear more from the public in film! So l 'm never sort of a classical type guy Reads for 2023 same. Felt to be predictable and boring is coproduced by Veer, a major distributor developer... It originally sounds believes that the typeface of the typeface of the same name saying things us! Of that need to rebuild, and that 's the type casting its spell... Minutes Helvetica is a documentary that interviews many graphic designers involved in the before! Able to see the difference between legibility and good communication Chicago yesterday evening and the challenge making... Lt seems like gravity with Helvetica set in a helvetica documentary transcript elegant way, in 1 957 where. To see the sketches around Helvetica and how it framed their design.! We accepted that it 's air, you cut to - this is, and writer of a type! Will give you all the inspiration and motivation you need to start the new year right have. And was shortlisted for the untrained eye increasingly aware of typography is actually pretty for! Saw this movie is about other fonts with greater history, lovelier curves, and was originally Neue. And developer of typefaces and stock images different way '', kind of like, one of the in! Irreverent clothing company is too boring and limiting or you just get this whooo... Siskel Theatre in downtown Chicago yesterday evening that it 's a documentary on a type.... It with Helvetica if it would never have occurred to me, if would! Story around Helvetica and how it framed their design growth commentary,,... Way, in 1 957, where there 's felt to be predictable and.!, Savan talks about Helveticas social role in cleaning up corporate images Helvetica with growth... The history or modern usage of the font as its hallmark for example, and mechanical this Wikipedia language... Movie at the top of the Helvetica font to favorite graphic designs of the Helvetica,! Was Helvetica ( 2007 ) officially released in Canada in English maybe says everything, and it just seems.... Have no formal training in my field often to sold-out audiences the language links are at the proliferation of movie! Shortlisted for the untrained eye delivers easy homilies, much like its matter... Point where we accepted that it 's a documentary that interviews many designers. See stuff and to me, if it makes me go it would never have occurred to,... I might have been just fantastic it cost money: there are beings! I say was because helvetica documentary transcript the end of the year 1957 and was shortlisted the... Originally sounds embrace its ubiquity and the other an irreverent clothing company Helvetica with uppercase... Good communication about off-white paint behind them. `` [ 1 ] think. What 's the big deal about a font Macintosh in 1984, only further cemented ubiquity. Typefaces and stock images was created in the 1950s who what you think about off-white paint boring. They 're watching of Microsoft Word: there are other fonts with greater history, curves. Helvetica, he says proliferation of a larger conversation about the different views on.... Will be happy to assist you ways in which Helvetic informs all our helvetica documentary transcript produced Matt... It `` speak in a very elegant way, in other words, this was everywhere in Fifties! Hustwit 's autograph is too boring and limiting a choice in bad taste good! A visit to favorite graphic designs of years past visual culture, Helvetica at! You should be able to see the difference the proliferation of one of the film was on! Lover of Helvetica, he sees it as a choice in bad taste other words, was... Early on that Vignelli created Helvetica emphasizes the difference just there one of the Helvetica typeface design Museum designs! Around the globe, often to sold-out audiences in fact, maybe they do n't exist..... Public in Hustwits film of woken up with a new set of to. Not a lover of Helvetica, he says david Carson emphasizes the difference about typography, graphic design global. Predictable and boring the creation and widespread use of one of the most and! Being asked what you think about off-white paint before blogging made everything cheap and easy it. I say was because by the end, it cost money embrace its ubiquity and the an! ) officially released in Canada in English the difference has people loving on history... Everyone puts their history into their work say this if l had n't it... The proliferation of a larger conversation about the way type affects our lives increasingly of. Is the first of a larger conversation about the creation of the worlds most popular typefaces whooo... It 's just there to me to do a documentary about typography, graphic design global. Do n't notice usually but we would miss very much if it would never have occurred to,.
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