HELVETICA FILM
Posted in Design, Random by John
Last night I finally managed to catch a 50 minute edit of the Helvetica Film on BBC One. The film celebrates 50 years of the Helvetica typeface and looks at it’s explosion across a huge portfolio of world-known signage, logos and brands. There was an evident divide of opinion between designers who either love or hate the typeface itself, and on a wider note a discussion on the way that type affects our lives. Albeit a bit nerdy, the film is well worth a watch for any individual who doesn’t really understand why, as designers, we can get so obsessive over seemingly insignificant detail. Oh, and if you’re wondering if Helvetica is really THAT prolific then take a wander around your local city centre. Just in Birmingham today…the Orange shop, Gap, HMV…to name but a few. It’s like a silent virus!
November 8th, 2007 at 4:04 pm
This was an interesting watch.
My girlfriend often takes the piss saying I’m a bit of a font geek but this documentary justified why it’s important to care about which type face is used for a design, as it largely affects the tone of what the text actually says.
The guy who used Zapt Dingbats for the boring text content amused me. I might try that on the next uninspired copy I get sent to work with.
It was good to hear the opinions of the haters, but my vote is as a fan of Helvetica.
November 9th, 2007 at 9:34 am
Hi Mark,
Yup, couldn’t agree more. Long live the font geeks!
The guy’s name who used Dingbats was David Carson by the way. He was a real typographic assassin back in the mid 90s! You might want to check out his end of print book if you get a chance.
Cheers, John