A documentary film about Adriano Olivetti.
Social & External
Helvetica is a feature-length independent film about typography, graphic design and global visual culture. 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. 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.
A portrait of the inventor of the letterpress, who was a key figure in the history of mankind, but also an enthusiastic inventor, a daring businessman, a tenacious troublemaker: the life of Johannes Gutenberg (circa 1400-68).
Why has letterpress printing survived? Irreplaceable knowledge of the historic craft is in danger of being lost as its caretakers age. Fascinating personalities intermix with wood, metal, and type as young printers save a traditional process in Pressing On, a 4K feature-length documentary exploring the remarkable community keeping letterpress alive.
Hanzi is a documentary exploring international design, visual culture, and identity through the lens of modern Chinese typography. The film covers a variety of topics such as how languages shape identity, and what role handwriting plays in the digital age.
A short, educational animation about the history of fonts and typography. In a paper cutout stop-motion style, it begins with Gutenberg's creation of the first typeface, travels through the innovations of Jenson, Caslon, and Bodoni, to the modern creation of Futura and the democratization of fonts in the digital age. A charming, engaging film about a technology that is all around us, but few people know much about.
Documentary on the French graphic and visual artist and designer, editor, artistic director, and teacher who is known for his widely-used fonts.
Alberto Casiraghy and Josef Weiss are true bibliophile artists. One in Osnago, the other in Mendrisio, they have been dedicating themselves for years to valuable editorial and typographical activities, still printing with mobile characters, preserving the memory of a perfect ingenuity made of manual skills and technique, but also of inventiveness and poetry. Silvio Soldini gives us a realistic and poetical portrait of these two artists-artisans, who chose one of the oldest professions in a modern world, finding great success and approval.
A fascinating documentary about Piet Zwart (1885–1977), an idiosyncratic and stubborn designer, who lived for innovation and prepared the way for the international success that is now known as Dutch Design. Piet Zwart worked as an interior and industrial designer, commercial typographer, photographer, critic and lecturer, playing a key role in defining the design climate in the Netherlands in the Twentieth Century. He is especially known for designing the famous ‘Piet Zwart’ kitchen for the Dutch company Bruynzeel: a kitchen that could be easily produced and consisted of standardized elements. His versatility and influence on present-day designers led the Association of Dutch Designers to award him the title of “Designer of the Century” in 2000.
Portrait of a Mexico City neighborhood where pages and pages are printed, and little by little, words appear. Máquinas de Palabras is a performance created in March 2023 in Mexico City, and is the result of a collaboration between Labo K (Rennes-based film laboratory) and LEC (Laboratorio de Cine Experimental) in Mexico City. A portrait of a Mexico City neighborhood where pages and pages are printed. And little by little, words appear... "From the deliberate use of found images to films that make uncompromising use of raw material, the camera and the plants will take our eyes... Pupils will certainly be illuminated by the projector... How can moving images stay in our heads?"
The Alphabeticians is a cinematic observational documentary exploring the power of relationships and the resilience of creative spirit. The film follows a turning point in the life of Lida Cardozo Kindersley, who runs a renowned lettercutting workshop in Cambridge, England. Having inherited the workshop from her husband and former teacher David Kindersley, Lida poured her soul into her work for nearly half a century. Approaching her seventieth birthday, she prepares for the next step: to hand the workshop on to her son and daughter-in-law. This moment of transition offers a portal to deeper themes: what significance do heritage crafts have in the modern world? And what legacies are we passing to future generations?
Dedicated Dutch graphic designer Piet Schreuders visits Los Angeles to investigate all kinds of typeface as used in title-credits for movies and TV-series, letters on billboards, shop-windows or street-signs, the banner-headlines of The Los Angeles Times, and climbs finally to the giant letters of the HOLLYWOOD-sign. In the meantime he discovers, to his great satisfaction, the location and stairs where Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy shot their movie 'The Musicbox', by combining street-signs, partially shown on still-pictures of this movie: "…MONTE" and "…ENDOME", which turn out to be found on the street corner of Del Monte and Vendome in Culver City. This documentary is bluntly intercut with commercials, a phenomenon not yet known in the Netherlands in 1979. (Theo Uittenbogaard)
Goodwin & Goodwin are a creative sign company based in North London — an eclectic, international team of architects, designers, typographers and sign makers. From their passion for retro typography, through to their pride in seeing the final pieces hanging on the wall, this is a heart-warming documentary about hand-crafted design and teamwork.
Words that start with the letter O, P, and R. A typographic animation.
Words that end in -ake and start with ch-. A typographic animation.
Georgie discusses a bubble font he designed and released himself -- to no acclaim.
Join world renowned chefs, Pierre Sang & Cédric Grolet, as they travel Saudi Arabia experiencing new flavours, meeting other chefs and learning Arabic cooking techniques.
A group of LGBTQ+ comedians get together to celebrate a brand of queer comedy. Legends, headliners, and emerging talent all perform at The Greek Theatre for an unforgettable queer stand-up event.
Documents the 1974 Giro d'Italia, from the Pope's blessing of the riders to the record-tying finish.
A doctor investigates hazardous working conditions in Hollywood, and discovers untold stories of enormous personal sacrifice and life-threatening risks for those working in an industry that brings us the movies and TV shows we cherish.
I took the southern train at Hua Lamphong for the first time, and I wanted to recorded the experience. However, because of the flood, we eventually returned to our starting place at Hua Lamphong.
A documentary that explores the downloading revolution; the kids that created it, the bands and the businesses that were affected by it, and its impact on the world at large.
A detailing of the rise to prominence and global sporting superstardom of six supremely talented young Manchester United football players (David Beckham, Nicky Butt, Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Phil and Gary Neville). The film covers the period 1992-1999, culminating in Manchester United's European Cup triumph.
JB Smoove and Martin Starr host a celebration of 20 years of "Spider-Man" movies, from the Sam Raimi trilogy to Marc Webb's movies and the trio from Jon Watts.
A compilation of over 30 years of private home movie footage shot by Lithuanian-American avant-garde director Jonas Mekas, assembled by Mekas "purely by chance", without concern for chronological order.
The life of a dying young man at the short age of only forty-one after playing the lead in Il postino. He was a brilliant stage actor before becoming an astonishing film director.
A backstage and on-stage look at Justin Bieber during his rise to super stardom.
A portrait of the comic trio "Aldo, Giovanni e Giacomo".
The Making-of James Cameron's Avatar. It shows interesting parts of the work on the set.
Martin Scorsese's documentary intertwines footage from The Band's incredible farewell tour with probing backstage interviews and featured performances by Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Van Morrison, and other rock legends.
A documentary about the making of season five of the acclaimed AMC series Breaking Bad.
A visual montage portrait of our contemporary world dominated by globalized technology and violence.
SEDUCED AND ABANDONED combines acting legend Alec Baldwin with director James Toback as they lead us on a troublesome and often hilarious journey of raising financing for their next feature film. Moving from director to financier to star actor, the two players provide us with a unique look behind the curtain at the world's biggest and most glamourous film festival, shining a light on the bitter-sweet relationship filmmakers have with Cannes and the film business. Featuring insights from directors Martin Scorsese, 'Bernando Bertolucci' and Roman Polanski; actors Ryan Gosling and Jessica Chastain and a host of film distribution luminaries.
The life and career of one of comedy's most inimitable modern voices, Mr. Gilbert Gottfried.
Alex Gibney explores the charged issue of pedophilia in the Catholic Church, following a trail from the first known protest against clerical sexual abuse in the United States and all way to the Vatican.
A comedic, brutally honest documentary following self-destructive TV writer Dan Harmon as he takes his live podcast on a national tour.
To mark the recent thirtieth anniversary of Sergio Leone’s death, this documentary sets out to pay tribute to one of the great legends of world cinema. The singular artistic vision of Sergio Leone has transcended national borders, creating the Spaghetti Western genre and transforming the international cinematic panorama forever with his innovative stylistic and narrative solutions, which have now become part of the language of the movies. The film, which is enriched with precious archive footage from the Cineteca di Bologna, including rare audio recordings and film clips shot behind the scenes, sees for the first time the direct participation of the Leone family and has interviews both with Leone’s longtime collaborators and with icons of Hollywood who have been profoundly influenced by his work.
A documentary chronicling Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour's preparations for the 2007 fall-fashion issue.
Martin Scorsese’s portrait of writer and social commentator Fran Lebowitz, celebrated for her sharp wit and observations on modern life. Filmed at New York’s Waverly Inn and intercut with archival footage and interviews, the documentary captures Lebowitz’s distinctive worldview through her spontaneous monologues and public appearances.
A documentary chronicling Queen and Lambert's incredible journey since they first shared the stage together on "American Idol" in 2009.
This revealing documentary honors the legendary Sidney Poitier—iconic actor, filmmaker, and civil rights activist. Featuring interviews with Denzel Washington, Spike Lee, Halle Berry, and more.
