Hanzi

Documentary on the French graphic and visual artist and designer, editor, artistic director, and teacher who is known for his widely-used fonts.

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.

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.

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).

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.

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.

INK follows Tanja Tiziana – a freelance photographer in Toronto, Canada – and her journey to rediscover the written word.

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?"

A documentary about calligraphy.

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?

Some argue that modern graffiti was born in Philadelphia, where the pioneers of wall-writing became citywide celebrities during the late 1960s and early 1970s. Graffiti eventually consumed the city, and a new mayor made it his top priority to fight back. In the process, the city's Mural Arts Program was born. Philadelphia is now a great outdoor museum. Yet graffiti still thrives, with new writers always ready to replace those who are caught or quit.

In a comparative study between different forms of calligraphy, the film traces parallels between modern Japanese painting and traditional Japanese writing.

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.

Through the eyes of twelve international artists "Traces of the soul" explores the world of contemporary calligraphy and why it is an increasingly relevant art form in this digital age. The film reveals how the art, philosophies, and life stories of these artists, whose diverse work is rooted in the ancient traditions of calligraphy, reflect and engage with the modern world.

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.

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