Top Must-See Movies for Designers
If you are as fond of typefaces, visual culture, and graphic design as we are, you’ll also appreciate the films enjoyed by Cadabra Studio. We have curated this list to help any designers or artists find a great foundation and fresh inspiration.
The list features some time tested classics with new documentaries — from street art to industrial design. Here’s the selection of films meant to provide mental stimulation and give an urge to create. Besides, there are top recommendations at the end of the article from Cadabra Studio designers. Enjoy watching!
Objectified, 2009
Directed by Gary Hustwitt, this movie highlights tripartite relationships between consumers, manufactured objects, and the people who design them. It’s an eye-candy tribute to the design process and the industrial design itself. After watching the movie, you will have a clear understanding of how manufactured products (and their designers) impact our lives.
Design Is One: The Vignellis, 2012
This documentary movie is about the world’s most influential Italian-born designers — Lella and Massimo Vignelli. They are the creators of a famous design motto — “If you can’t find it, design it.” Due to their broad spectrum of work (from graphics to interiors), the Vignellis are known by a large audience. The film shows the work and everyday routine of the Vignellis’ world, capturing their intelligence and creativity, as well as their humanity, warmth, and humor.
Exit Through the Gift Shop: A Banksy Film, 2010
This British movie, directed by the controversial street artist Banksy and narrated by Rhys Ifans, tells a story of Thierry Guetta, a French immigrant living in Los Angeles, and his obsession with street art. In the movie, Guetta documents many famous street art pioneers and talks about the importance of authenticity and what it means to be a superstar in a subculture built on shunning the mainstream.
PressPausePlay, 2011
This documentary film contains interviews with some of the world’s most influential creators of the digital era. PressPausePlay helps find answers to questions like “Does democratized culture mean better art, film, music, and literature?” “Has a true talent flooded and drowned in the vast digital ocean of mass culture?” Controversial but exciting movie.
Milton Glaser: To inform and delight, 2008
No surprise, the movie is about one of the most legendary designers of the 20th century Milton Glaser. He is best known for designing that iconic “I Love NY” campaign and more. The film validates every reason you decided to become a graphic designer.
Eames: The Architect and the Painter, 2011
Eames: The Architect & The Painter tells a success story of America’s most influential industrial designers — Charles and Ray Eames. The movie is full of interviews with friends, colleagues, and experts, so spectators can capture Charles and Ray’s personal story while placing them in the context of their iconic status in American culture.
Beauty is Embarrassing, 2012
A documentary presents the life of artist Wayne White. He started his career as a cartoonist in NYC and quickly found success as one of the Pee-wee’s Playhouse TV show creators. Subsequently, the show’s work led to the creation of the most arresting and iconic images in pop culture.
Indie Game: The Movie, 2012
Indie Game is a documentary that follows the journeys of indie game developers. The film is about the struggles of independent game developers during the creation of such famous games as Super Meat Boy, Fez, and Braid. The movie aims to show game development in the “past, present, and future” tenses through each individual’s story.
Design Canada, 2018
The film Design Canada tells the story of Canada logo creation. It presents the interrelation and interaction of the design and formation of national identity. The logo creation allowed Canada to get out of the colony’s reputation and become a living, independent, multicultural country. The movie also explores the works of a number of Canadian graphic designers and walks you through the untold story of graphics that shaped Canada’s identity.
Rams, 2018
A film is about Dieter Rams, a prominent industrial designer, a key designer at Braun for over 30 years. He transformed the industrial design by creating something not only beautiful but also functional.
Once, he said: “It’s impossible to understand good design if you don’t understand people.” The movie’s plot is based on this quotation, showing Dieter Rams as a man who knows how to do “that work” both from an aesthetic and practical perspective.
The Genius of Design, 2010
The BBC describes this 5-episode documentary as “the story of the world that designers have created for us.” The episodes tell in chronological order about industrial design development, inventions that have changed modern life. It is a pure inspiration for those who believe that design is not about appearance, but functionality.
Graphic Means: A History of Graphic Design Production, 2016
Graphic Means explores graphic design production of the 1950s through the 1990s — from line caster to photocomposition, and from paste-up to PDF. The film describes the methods, tools, and evolving social roles that gave rise to the graphic design industry as we know it today.
Logorama, 2009
Being a 15-minute animated movie, Logorama is a real pleasure for logo designers. The story takes place in a dystopian Los Angeles, where literally everything and everyone is made of a logo, and a brutal Ronald McDonald starts a shooting rampage. Produced by the French company H5, it won an Academy Award for best animated short.
Steve Jobs, 2015
Steve Jobs is a 2015 British-American biographical drama film directed by Danny Boyle and written by Aaron Sorkin. Many Product Designers and Marketologists find this movie incredibly inspiring. The screenplay is adapted from the 2011 biography by Walter Isaacson and interviews conducted by Aaron Sorkin. The story covers 14 years (1984–1998) in the life of Apple Inc. co-founder Steve Jobs.
Recommendations From Cadabra Studio Designers
Helvetica, 2007
It is considered to be a classical design movie. The documentary is about the world-famous typeface Helvetica. Directed by Gary Hustwit, the film presents Helvetica’s history, the reasons for its popularity, and universal appeal. It also examines how typography and graphic design affect our culture.
Abstract — The Art of Design, 2017–2019
Abstract is a two-season serial from Netflix that is widely popular among designers worldwide. Moreover, it is a top recommended documentary from our designers at Cadabra Studio.
A serial highlights the principle according to which all creative professions exist. In two seasons of the series, this principle is revealed and proved. Each episode of the Abstract is dedicated to one designer. Living and real. And it covers all the aspects of their lives as designers.
Besides, we recommend watching the films of Wes Anderson and Hayao Miyazaki. These filmmakers are absolutely genius and honored because their works are known for their eccentricity and distinctive visual and narrative styles.
In each of his films, Miyazaki has employed traditional animation methods, drawing each frame by hand. Wes Anderson has been noted for his flat space camera moves, symmetrical compositions, a limited color palette, etc.
Many designers recognize these listed movies all over the world. Each movie is a mix of solid design experience and inspiration, so don’t hesitate to start watching them. If you have more documentaries to recommend, let us know or leave a comment.
