Graphic design is an implicit part of the filmmaking process. It is often so implicit, however, as to become obscured by some of the flashier aspects of movies. For this series, we’re hoping to uncover the elements of graphic design in cinema by exploring artists and examples that exhibit great design.
The series starts in Europe in the ’20s. The German Bauhaus, although more commonly recognized for architecture and craft, also had an influence on experimental filmmaking. The films of László Moholy-Nagy and Hans Richter are a good example, and will be exhibited in a special program on April 3, preceded by a lecture on the Bauhaus by RIT Professor R. Roger Remington.
A famed creator of title sequences and movie posters, Saul Bass studied with Bauhaus designers in Manhattan. He later moved to Los Angeles, where he found his innovative ideas in high demand. His clients included Otto Preminger, Alfred Hitchcock, and Billy Wilder, to name a few. A program of his best work will be presented on April 24.
Working simultaneously in Los Angeles was the husband-and-wife duo most responsible for the look called “mid-century modern.” Charles and Ray Eames, best known for their industrial design, also had a prolific career making classroom and industrial films, a selection of which will screen on April 17.
Essential to graphic design is the craft of typography. In Helvetica (April 19 & 20), Gary Hustwit takes a look at the most popular typeface on the planet and interviews a number of exuberant designers about the microscopic science of how the eye reads letters on a page. Before the April 19 screening only, RIT Professor Charles Bigelow will discuss the history of typography.
Bringing us up to date in the design world are the British Television Advertising Awards 2007 (April 10). These advertisements can be appreciated as miniature stories of great wit and ingenuity.
~ Michael Neault, Associate Programmer, Motion Picture Department
Special thanks to Inés Toharia Terán, Fulbright Scholar and 2007 Graduate of the L. Jeffrey Selznick School of Film Preservation, for her help in compiling this series.
