The fantastic documentary Helvetica is going to air on PBS tomorrow night (check your local listings!). My friend Sandra and I actually traveled to The City on a weeknight(!) to see this film in the theater when it was first released back in 2007. It was definitely worth the drive.
Apparently the television version isn’t full-length, but I’m sure it’s still good. Those German and Swiss designers have some pretty hilarious things to say, and man are they passionate about type! One of my favorite quotes from the movie comes from Massimo Vignelli (designer of the NYC subway signage & the American Airlines logo):
You can say, “I love you,” in Helvetica. And you can say it with Helvetica Extra Light if you want to be really fancy. Or you can say it with the Extra Bold if it’s really intensive and passionate, you know, and it might work.
PBS/Independent Lens has a little site up about the film, which gets extra awesome points for having a What Font Are You Quiz. It turns out that I’m Times New Roman: “Some call you timeless – others call you a snob. Either way, you’re a class act all around. Just don’t take yourself too seriously.”
Who knew?
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