1.
What do you feel is the
message the director is trying to express in this movie? Support your
answer with examples.
I believe the message the director is trying to make is that we
are influenced by the typography and graphic design we see around up. The way something is presented can affect how
it makes us feel. With Helvetica,
however, the message is more in what is being said than the type face that is
presenting the message. For example,
when they talk about the Coke add; all it’s telling you is to drink coke,
period. It gives a more blunt message
saying to say what you see, or read, is what you get.
2.
If applicable , discuss
if you think this movie has accurate depictions of minorities or if they are
situational? Why or why not? N/A
3.
Explain if you think the
director’s ethnic/cultural/professional background played a role in directing
this film?
We are all influenced by the media and by what we see in our day
to day lives. Something as simple as a
type face has affected all of us. This director has clearly been exposed to
graphic design over and over again in his lifetime, or it seems. It seems he wanted to show the effects that
graphic design can produce. This movie
seems to be relating to the culture he has been exposed to. I don’t know if ethnic background has much to
do with it, but what he has been exposed to in his culture and professional
background, it seems, has brought him to the point of making this film.
4.
What groups (people of
color, nationality, culture, class,gender etc.) may be offended or misinterpret
this movie and why?
One thing I noticed in this movie was the abundance of white males
that took the lead. I don’t know if it
will offend anyone, but it may reinforce the stereotype that this is a
profession for primarily white men.
5.
What the movie added to
your visual literacy?
I know this movie will cause me to look at the graphic design of
things more often. Not only the design,
but the types face being used. I will
notice, what I think is the message trying to be produced from the way it is
laid out and the type used. It really
goes to show how visuals can affect how you feel towards something. As a future teacher, this will be helpful
when presenting material to students.
6.
What kind of artistic
and/or visual means did the director use in the movie to focus our attention?
The director used a ton of examples to explain the affect
typography can have on our society. He
showed a lot of advertisement that we have seen before, but in a way that
allowed us to go beyond what we see and think about how it makes us feel, and
what that advertisement is trying to say.
