idsgn (a design blog)

Tomas Mankovsky is a director based in London, UK and our third Fresh & Hungry subject.

CHRIS RUBINO: You are the only director I picked from this year’s class, I think it’s really evident that you have a background in graphic design, do you feel that foundation has effected your career as a director?

TOMAS MANKOVSKY: Yeah I studied graphic design and advertising at college and after that I worked for five years at an ad agency. I guess it made me think in a visual and conceptual way so when I moved onto films my mind was already damaged. Having that background always keeps me looking for ‘the idea’ and then trying to squeeze as much out of it as possible.

The red carpet will roll out for the 82nd Annual Academy Awards this Sunday. While film critics are busy buzzing about Avatar and Sandra Bullock, it’s the animated short films that really caught our attention this year.

We recently had a chance to catch a screening of the animated shorts, here’s a brief rundown on the five that are up for an Oscar in 2010.

Justine Nagan’s feature-length documentary Typeface tells the story of the Hamilton Wood Type Museum in rural Wisconsin.

Director Justine Nagan first stumbled upon the Hamilton Wood Type Museum while on a drive through the Midwest, stopping for an ice-cream sundae in Two Rivers, Wisconsin (arguably the birthplace of the treat). Amazed by the historic block-long warehouse which houses over 1.5 million wood letterforms, Nagan soon began work on her first film for Chicago-based Kartemquin Films—a not-for-profit film studio where Nagan now serves as executive director.

Before the cinematic title sequences of today’s films, pioneered by the likes of Saul Bass and (more recently) Kyle Cooper, film titles were once a motionless work of art. In this ‘Now and then,’ we are pressing pause and exploring the art behind the film title.

Since the early days of cinema, artists have carefully designed film titles to captivate audiences and set the film’s mood. To bring attention to this often overlooked art form, Dutch graphic designer (and movie lover) Christian Annyas has put together The Movie Title Stills Collection. The website collects and neatly organizes film titles by decade, from the 1920’s to present. To illustrate how film titles have evolved over the years, we've chosen some of our favorites from the collection.

…make a documentary film about it. After being laid off three times in less than ten years, that’s what former advertising copywriter Erik Proulx has done.

Lemonade is a documentary that exposes some of the 70,000 advertising professionals who have lost their jobs in this recession. Following a selection of the (un)fortunate ones, the film sets out to find out what happens when former advertising creatives are forced to be creative with their own lives. Some have rekindled with their family, started new businesses, or even left the ad world altogether for new opportunities. “I got laid off and I'm finally doing something that I think matters,” says former creative director Kurtis Glade in the film’s trailer (click above to watch).

Milton Glaser: To Inform & Delight is a documentary about the legendary designer, who last week celebrated his 80th birthday. I was able to catch the film on the final night of its run in New York. 

Largely spoken in his own words, the film takes a captivating look into the life and work of Glaser. Visiting his studio, his home, meeting his wife and many of his coleagues, the film leaves you with the feeling you've just had a conversation with a close friend.

Glaser shares many inspiring theories about the industry and his career

David Lynch's Interview Project is a documentary road trip across the United States, offering a fascinating look into the lives of 121 different people along the way. 

The online series is currently in its third episode, with a new 3-4 minute interview released every three days over the next year. The filming took place over 70 days (and 20,000 miles), directed by Austin Lynch (David Lynch's son) and Jason S. Subjects were randomly found driving along roads, going into bars and different locations, and asked to share their personal story.

Objectified, Gary Hustwit's followup documentary to Helvetica, hosted a special screening last night in NYC. It almost goes without saying that fans of Helvetica will enjoy Gary's new film. And for those of us, Gary announced last night he is currently working on his third design-related documentary (and then hopes to move onto other subjects).

Objectified, which will open May 5th, is a feature-length documentary about our relationship with manufactured objects and the people who design them. Overall, the film was very engaging, providing a rare glimpse into the industrial design world. The film interviewed a handful of well known designers from around the world, gaining insight about their ideas on design and even going (briefly) into their individual design process. One of the most interesting (and provocative) topics from the film was the ongoing struggle between new product design vs. the need for sustainability. During the post-film Q&A, Gary was asked if he is going to distribute the film in sustainable way, to which he & Karim Rashid jokingly came up with the idea of The Biodegradable DVD: a cornstarch bubble with a URL to download the movie.

Searching for Sonny is reportedly the very first feature film to be shot entirely on a digital SLR camera (the Canon EOS 5D Mark II). Judging from the sneak peek trailer (below, or download HD version) you'd never know either. This opens exciting new doors for a whole new generation of indie filmmakers.

UPDATE: 3 new trailers have been posted (April 16, 2009)