One of the highlights of my SXSW adventure was catching the world premier of Helvetica. Director Gary Hustwit was onhand with design anti-hero David Carson taking questions afterward, and both proved to be stand up, approachable guys aftward.

From the opening title build, we begin what appears to be a 2 hour helvetica love first, exploring the history- and ubiquity- of everybody’s favorite san serif. Massimo Vignelli’s contributions were particularly compelling, as the vintage modern design of the 60’s is refreshingly timeless today.

The film takes a 180 midway through, David Carson proving to be an effective emotional foil to the stark utilitarianism of the old swiss guard. And while it’s cool to see design superstars like Paula Scher lay down some knowledge, Erik Spiekermann was probably the most insightful- and amusing- commentator in the film.

The one thing that becomes abundantly clear is there are really just two camps most contemporary designers fall into: pro-Helvetica, or anti-Helvetica.
(this message was convienetly reinforced with the “I love Helvetica” and “I hate Helvetica” the ushers were handing out upon entrance to the theater- clever buggers.

Once you accept the fact you’re watching a feature about a typeface, the rest of the elements are rock solid. The visuals are shot in clean HD on location throughout the world, and the soundtrack was nice and fitting.

I think Helvetica is pervasive enough that even non-design nerds would enjoy it, but if you’re in the design nerd camp… Go see it, order the poster, and get the dvd when it comes out. And write Veer and tell them to make more design features. Considering that Target and Apple and driven design into the minds of millions, I’m surprised it’s taken this long to start exploring the discipline in film. Two great tastes, that taste great together, you’d think it’d be a no-brainer.