Director Gary Hustwit is in the midst of production on URBANIZED, the third film in his design trilogy which began with the acclaimed 2007 doc HELVETICA and continued with 2009’s OBJECTIFIED.
URBANIZED looks at urban design and planning in order to address larger questions facing cities as more and more of the world’s population move to urban areas. Taking a macro approach, and recognizing that no city design is the work of just one individual, Hustwit is including the perspectives of an expansive range of people involved in the particular design issues of a modern city – from architects to academics, policymakers to builders – who address not only aesthetics but also concerns about housing, development, environmental impact, and the role of ordinary city dwellers in urban life.
Hustwit has a little more than two weeks left in an ambitious $85,000 Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign – but at the time of this writing he’s over halfway there. Consider contributing to help cover production and post-production expenses if you are a fan of his previous films (he has also produced numerous docs on music subjects such as Robert Moog, the Animal Collective, Death Cab for Cutie, and WIlco).
To keep updated on developments with URBANIZED and the rest of Hustwit’s work, sign up for his newsletter and follow him on Twitter (where he’s amassed an impressive nearly 110,000 followers!).
I’m a big fan of HELVETICA and OBJECTIFIED and their earlier focus on how design interacts with all aspects of our daily lives. URBANIZED broadens out this topic significantly, and, as a result, has the potential to address much larger questions and audiences. We’re all affected by our environment, whether we live in NYC or in the Outback, so this film should speak to not only the urbanite but the suburbanite and rural resident as well. Hustwit has already proven himself a savvy and tireless DIY organizer, having released his previous films independently and having amassed a broad audience, so I’m sure that his new film will make an impact when it comes to festivals and into release later this year.
what (not) to doc 