Cinema has always been a canvas for innovation, with design principles like balance, contrast, and typography playing pivotal roles in shaping visual storytelling. Early films embraced bold typography and symmetrical layouts to create striking visuals that commanded attention.
Metropolis (1927)
Metropolis (1927) showcased geometric designs and contrast to enhance its futuristic narrative.
Psycho (1960)
Psycho (1960) used stark black-and-white visuals to intensify suspense.
Today’s filmmakers not only leverage balance, contrast, and typography but also incorporate digital techniques to create layered, multidimensional visuals that resonate with modern audiences.
Blade Runner 2049 (2017)
Blade Runner 2049 (2017) builds on the original film’s visual language by introducing intricate neon compositions, meticulous symmetry, and a masterful interplay of light and shadow.
Accessibility is no longer a limitation but an opportunity for artistic expression in cinema. Subtitles, traditionally functional, are now becoming integrated elements of a film’s aesthetic. By harmonizing with the visual style of the story, they can enhance rather than distract.
For instance, animated subtitles in Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022) adapt to the tone of the scenes, conveying emotion and energy beyond the dialogue. Similarly, films and shows experimenting with placement and typography ensure that subtitles feel intentional and visually cohesive. This approach ensures inclusivity while celebrating the medium’s artistic potential.
Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022)
Modern cultural trends, driven by social media and shifting audience behavior, are reshaping the art of cinema. With audiences accustomed to short-form, high-impact content, filmmakers are exploring ways to hold attention through engaging visuals, dynamic storytelling, and rapid pacing. The influence of platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube fosters an emphasis on brevity and style, demanding innovative approaches to how films are designed.
Typography
Typography in social media often prioritizes bold, colorful fonts, strategically placed to guide the viewer’s eye and highlight key information. This trend carries over into cinema, where text overlays and animated captions are used creatively to grab attention, evoke emotion, and mirror the tone of the narrative. For instance, fast-paced films now adopt kinetic typography styles, ensuring on-screen text becomes an active participant in the storytelling.
Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse (2018)
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018) breaks new ground by merging comic book-inspired typography with other unique design elements.
Editing
Social media’s rapid editing styles have inspired filmmakers to experiment with pacing and transitions. TikTok’s quick cuts, energetic zooms, and clever splicing have pushed cinema to adopt similarly dynamic editing techniques. These methods cater to modern audiences’ short attention spans while maintaining the depth and richness of cinematic storytelling.
@21lukee on TikTok
is defined as a transitional space or state between one reality and another; a place of uncertainty, ambiguity, and transformation.
As you continue, consider how this definition connects to both the plot of the short film and what it’s trying to accomplish from a technical standpoint.
In LIMINAL, a man finds himself in an unsettling space where reality and memory blur. Set against fragmented conversations in a diner and mysterious transitions into a vivid pink void, the story unravels through the character’s disjointed thoughts, conveyed via dynamic on-screen text. The film uses innovative visuals and sound design to reflect the protagonist’s struggle to grasp his surroundings and make sense of his choices. The film immerses viewers in a transitional, liminal space—challenging them to question the boundaries of perception, choice, and the future of cinematic storytelling.
LIMINAL is an experimental short film showcasing the future of cinematic design. By implementing typographic design choices into the aesthetic of a film, it provides a glimpse into what the future of the relationship between design and cinema could look like. This exhibition utilizes modern storytelling tactics as well, influenced by social media strategies to grab and maintain audience attention. It also utilizes new features for issues with accessibility. The goal of this project is to bring attention to the evolving landscape of artistic mediums, and how their influence on each other can impact future trends and aesthetics.
How do balance, contrast, and typography contribute to the visual storytelling?
In what ways do the design choices enhance or challenge traditional cinematic aesthetics?
How are subtitles and on-screen text integrated into the film’s style?
Do these elements feel like part of the narrative, or do they stand out as separate tools for accessibility?
How do modern trends like social media editing styles and attention-grabbing typography shape the pacing and visual structure of the film?
Can you see parallels between the film’s approach and the fast-paced content you encounter on platforms like TikTok or Instagram?
What possibilities do the film’s design elements suggest for the future of storytelling in cinema?
How might these trends influence your own understanding or expectations of cinematic experiences in the coming years?
