Fifteen Minutes of Fame

Bebe Neuwirth as Sheila De Bretteville!

Okay that's great. WHERE THE &*%# IS SAGMEISTER / DEL TORO?

> Adrian Shaughnessy, played by Stanley Tucci.

> Stefan Sagmeister, played by Keanu Reeves.

These are awesome!

Anthony Hopkins as Alan Fletcher

Frankly, I always had George Clooney pegged for the Sean Adams role.

"If I ever have to cast an acting role, I want the wrong person for the part. I can never visualize the right person in a part. The right person for the right part would be too much. Besides, no person is ever completely right for any part, because a part in a role is never real, so if you can't get someone who's perfectly right, it's more satisfying to get someone who's perfectly wrong. Then you know you've really got something." Andy Warhol, The Philosophy of Andy Warhol, 1975.

I remember when Alice Twemlow hosted the AIGA Crouwel/Vignelli event. For the introduction she started with her casting ideas if there was a movie about them. She compared Wim Crowel as Sir Ian McKellen and Massimo Vignelli as Robert De Niro. I thought that was perfect!

Jonathan Barnbrook played by Mick Hucknall!

Jennifer Aniston as Jennifer Sterling. That is a compliment to Jennifer Aniston.

Tom Hanks as Tibor Kalman,
Oliver Platt as Neville Brody (moustache & glare to be added of course)

Penn Gillette as Tibor Kalman.

Julia Stiles as Jennifer Sterling.

What about Tobias (Tobey) Maguire as Tobias Frere-Jones?

And the nominees for Best Picture are...

No Caslon for Old Men
There Will Be Bodoni
Duotonement
Michael Cronan
and
Juno

That is why I love Ellen.

BRILLIANT IDEA!

Ryan Seacrest is NOT cute enough to play Sean Adams. Margaret Cho is almost as funny as Noreen, but again, not as cute.

Stefan Sagmeister played by Michel Gondry.

this is about as nauseatingly self congratulatory as you can get. i guess it tells you much about the egos of the people who populate and run this space, more so even than the tedious pseudo intellectual drivel or vague profundity thats usually posted. i'm embarrassed for everyone involved, but not that surprised.

i beg the readers to ignore this. to let these so called leaders and opinion formers of our industry rot in the banality of their arrogance, sheilded and cosited by their coterie, like flies gathering round and in turn being infected by the omnidirectional shit they 'create' and foist upon us.

to every single name mentioned above. come the revolution you'll be first against the wall. but you all know that already. go home to your children if you are lucky enough to have them, kiss them and hug them, and tell them how much you love them. you have served your purpose. the love you need to survive must be dwindling, the emotional deficit and vanity within, that forces you to feel the need to compare yourself visually to film stars mirrors the insecurites and failings your lavishing on your offspring. its ok. you are weak.

go home. if your home, leave your study, turn your computer off. you have served your purpose and now... and now.. and now its over.

Actually, Burt, the great thing is that most designers have a sense of humor about themselves and the world around them, and on a cold winter weekend, they can enjoy the simple exercise of playing out a fictional scenario.

Anyway, judging from the comments above, it sounds like you're the exception rather than the rule. Thank goodness for that.

wow, sounds like someones jealous. Relax Burt, try laughing once in a while. I have a casting nomination:
Bert

Actually, Annette, designers tend not to have the best sense of humour about themselves or their work. Embarrassing.

Byron, why automatically assume jealousy to be the cause of criticism? That's pretty unimaginative. And embarrassing.

"maybe it's time to get serious about how we're really being portrayed."

Well, by the way the post went, it seems like "the editors" don't want to show us as serious...

come the revolution you'll be first against the wall
How about Burt played by Ernie (Guevara)?

Rick Poyner / Simon Cowell... talk about typecasting.

Bob Dole as William Caslon's ghoul. Let's make it a horror! "We kerned and kerned and kerned, and it came back for more!"

Sam Potts: You are genius.

For all you DAAPers out there:

Gordon Salchow = Rutger Hauer

It's kind of funny. Like a group of plumbers, architects, or electricians comparing themselves to actual famous people.
Everyone looks like someone depending on the eye of the beholder. Personally, I've been compared to Jane Seymour, Olive Oil, and Shelly Long. Bottom line, you can't depend on the eye of the beholder.

@Paul
Unimaginative, maybe. Embarrassing, really? Simply trying to lighten the mood. I actually do understand and relate to Berts crit. But far too often do I read comments on here that are much too serious a reaction to an obviously light hearted post.

The biggest problem with this post -- aside from designers dying with their children in their arms when the revolution strikes -- is that with a cast like this the only person that could direct would be Robert Altman, RIP.

Suggestions are more likely to be incorporated into this post if you send web-ready side-by-side portraits at 356 pixels wide. Thank you everyone for your contributions to this obviously pointless and silly post. And, yes, Armin Vit is correct: even with such brilliant casting, who could direct such an ensemble cast except for Robert Altman?

designobserver[at]winterhouse[dot]com

We'll get back to serious design matters by tomorrow, we promise.

Stefan Sagmeister, played by Stefan Sagmeister

Related to this article: I ended up watching What Women Want yesterday on tv. Can anyone tell me what Mel Gibson's character is supposed to be? He's not a creative director, and he's certainly not a designer. I'm pretty sure no one wants Gibson as our mascot now anyway.

Bill Murray as Edward Tufte? brilliant

Oops, make that

No Country for Old Style Numerals

On second thought, Colin Forbes is far more Steve McQueen.

Adrian Shaughnessy should definitely be played by Sir Sean Connery, a fellow Scot.

Milton Glaser played by Eli Manning of the New York Giants! Was sent to the Design Observer at 2:08 P.M. before the Super Bowl. Thank you.

Ugh.

Johnny Knoxville as Felix Sockwell?

I guess you would all have to learn to act, which is sort of a big deal.

willem dafoe as david carson?

Heather Ledger as Peter Bilak?

Conan O'Brian is a dead ringer for Stephen Doyle

(Guys, I... was kidding with my Dead Typefounders Club, who were submitted in order of ridiculousness. Except for Redd Foxx, anyway.)

Some of these are hilariously spot-on. Felicity Huffman would make a great Scher.

I think these designers (that are supposed to be leaders in our field) clearly think way too much of themselves, and apparently have a little too much time on their hands. It's sad, really.

Just thinking ... Stanley Kramer could have directed this. He did "It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World."

Or David Lynch.

VR/

This is going to be one long movie.

I have always thought that Erik Spiekermann and John Malkovich could pass for long lost brothers. Especially in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, minus the whole John Malkovich being a bust on spider legs.

oops, supposed to read:

erskine bowles as Tibor Kalman

Yes, Byron, embarrassing. Really.

sure would be nice to see a few more women - sometimes the sexism in my own field makes me gag.

How about some editing? The best five or ten of those are great, but once it degenerated into "I know! Get the asian guy to play the asian guy!" it got pretty cheesy. : )

Besides, Marian should totally be Mare Winningham, not Laura Linney.

nauseatingly self congratulatory
You forget that the people portrayed knew nothing of this. I certainly neither supplied my own photograph nor that of my supposed impersonator. Nobody here put their name forward, friends and colleagues just had a laugh finding pictures. And i wouldn't have known about this if a friends hadn't sent a link.

I know that as a German i am not supposed to have a sense of humour, but i think this is quite funny. Like any picture album it's fun to look at your friends, colleagues, peers, no more and no less. Or call it fancy dress, in time for Mardi Gras (today).

And you could always try and get a life.

erik, du pannkauken

Oh excuse the familiar.


Sie sind ein Berliner, ne?
Berliners know nothing of Mardi Gras.

Kölle Alaaf

and you don't feel any guilt that Otto Waalkes is not included?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dkz_w1kLBYs

WD, feel free to send this post to hell, hell, hello-löchen hello.

Peter Saville was already played by Enzo Cilenti in the film @24 Hour Party People" http://imdb.com/title/tt0274309/fullcredits#cast

I agree with Jennifer's post from Feb 4. Why are the designers who author this blog so consumed with being stars? Outside the acting world, I am beginning to think graphic designers may be the most narcissistic of creative people.

-Peter Saville was already played by Enzo Cilenti in the film @24 Hour Party People" http://imdb.com/title/tt0274309/fullcredits#cast

In which he appeared for about 7 seconds and was only credited as "saville" (if I remember right)

Very disappointing

How about William Fichtner as David Carson?

What a vain & hollow entry.

Solving problems, I see.

Well, that was fun.

John O'Hurley (J. Peterman) as Massimo Vignelli

last one from me, I promise.

Sagmeister as Sagmeister, of course.

This is funny precisely because of the anonymity of the field graphic design. (How many people outside the field would recognize any of these designers on the street?) I don't think it was intended to be self-congratulatory or indulgent. Do the naysayers really think movie stars are so important as to be incomparable to mere mortal designers? Come on, it's a joke.

Mr. Spiekermann brings up an interesting point: this was done among friends, for their friends. And what’s a little joke among pals?

All of the designers featured are well known in design, including the editors of Design Observer. Is it possible other designers do not find this posting funny because their feelings are a symptom of a bigger issue?

This is just my own perception as an every day, working designer in the field, but, this particular group of designers can feel like a tight, exclusive circle that can be a bit dismissive. I have found it difficult at times to approach some of these leading designers with ideas, dreams, and questions. (Yes, this is polite-speak for saying they can come across as snobs.)

So when they post something light-hearted about themselves, I can see how it could be misinterpreted.

i just want to know where you get those cool black and white head shot photos done at!!!!

How overwhelmingly white and male.
This is culmination of "getting serious" about portraying graphic designers as a group?
Swore it was the roster for a Rotary Club.

God dammit, that's good.
—bad mama.

I wholeheartedly agree with JP and Elly. Exclusive, white, and male.

When I heard Ellen Page say that line in Juno, I cringed. But just so you guys know, the stereotypical edgy designer teenagers think about? It's like, SO not you guys.

Just brilliant, Too many for just one film I'm almost sure that it should work like the "PotA" (Planet of the Apes, silly).

Film One: The Planet of Design
You know the plot. Frames the current paradigm 5000 years in the future, we're in the neo-digital age, Massimo Vignelli (still alive...) screams standing on FDR Drive /East River Bank, where the work of a third generation Ed Fella (also still alive) student, has finally captured the Brooklyn skyline, in a massive tri/quad-color neo-expressive typography mural where Coca-Cola sign used to be.

Film Two: Beneath the Planet of the Design
Our protagonists (Bill and Jessica) are forced to deal with the fallout of all of design history 100 hundred miles (leagues) beneth the Earth's surface lie endless archives of every design competition every run…all clean and safe but the sharpie ink on the boxes has dissolved and they are in disarray, the Berman Collection Vault needs to be cracked, a buried Cooper Hewitt-excavated, The Steven Heller Memorial Dome inpenetrable, our heroes are sorting good from bad in an oxygen-light environment. Supporting roles by Alice Twemlow, and Rick Pynor, H&FJ and Ed Tufte (still alive) has made an alliance with Hugh Dubberly (still alive) and they have committed to a ‘SuperTaxonomy’, which continues to challenge Bill and Jessica as they dig through the debris.

Film Three: Escape from the Planet of Design
Tell me time travel isn’t what we do best!!
I think think is Cranbrook - Did anybody cast The McCoys? or Mr. Earls.?

Film Four: Conquest of the Planet of Design
(A pre-pre-prequel, The great Design Revolt)
This film can tell the story of Beach Culture/Raygun/Émigré…you know the drill California!!!

Film Five: Battle for the Planet of the Design
After conquering the oppressive humans in "Conquest for the Planet of the Apes", Caeser(Roddy McDowal) must now keep the peace amongst the humans and apes. Gorilla General Aldo(Claude Akins) views things differently, and tries to cause an ape civil war. In the meantime, other human survivors learn of the ape city, and decide they want to take back civilization for themselves, thus setting the stage of warring ape factions and humans. Need I say more.
So much Star-Power.

To the PotA-super fan, I apologize in advance for the plot shifts and lack of continuity -I got excited.

Piven as Collins and Seacrest as Adams are both strokes of casting genius.

To pull off Bierut you have to have Oscar-winning chops like P.S. Hoffman.

Cowell as Poynor is life imitating life.

I like Carey as Rand better.

Oh, and Willis as Heller is perfect because Heller can kick some ass.

There is some miscasting going on though.

Sedgwick as Millman: I don't think she can pull of the accent. Plus, I think there is a better choice both for the separated-at-birth factor and for her ability to match the wit and humor of our beloved DM. I submit to you: Rachael Harris.

Connery as Vignelli... He would still sound like Sean Connery.

Also, Redford as Carson? More like Gary Busey or ... well, no... just Busey.

For an addition I would cast Susan Sarandon as Ann Willoughby she has the voice and the look.

I had someone for Dana Arnett but it has slipped my mind. Maybe it will come back to me.

- Bone

I think you missed the obvious choice for Tobia Frere Jones: a young Matthew Broderick.

Some of the existing ones didn't seem right to me, so I made a jpg with my choices

http://www.spyboy.com/designers/designers.jpg

Oh my god. Did you really spend all that time on that?

I'm surprised that no-one spottedNoah Taylor and Tobias Frere-Jones. I think they're seperated at birth...