Form & Content in "Objectified"

The main concepts in the movie, "Objectified", are that industrial design is meant for mass production and the importance of design that dissolves into our behavior. Good design is sustainable, timeless, and seemingly "natural" in its form. Natural in the sense that the the product is simple and does not look as though it underwent a complex design process.

The film interviews some of the most well known designers in the industry and the products they created to deliver content to the viewers. Most of the designers stressed the importance of simplicity in design or design through subtraction. Both IKEA and Apple share this concept. They create products that are stripped to its bare necessities. This also allows consumers to relate to the products, or establish a relationship that is personal which relates to McCloud`s theory about the simple, relatable faces of comic figures.

As Michael Beirut claimed, "design is about everything". "Objectified" teaches us how nearly everything in our lives is designed in someway and that design is all around us. The film delivers this content in the form of interviews and the example products presented are the signifiers. The film talks about the design process and the important factors that designers have to take into consideration, such as sustainability and functionality. It talks about how consumers have a tendency to look for the new, even though the products that we already own can continued to be used for a while. When designers create a design that is timeless, it transcends the ideas of the fashionable or new and becomes a sustainable design. The Apple computer is a product that can be considered a timeless design through its simplicity and functionality.