Four years and seven weeks ago, Peter Becker, the president of the Criterion Collection, asked me to come up with a new way to promote their restored film releases. Actually, he dared me to.
Peter wanted something customizable for each film that wouldn’t require reinventing the wheel with each release. He didn’t think it was possible, but I knew what I wanted to do immediately.
I had always wondered what the “Criterion criteria” was when it came to their selections: Why did certain films make the cut? Just a few weeks later we launched the first “Three Reasons,” a series of short films dedicated to conveying the three reasons that you should see a new Criterion release. It must be said that all 110 of these shorts are made in a very small room with Peter, Kim Hendrickson, and the amazing producers at the Criterion Collection, as well as my brilliant editor Mollie Goldstein.
Every other week, I will share one of them on Design Observer with a little bit of backstory too.
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I had not seen Jean-Luc Godard's Band of Outsiders before it was assigned for “Three Reasons,” and now my mission in life is to make sure everyone I love sees this film.
Written and directed by Godard, four years after Breathless, in 1964, it is the epitome of French New Wave cinema and is terrifically cool. (In testament to its lasting coolness, there is even a clothing label inspired by the film.) There are many whimsical and wonderful moments. Racing through the Louvre in seven minutes (a clip of which we included in the Three Reasons film) inspired me to do the same the last time I was in Paris. And the minute of actual silence in the film is pure genius: it actually puts you in the movie, which is exactly where you want to be.
Finally, if you are not already in love with Anna Karina (who was married to Godard at the time the film was made), prepare to be. Our goal with this Three Reasons was to communicate the pure joy of this incredibly original film.
http://www.criterion.com/current/posts/2753-three-reasons-band-of-outsiders
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Band of Outsiders
I had not seen Jean-Luc Godard's Band of Outsiders before it was assigned for “Three Reasons,” and now my mission in life is to make sure everyone I love sees this film.
Written and directed by Godard, four years after Breathless, in 1964, it is the epitome of French New Wave cinema and is terrifically cool. (In testament to its lasting coolness, there is even a clothing label inspired by the film.) There are many whimsical and wonderful moments. Racing through the Louvre in seven minutes (a clip of which we included in the Three Reasons film) inspired me to do the same the last time I was in Paris. And the minute of actual silence in the film is pure genius: it actually puts you in the movie, which is exactly where you want to be.
Finally, if you are not already in love with Anna Karina (who was married to Godard at the time the film was made), prepare to be. Our goal with this Three Reasons was to communicate the pure joy of this incredibly original film.
http://www.criterion.com/current/posts/2753-three-reasons-band-of-outsiders
