Linotype: The Film

Overview

Now known as a drop down option in an adhoc and confusing mixture of type faces on Microsoft Word, Linotype was originally known as the pioneering type casting machine, once called the "eight wonder of the world" by Thomas Edison.

Before the Linotype, type fonts were printed using a rather more pedantic and time-consuming method of setting each letter by hand. In comparison, Linotype machines could produce an entire line of metal type at once. The innovative machine became the industry standard for newspaper prints, posters and magazines during the 60s and 70s, before it was replaced by offset lithography (the roller printers we know today), and became a redundant artefact of history.

Linotype: The Film is a feature-lenght documentary telling the story of the machine, its impact on the world, and the people connected to it. Today, very few Linotype machines still exist, and even fewer operators with the skills to use them.