10 reasons we're looking forward to TYPO Berlin 2018

They say that change is the universal constant, but it's also the focus of this year's TYPO Berlin conference. Taking a look at the hot topics of the moment, including digitisation and personal data, TYPO Berlin will explore the role design plays in a radically shifting world.

How to organise a conference

Themed around the idea of triggering, this year's TYPO Berlin also looks into the mechanisms of the digital transformation, and that doesn't just mean kinetic typography. Covering current issues such as fake news and fact checking, the event will also ask the question: is it time we put people first?

Hosted in the amazing House of World Cultures, TYPO Berlin 2018 is a three day event that brings together more than 60 speakers split across five stages. To help you keep on top of all the talks, we've scoured the TYPO Berlin 2018 schedule and rounded up the top 10 presentations we're looking forward to.

01. Annie Atkins

Having worked on the likes of The Boxtrolls, Bridge of Spies and Wes Anderson's Grand Budapest Hotel, Annie Atkins knows how to tell a director's story through graphic design. In her talk, Atkins shares her secrets for creating designs and props for filmmaking. Catch her on Saturday 19 May at 11am in the Hall venue.

02. Ed van Hinte

Acclaimed industrial designer and design critic Ed van Hinte takes to the Show stage on Saturday 19 May at 4pm to deliver his talk, Trigger Happy. Tying into the overall theme of this year's TYPO Berlin, Hinte's presentation will focus on "an arrangement of triggers to improve the prospects of humanity by replacing matter with idleness."

03. Elliot Jay Stocks

Like many of us, Elliot Jay Stocks has found creativity strikes at the 'wrong time'. In his talk on Saturday 19 May in the Hall at midday, the multi-talented designer, musician and creative director reveals now has never been a better time to follow your passions and make a living from what you love the most.

04. Toshi Omagari

Monotype's Advanced Typeface Designer, Toshi Omagari, looks at the benefits of creative limitations in his talk on Thursday 17 May at 7pm in the Show venue. Using the pixel grids of old video game graphics as his jumping off point, Omagari explores how restrictions are an important ingredient when it comes to problem solving with design.

05. Aaron James Draplin

The legendary graphic designer, Aaron James Draplin, can be seen at the midday talk on Friday May 18 if you swing by the Hall venue. In his talk, the Draplin Design Co founder sets out to cover how graphic design has reached into unrelated areas of his life, as well as looking at the new things he's been up to. He's also hosting a workshop on Saturday 19 May where he shows you how to make a logo the DDC way.

06. Madeleine Morley

What effect has digital culture had on print design? That's the question design and art writer Madeleine Morley looks to answer in her talk on Friday 18 May at midday at the Stage venue. By looking at a variety of print titles, Morley tracks the ways editorial designers have reacted to the rise of online publications.

07. Hansje van Halem

Graphic designer Hansje van Halem has gathered recognition thanks to her distinctive and experimental typography. In her Magic Eye lecture on Friday 18 May at 3pm in the Hall, Halem shares her design process and 'practice makes perfect' mindset.

08. Laura Reinke

Just what does it take to break into design these days? It's a complicated question, but PAGE editor Laura Reinke attempts to break through the buzzwords and deliver some practical advice as she sits down with UX, information and service designers on Friday 18 May at 4pm in the Stage venue.

09. Prof. Gerd Fleischmann

Having come to typography accidentally, the discipline has now become the passion of Prof. Gerd Fleischmann. In his talk, Fleischmann examines Kurt Schwitter's famous Theses of Typography through a typographic lens, and asks what art and aesthetics mean to typography. To listen in, visit the Hall venue at 6pm on Friday 18 May.

10. Bettina Andresen

Bettina Andresen is a communication designer with a passion for book design, which means she knows a thing or two about whether or not certain fonts are easier for dyslexics to read. In this talk on Saturday 19 May on the Stage at 4pm, Andresen talks through the results of her dyslexia fonts reading test to find out if certain fonts are more recognisable than others.

Related articles: