Bronze Movie, Video and Animation Design · 2026
Iconic Designs Television Series
by Olivier Felix Isselin and Maxime Golay
- A' Design Award 2026 Bronze Winner in Movie, Video and Animation Design
- Awarded April 15, 2026
- CLIENT: MGOFI Production
- Estimated Number of Design Views: 9,935
- Verification code BB658030DB · Verify this award
About Iconic Designs Television Series
Iconic Designs is a short format television series dedicated to the analysis of form. Each episode focuses on a single emblematic object, examining its origin, structure, and impact on everyday life. Through a controlled cinematic approach and minimalist staging, the series reveals design as a discipline of precision. By articulating historical context with formal reading, it transforms perception into understanding, making design accessible without simplification. Each sequence isolates essential lines, proportions, and functions, offering a clear reading of the object.
Olivier Felix Isselin's Iconic Designs Television Series engages with the rich traditions of design documentation and visual storytelling within furniture and industrial design heritage, positioning this carefully orchestrated studio composition within a lineage extending from mid-twentieth-century Scandinavian product photography through contemporary lifestyle editorial practices that seek to illuminate the relationship between designed objects and human experience. The image demonstrates sophisticated compositional intelligence through its asymmetrical arrangement balancing the monumental vermillion chair's chromatic intensity and physical scale against the combined presence of the human figure and smaller black chair, creating dynamic visual tension that rewards sustained contemplation and reveals subtle hierarchies upon repeated viewing. The technical execution evidences considerable accomplishment in studio lighting design, where multiple diffused sources create soft-edged shadows and gentle modeling that suggests natural illumination while maintaining absolute control over tonal gradation, highlight placement, and shadow color temperature, the cool blue-gray cast shadows providing sophisticated chromatic counterpoint to the warm neutral floor surface and creating atmospheric depth within the deliberately minimal environment. The chromatic strategy proves particularly successful, employing restrained palette discipline where a single saturated vermillion accent commands attention against a supporting framework of warm and cool neutrals, black, and navy, this calculated color deployment demonstrating principles articulated in Bauhaus color theory and mid-century modern design philosophy emphasizing maximum impact through strategic restraint rather than chromatic profusion. The compositional architecture appears to draw upon classical proportion systems, the placement of primary elements along implied vertical thirds creating balanced asymmetry while the red chair's elegant parabolic curve establishes strong vertical emphasis counterpointed by the horizontal stability of floor plane and figure's relaxed seated posture, these oppositional vectors generating compositional energy and guiding eye movement through the frame. The work invites consideration of human-object relationships within designed environments, the scale manipulation between oversized and standard-sized chairs suggesting questions about monumentality, domesticity, proportion, and the symbolic weight objects carry within spaces they inhabit, while the human presence introduces warmth, scale reference, and narrative possibility into what might otherwise function as pure product documentation. The figure's casual sophistication through carefully selected contemporary attire, his contemplative direct gaze, and relaxed yet composed bearing suggest themes of comfort, confidence, accessibility, and the integration of thoughtfully designed objects into lived experience rather than their isolation as aesthetic artifacts. The continuous tubular construction visible in both chairs, varying only in scale, color, and surface finish, suggests industrial production methods and mid-century modern design vocabulary where honest material expression and efficient manufacturing processes generate elegant formal solutions, this design language carrying associations with democratic modernism, functional beauty, and the Scandinavian design ethos prioritizing human-centered form, durable construction, and timeless aesthetic restraint over fashion-driven obsolescence. The infinity background technique eliminates spatial specificity and temporal markers, creating floating ambiguity that renders the composition somewhat outside conventional space and time, this deliberate abstraction focusing absolute attention upon the three protagonists and their formal and chromatic relationships without distraction from environmental detail or narrative context. The textural variety enriching the image through contrasts between glossy powder-coated metal, matte black metal, knitted textile, woven twill, and suede leather invites multisensory engagement and suggests the diverse material palette available within contemporary design practice, this heterogeneous surface language preventing visual monotony while maintaining overall tonal and chromatic coherence. One might observe how the work navigates dual functions as both documentary record serving design archive and historical reference purposes, and aspirational image constructing desire and projecting lifestyle values through carefully controlled aesthetic choices, this productive tension between documentation and aspiration characterizing much contemporary design photography that must simultaneously inform and seduce, record and transform.
Press Kit
- Unique Properties
- Iconic Designs is a short-format audiovisual series that examines iconic objects through cinematic precision and minimalist visual language. Each episode combines artistic direction with documentary rigor to reveal the logic and construction of form. The series presents design as a cultural discipline, translating observation into understanding through image, rhythm, and composition.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- Audiovisual series of ten episodes, each 150 seconds in duration. Filmed in native 8K resolution 7680 x 4320 px at 25 or 30 fps in 16:9 aspect ratio using a RED Monstro 8K VV camera with Angenieux optics. Captured in RAW workflow with controlled depth of field and precision motion control. Mastered in HDR10 with stereo and 5.1 spatial sound. Set constructed on a 6 m x 4 m cyclorama under calibrated 5600K lighting. Delivered in ProRes, MXF and MP4 broadcast formats for television, museum and digital distribution.
- Tags
- Design, Iconic Objects, Television Series, Short Format, Documentary, Minimalist, Cultural Heritage, Education, Visual Storytelling, Contemporary Culture
- Production Technology
- Filmed in 8K using a RED Monstro VV camera with Angenieux optics on an Atrax motion control robotic arm, enabling sub-millimetric precision and repeatable camera movements. The minimalist cyclorama isolates each object within a controlled spatial environment under calibrated 5600K lighting. Spatial sound is captured with Sennheiser microphones and processed through a unified post-production workflow for consistent high-fidelity image and sound integration.
- Design Challenge
- The main challenge was to translate the intellectual depth of design into a short audiovisual format without reducing its complexity. This required balancing cultural accuracy, emotional resonance, and cinematic precision. Iterative testing, motion control, and precise editing enabled this balance. The limited duration of each episode demanded absolute clarity in both image and narrative.
- Project Duration
- The project began in January 2024 in Cannes, France, with concept development and early visual research. Filming took place in 2025 across France, including the historic Tolix factory in Autun and the robotic studio Halphastudio near Paris. Post production and mastering were completed in Dublin, Ireland, in October 2025, marking the international launch of the series.
- Operation Flow
- Each episode follows a three-part structure: introduction, exploration, and reflection. The host presents the object through concise narration while the camera reveals its form in continuous motion. The viewer is guided by rhythm and image rather than explicit explanation. The short format creates an immediate and intuitive engagement, leading to both emotional and intellectual understanding.
- Research
- This research explores how design culture can be communicated through short-form audiovisual language. The objective is to combine clarity, accessibility, and emotional resonance. Methods include visual analysis, expert consultation, and audience testing. Results indicate that minimalist imagery and precise narration improve comprehension and retention, supporting design as a cultural medium.
- Inspiration
- The project is inspired by the pervasive role of design in everyday life. Beyond aesthetics, design expresses reason, proportion, and purpose. The series reveals this underlying structure through image and sound, drawing from architecture, art, and philosophy. It transforms observation into knowledge and positions design as a fundamental cultural language.
- Image Credits
- Olivier Felix Isselin
Maxime Golay - Patents
- Copyrights belong to Olivier Felix Isselin and Maxime Golay, 2025.
Colors of Iconic Designs Television Series
Design Interview about Iconic Designs Television Series
The core principle behind ICONIC DESIGN[S] is to consider design not as decoration, but as culture made visible.
We started with a simple idea: everyday objects are never merely objects. A chair, a lamp, a pen, a bottle or a car can embody an industrial, aesthetic, social and human history. They accompany our gestures, transform our habits and tell the story of their time. Each of us also develops a personal relationship with them.
Our ambition was to reveal this richness through a short, accessible and highly considered format.
Olivier Felix Isselin:
I am not interested in simply showing objects, but in revealing what they contain. An iconic object can never be reduced to its appearance. It represents a balance between intention, use, technology, a particular period and a culture. When that degree of precision is achieved, the object moves beyond its function and becomes a witness to its time.
Maxime Golay:
What mattered to me was that viewers should never feel as though they were watching a programme about design. I wanted them to discover a story. To think, “I know this object, but I had never looked at it that way before.” If, after two and a half minutes, they no longer see that object in quite the same way, then we have succeeded.
We started with a simple idea: everyday objects are never merely objects. A chair, a lamp, a pen, a bottle or a car can embody an industrial, aesthetic, social and human history. They accompany our gestures, transform our habits and tell the story of their time. Each of us also develops a personal relationship with them.
Our ambition was to reveal this richness through a short, accessible and highly considered format.
Olivier Felix Isselin:
I am not interested in simply showing objects, but in revealing what they contain. An iconic object can never be reduced to its appearance. It represents a balance between intention, use, technology, a particular period and a culture. When that degree of precision is achieved, the object moves beyond its function and becomes a witness to its time.
Maxime Golay:
What mattered to me was that viewers should never feel as though they were watching a programme about design. I wanted them to discover a story. To think, “I know this object, but I had never looked at it that way before.” If, after two and a half minutes, they no longer see that object in quite the same way, then we have succeeded.
Our main focus was clarity.
We wanted to create a short, precise and visually rigorous format that could speak about design without becoming academic, decorative or nostalgic. The aim was not to say everything, but to make people want to look differently.
Each episode is built around one object, one story and one central idea. In two and a half minutes, we try to reach the essence of the subject without oversimplifying it.
Our ambition was straightforward: after watching an episode, viewers should no longer see the object in quite the same way, and they should want to learn more about it.
We wanted to create a short, precise and visually rigorous format that could speak about design without becoming academic, decorative or nostalgic. The aim was not to say everything, but to make people want to look differently.
Each episode is built around one object, one story and one central idea. In two and a half minutes, we try to reach the essence of the subject without oversimplifying it.
Our ambition was straightforward: after watching an episode, viewers should no longer see the object in quite the same way, and they should want to learn more about it.
Our current priority is to find a distribution partner and develop ICONIC DESIGN[S] as an international short-form cultural series.
The pilot episode, devoted to the Tolix A Chair, allowed us to establish the project’s visual identity, narrative rhythm and editorial direction. It is the proof of concept upon which we intend to build the series.
Ultimately, our ambition is to devote each episode to an iconic object from a wide range of fields, including furniture, everyday objects, fashion, transportation and industrial design.
We see ICONIC DESIGN[S] as a format that can exist on television, on digital platforms and within cultural or museum settings. This initial series could later lead to new formats, special editions or thematic collections.
The pilot episode, devoted to the Tolix A Chair, allowed us to establish the project’s visual identity, narrative rhythm and editorial direction. It is the proof of concept upon which we intend to build the series.
Ultimately, our ambition is to devote each episode to an iconic object from a wide range of fields, including furniture, everyday objects, fashion, transportation and industrial design.
We see ICONIC DESIGN[S] as a format that can exist on television, on digital platforms and within cultural or museum settings. This initial series could later lead to new formats, special editions or thematic collections.
Maxime Golay:
The pilot was constantly evolving. We regularly questioned our decisions, sometimes right up to the shoot or the editing stage. Presenting an object in two and a half minutes ultimately requires far more precision than one might imagine.
Olivier Felix Isselin:
The concept is the result of many years spent thinking about design, objects and the ways in which they can be narrated. The development of ICONIC DESIGN[S] itself, however, took almost two years, from the earliest ideas to the completed pilot. During that time, we defined the format, the writing, the visual language and the balance between content and form.
It was this complementarity that shaped the project: I was seeking to articulate a particular vision of design, while Maxime was constantly considering how to make that vision clear, natural and engaging for the viewer.
The pilot was constantly evolving. We regularly questioned our decisions, sometimes right up to the shoot or the editing stage. Presenting an object in two and a half minutes ultimately requires far more precision than one might imagine.
Olivier Felix Isselin:
The concept is the result of many years spent thinking about design, objects and the ways in which they can be narrated. The development of ICONIC DESIGN[S] itself, however, took almost two years, from the earliest ideas to the completed pilot. During that time, we defined the format, the writing, the visual language and the balance between content and form.
It was this complementarity that shaped the project: I was seeking to articulate a particular vision of design, while Maxime was constantly considering how to make that vision clear, natural and engaging for the viewer.
ICONIC DESIGN[S] was not commissioned. It is an original creation that we chose to develop together.
We shared the same conviction: design deserved to be presented differently. Too often, it is reduced to a trend or a consumer product or, at the opposite extreme, confined to specialist discourse. We wanted to propose another approach.
Our ambition was to create a format that respected both the object and the viewer: short, clear and accessible, without ever compromising its cultural standards. More than a programme about design, we wanted to tell the stories that objects carry within them.
We shared the same conviction: design deserved to be presented differently. Too often, it is reduced to a trend or a consumer product or, at the opposite extreme, confined to specialist discourse. We wanted to propose another approach.
Our ambition was to create a format that respected both the object and the viewer: short, clear and accessible, without ever compromising its cultural standards. More than a programme about design, we wanted to tell the stories that objects carry within them.
At this stage, ICONIC DESIGN[S] is a project that we are developing and producing ourselves.
Our objective is to find partners capable of supporting its development while respecting its identity. We are open to distribution, co-production, licensing and international adaptation agreements, provided that the editorial principles, production quality and spirit of the format are preserved.
We conceived ICONIC DESIGN[S] as a format capable of being distributed across different countries and media while retaining what makes it distinctive: a rigorous perspective on objects, presented through a short, accessible and universal format.
Our objective is to find partners capable of supporting its development while respecting its identity. We are open to distribution, co-production, licensing and international adaptation agreements, provided that the editorial principles, production quality and spirit of the format are preserved.
We conceived ICONIC DESIGN[S] as a format capable of being distributed across different countries and media while retaining what makes it distinctive: a rigorous perspective on objects, presented through a short, accessible and universal format.
Olivier Felix Isselin:
Maxime and I wanted to tell the stories of objects differently. I have always been interested in the way objects reveal our relationship with the world. As a designer, I do not merely create forms. I try to understand what they say about our culture, our habits and our time. To me, the representation of an object is already part of the design process: how should it be filmed, how should it be staged, and how can its intelligence be revealed without overemphasising it?
Maxime Golay:
We wanted design to be understood by as many people as possible without losing its depth. The challenge was to establish an immediate connection with the viewer, find the right tone and tell the story of each object simply, without ever oversimplifying it.
Maxime and I wanted to tell the stories of objects differently. I have always been interested in the way objects reveal our relationship with the world. As a designer, I do not merely create forms. I try to understand what they say about our culture, our habits and our time. To me, the representation of an object is already part of the design process: how should it be filmed, how should it be staged, and how can its intelligence be revealed without overemphasising it?
Maxime Golay:
We wanted design to be understood by as many people as possible without losing its depth. The challenge was to establish an immediate connection with the viewer, find the right tone and tell the story of each object simply, without ever oversimplifying it.
Maxime Golay:
When we first began considering which iconic objects we might feature, I immediately thought of Pixar’s Luxo Jr. To me, that lamp was not merely a physical design object. It was also part of a shared cultural imagination.
Olivier Felix Isselin:
I immediately thought of the Anglepoise lamp because it belongs to the history of industrial design, balance, movement and function.
The project was not shaped by one single influence, but by a culture of precision encompassing industrial design, modernism, architecture, museography, documentary filmmaking and graphic composition. I am drawn to objects that have achieved a particular balance between form, use, material and period.
This anecdote captures our complementarity quite well. Within moments, the same object had led us towards several different histories: industrial design, the domestic object and animation. That is exactly what we wanted to achieve with ICONIC DESIGN[S]: to begin with an object everyone recognises and reveal everything it already carries within it.
When we first began considering which iconic objects we might feature, I immediately thought of Pixar’s Luxo Jr. To me, that lamp was not merely a physical design object. It was also part of a shared cultural imagination.
Olivier Felix Isselin:
I immediately thought of the Anglepoise lamp because it belongs to the history of industrial design, balance, movement and function.
The project was not shaped by one single influence, but by a culture of precision encompassing industrial design, modernism, architecture, museography, documentary filmmaking and graphic composition. I am drawn to objects that have achieved a particular balance between form, use, material and period.
This anecdote captures our complementarity quite well. Within moments, the same object had led us towards several different histories: industrial design, the domestic object and animation. That is exactly what we wanted to achieve with ICONIC DESIGN[S]: to begin with an object everyone recognises and reveal everything it already carries within it.
The project is initially intended for broadcasters, platforms, cultural television channels, museums, schools, festivals and organisations working in design, heritage and culture.
The audience itself is much broader. ICONIC DESIGN[S] is intended for anyone who is curious about the objects around them, whether they are already interested in design or simply wish to better understand the designed world in which we live.
We created a premium cultural format without ever wanting it to become elitist. Our ambition is to show that design can be presented with intellectual rigour while remaining clear, accessible and universal.
The audience itself is much broader. ICONIC DESIGN[S] is intended for anyone who is curious about the objects around them, whether they are already interested in design or simply wish to better understand the designed world in which we live.
We created a premium cultural format without ever wanting it to become elitist. Our ambition is to show that design can be presented with intellectual rigour while remaining clear, accessible and universal.
Olivier Felix Isselin:
ICONIC DESIGN[S] is neither a conventional design documentary, nor a lifestyle programme, nor a product showcase.
Its distinctiveness lies in the balance between a very short format, rigorous writing and genuine cultural ambition. Each episode is conceived as a demonstration: an object is observed, placed within its context and then revealed from a new perspective.
We do not try to tell everything. We try to tell what matters, with precision.
Maxime Golay:
The rhythm is another important difference. Two and a half minutes is very short, but the viewer should never feel that the programme is rushing. We wanted to give each object enough time to exist. When the rhythm is right, curiosity emerges naturally.
ICONIC DESIGN[S] is neither a conventional design documentary, nor a lifestyle programme, nor a product showcase.
Its distinctiveness lies in the balance between a very short format, rigorous writing and genuine cultural ambition. Each episode is conceived as a demonstration: an object is observed, placed within its context and then revealed from a new perspective.
We do not try to tell everything. We try to tell what matters, with precision.
Maxime Golay:
The rhythm is another important difference. Two and a half minutes is very short, but the viewer should never feel that the programme is rushing. We wanted to give each object enough time to exist. When the rhythm is right, curiosity emerges naturally.
The title ICONIC DESIGN[S] emerged quite naturally. We wanted a name that would immediately express the subject of the series, without unnecessary artifice or stylistic effects.
The word iconic does not simply describe a famous object. It refers to an object that has moved beyond its function and entered the collective memory: something instantly recognisable, yet whose history often remains unknown.
The title therefore announces the central principle of the series directly. Each episode focuses on an iconic object, not only because it can be readily identified, but because it embodies a form, a use, a history and genuine cultural significance.
We wanted a name that was simple, international and immediately understandable. Like the series itself, it does not try to impress. It aims to be accurate.
The word iconic does not simply describe a famous object. It refers to an object that has moved beyond its function and entered the collective memory: something instantly recognisable, yet whose history often remains unknown.
The title therefore announces the central principle of the series directly. Each episode focuses on an iconic object, not only because it can be readily identified, but because it embodies a form, a use, a history and genuine cultural significance.
We wanted a name that was simple, international and immediately understandable. Like the series itself, it does not try to impress. It aims to be accurate.
Our first tools were scriptwriting, editorial development, documentary research and storyboarding. We also devoted considerable time to defining the scenography, camera movements and rhythm of each sequence before filming began.
From a technical perspective, the pilot was shot using a RED Monstro 8K VV camera, Angénieux lenses and an Atrax robotic motion-control arm. This equipment enabled us to achieve highly precise and repeatable camera movements, allowing the object to be presented with the same degree of rigour as the narrative.
Post-production then brought together editing, colour grading, sound design, motion graphics and an original musical score, with the aim of creating a coherent audiovisual experience rather than a simple sequence of images.
From a technical perspective, the pilot was shot using a RED Monstro 8K VV camera, Angénieux lenses and an Atrax robotic motion-control arm. This equipment enabled us to achieve highly precise and repeatable camera movements, allowing the object to be presented with the same degree of rigour as the narrative.
Post-production then brought together editing, colour grading, sound design, motion graphics and an original musical score, with the aim of creating a coherent audiovisual experience rather than a simple sequence of images.
Olivier Felix Isselin:
The most distinctive aspect of ICONIC DESIGN[S] is that we applied to the format the same principles that we admire in the objects it presents.
The series does not merely discuss design. Its writing, rhythm, lighting, framing, typography, music, camera movements and staging were conceived as elements within a single system. Every decision has a precise purpose. Nothing is arbitrary.
Maxime Golay:
And yet all of that must remain invisible. The viewer should never feel that we are giving a technical demonstration. They should simply be guided towards the object, forget the mechanics of the programme and feel that everything is natural.
The most distinctive aspect of ICONIC DESIGN[S] is that we applied to the format the same principles that we admire in the objects it presents.
The series does not merely discuss design. Its writing, rhythm, lighting, framing, typography, music, camera movements and staging were conceived as elements within a single system. Every decision has a precise purpose. Nothing is arbitrary.
Maxime Golay:
And yet all of that must remain invisible. The viewer should never feel that we are giving a technical demonstration. They should simply be guided towards the object, forget the mechanics of the programme and feel that everything is natural.
ICONIC DESIGN[S] is a project conceived and developed by the two of us: Olivier Felix Isselin and Maxime Golay.
Maxime Golay:
I am the presenter and a co-producer. Beyond my on-screen role, I contribute to the tone of the programme, the rhythm of the narration and the way in which each episode addresses the viewer.
Olivier Felix Isselin:
I am responsible for the concept, writing, art direction and directing. My role is to construct the overall visual and editorial language, ensuring coherence between the text, image, rhythm and staging.
The pilot also brought together professionals specialising in cinematography, robotics, lighting, sound, editing, colour grading, motion graphics and original music. ICONIC DESIGN[S] is the result of an ongoing dialogue between creative vision, its human embodiment on screen and high-level technical execution.
Maxime Golay:
I am the presenter and a co-producer. Beyond my on-screen role, I contribute to the tone of the programme, the rhythm of the narration and the way in which each episode addresses the viewer.
Olivier Felix Isselin:
I am responsible for the concept, writing, art direction and directing. My role is to construct the overall visual and editorial language, ensuring coherence between the text, image, rhythm and staging.
The pilot also brought together professionals specialising in cinematography, robotics, lighting, sound, editing, colour grading, motion graphics and original music. ICONIC DESIGN[S] is the result of an ongoing dialogue between creative vision, its human embodiment on screen and high-level technical execution.
Technology plays an essential role, but it is never used as a form of demonstration.
The 8K camera, robotic arm, lenses, controlled lighting and post-production all serve one simple purpose: to help us look more closely at the object. They allow us to reveal the proportions, surfaces, details, materials and presence of an iconic design.
In ICONIC DESIGN[S], technology is not there to impress. It is there to reveal.
The 8K camera, robotic arm, lenses, controlled lighting and post-production all serve one simple purpose: to help us look more closely at the object. They allow us to reveal the proportions, surfaces, details, materials and presence of an iconic design.
In ICONIC DESIGN[S], technology is not there to impress. It is there to reveal.
The project is primarily based on historical, cultural, visual and technical research.
For each object, we study its origins, its designer, its manufacturer, its industrial context, its uses, its evolution and the place it continues to occupy today. The purpose is not to accumulate information, but to understand why certain objects endure and eventually become iconic.
For the pilot episode devoted to the Tolix A Chair, we researched the history of Xavier Pauchard, the development of galvanised-steel furniture, Tolix’s manufacturing expertise and the evolution of the chair from a utilitarian object into an internationally recognised design reference.
Maxime Golay:
All this research must then be synthesised. We have to retain what matters, find the right balance and tell a story that the viewer can follow naturally. The hardest part is not finding information, but deciding which part of it to tell.
For each object, we study its origins, its designer, its manufacturer, its industrial context, its uses, its evolution and the place it continues to occupy today. The purpose is not to accumulate information, but to understand why certain objects endure and eventually become iconic.
For the pilot episode devoted to the Tolix A Chair, we researched the history of Xavier Pauchard, the development of galvanised-steel furniture, Tolix’s manufacturing expertise and the evolution of the chair from a utilitarian object into an internationally recognised design reference.
Maxime Golay:
All this research must then be synthesised. We have to retain what matters, find the right balance and tell a story that the viewer can follow naturally. The hardest part is not finding information, but deciding which part of it to tell.
The main challenge was synthesis.
Design can quickly become technical, historical or academic. Yet each episode lasts only two and a half minutes. We therefore had to find the right balance between the richness of the content, the clarity of the story, rhythm, emotion and precision, without ever making the subject feel oversimplified.
Olivier Felix Isselin:
Another challenge was to create a strong visual identity without ever overshadowing the object. The staging had to remain restrained but never impoverished, elegant but never demonstrative, and precise while still leaving the object enough space to exist.
Maxime Golay:
For me, the challenge was to be present without becoming the subject. The presenter guides the viewer’s attention, but the object must always remain at the centre of the story.
Design can quickly become technical, historical or academic. Yet each episode lasts only two and a half minutes. We therefore had to find the right balance between the richness of the content, the clarity of the story, rhythm, emotion and precision, without ever making the subject feel oversimplified.
Olivier Felix Isselin:
Another challenge was to create a strong visual identity without ever overshadowing the object. The staging had to remain restrained but never impoverished, elegant but never demonstrative, and precise while still leaving the object enough space to exist.
Maxime Golay:
For me, the challenge was to be present without becoming the subject. The presenter guides the viewer’s attention, but the object must always remain at the centre of the story.
We chose to submit ICONIC DESIGN[S] to an international design competition because we were convinced that it was more than an audiovisual programme.
The project is itself a work of design: an identity, a writing style, a scenography, a visual grammar, a rhythm and a particular way of telling the stories of objects. We wanted it to be assessed for this design process as much as for its content.
Maxime Golay:
It was important to us that this dimension should be recognised. ICONIC DESIGN[S] speaks about design, but the format itself is also based on a genuine design process. We wanted to show that an audiovisual project could be considered a work of design in its own right.
Olivier Felix Isselin:
For me, submitting the project to the A’ Design Award also meant defending a simple idea: design does not reside only in objects. It can also be found in the way they are observed, staged, narrated and transmitted. It was also an opportunity to confront our vision with the judgement of international design professionals and determine whether this approach resonated beyond our own conviction.
The project is itself a work of design: an identity, a writing style, a scenography, a visual grammar, a rhythm and a particular way of telling the stories of objects. We wanted it to be assessed for this design process as much as for its content.
Maxime Golay:
It was important to us that this dimension should be recognised. ICONIC DESIGN[S] speaks about design, but the format itself is also based on a genuine design process. We wanted to show that an audiovisual project could be considered a work of design in its own right.
Olivier Felix Isselin:
For me, submitting the project to the A’ Design Award also meant defending a simple idea: design does not reside only in objects. It can also be found in the way they are observed, staged, narrated and transmitted. It was also an opportunity to confront our vision with the judgement of international design professionals and determine whether this approach resonated beyond our own conviction.
This project reminded us that constraints can often be productive.
A short format forces you to make choices. Everything that does not serve the object, the story or the viewer’s understanding has to be removed. This demand for selection, precision and hierarchy was central to the development of ICONIC DESIGN[S].
Olivier Felix Isselin:
The experience reinforced a conviction that already guides my work: restraint is never a form of renunciation. It is a discipline. When mastered, it gives greater strength to forms, images and ideas.
Maxime Golay:
It also confirmed for me that simplicity is often the most difficult part. Saying little, but saying it accurately; being clear without becoming simplistic; creating interest without trying too hard: that requires real discipline.
A short format forces you to make choices. Everything that does not serve the object, the story or the viewer’s understanding has to be removed. This demand for selection, precision and hierarchy was central to the development of ICONIC DESIGN[S].
Olivier Felix Isselin:
The experience reinforced a conviction that already guides my work: restraint is never a form of renunciation. It is a discipline. When mastered, it gives greater strength to forms, images and ideas.
Maxime Golay:
It also confirmed for me that simplicity is often the most difficult part. Saying little, but saying it accurately; being clear without becoming simplistic; creating interest without trying too hard: that requires real discipline.
ICONIC DESIGN[S] is based on a simple conviction: objects shape our lives more quietly than words do.
They organise our gestures, our spaces, our habits and our memories. Some become iconic because they achieve something rare: they remain deeply useful while also carrying aesthetic, historical and cultural significance.
Maxime Golay:
Ultimately, our ambition is quite simple: to encourage people to look differently at what surrounds them. If, after an episode, a familiar object becomes a discovery, then we have achieved what we set out to do.
Olivier Felix Isselin:
What we want to explore is not design as ornament, but design as a way of understanding the world. ICONIC DESIGN[S] is only a starting point. This way of telling the stories of objects could naturally extend into other areas of design and creation while maintaining the same standards of observation and transmission.
They organise our gestures, our spaces, our habits and our memories. Some become iconic because they achieve something rare: they remain deeply useful while also carrying aesthetic, historical and cultural significance.
Maxime Golay:
Ultimately, our ambition is quite simple: to encourage people to look differently at what surrounds them. If, after an episode, a familiar object becomes a discovery, then we have achieved what we set out to do.
Olivier Felix Isselin:
What we want to explore is not design as ornament, but design as a way of understanding the world. ICONIC DESIGN[S] is only a starting point. This way of telling the stories of objects could naturally extend into other areas of design and creation while maintaining the same standards of observation and transmission.
Grand Interview about Iconic Designs Television Series
Olivier Felix Isselin: The three-part structure emerged quite naturally. The intention was not simply to present an object, but to organize a progression of perception. An iconic object does not reveal itself all at once. First, it is recognized. Then, one moves closer to it. Finally, if one truly observes it, it begins to speak about something beyond itself: an era, a way of using things, a culture, a way of life.I wanted each episode to unfold like a small architectural composition: an introduction, a development, and an opening.The introduction establishes the object. The exploration reveals its lines, details, materials and underlying logic. The reflection moves beyond simple description.We deliberately chose not to explain everything directly, because design is not merely a subject to be commented upon. It is a matter of proportions, rhythm, silence and relationships. The image therefore had to think alongside the text.Maxime Golay: For me, this structure also helps guide the viewer. We do not throw the audience straight into an analysis. We accompany them. First they see the object, then they enter into it, and finally they understand why it matters.Rhythm is extremely important. In 150 seconds, every shot must serve a purpose. There is no room for distraction.What I particularly like about this format is that it remains accessible. A viewer can simply enjoy the beauty of the images and then suddenly realize that they have learned something along the way.
The 150-second format was never conceived as a limitation. It was conceived as a form. A constraint, certainly, but a productive one.In such a short episode, it is impossible to say everything. That is precisely what forces us to make choices. We must find the right narrative thread, the right detail, the right sentence. Short formats leave no room for imprecision.ICONIC DESIGN[S] is not intended to replace a book. The series offers an entry point. It does not simplify design; rather, it creates the conditions for an initial understanding. It encourages viewers to look differently.At a time when images are consumed at great speed, we wanted to create a short format that would not be superficial. A short format can be demanding. It can be dense. It should respect the intelligence of the audience.Perhaps this is what a certain future of design education looks like: not explaining everything, but teaching people how to see, without overwhelming them with information.ICONIC DESIGN[S] can act as a catalyst. It can inspire the desire to learn more, to look longer, and to better understand what lies behind objects we thought we already knew.
Olivier Felix Isselin: The use of 8K capture and motion control was never intended as a technical demonstration. It was a response to the subject itself. Filming a design object requires a certain form of respect. Precision is not a luxury; it is a methodology.An iconic object exists through its proportions, assemblies, material choices, curves, angles and often through details that are almost invisible. The robotic arm allowed us to approach these elements with an almost analytical level of stability. In that sense, the process was very close to architectural drawing: observing accurately, framing accurately, and directing the viewer’s gaze with precision.To me, good design has always been about accuracy and appropriateness. A successful design is not only beautiful; it organizes, solves problems and endures over time. The image had to convey that idea.Maxime Golay: On set, this level of precision changes everything. Every movement is prepared. Every camera move matters. It imposes a strong discipline, but it also creates a great deal of freedom because you know exactly what you are looking for.With an object such as the Tolix A Chair, for example, the robotic system allows you to reveal things that a more approximate movement would miss: the spaces, the lines, the balance of the composition. The camera does not move around the object simply to create attractive images. It serves a purpose: understanding the object’s form.
Receiving the Bronze A’ Design Award in the Movie, Video and Animation category was an important recognition because the project exists precisely at the intersection of several fields: design, visual culture and knowledge transmission.ICONIC DESIGN[S] is not a conventional design program. Our ambition was to make design a cinematic subject. The object is not simply presented as a reference or a collectible piece. It becomes a presence. It is filmed as something that possesses its own history, form and intelligence.This distinction confirms that it is possible to make design accessible without diminishing its richness. Accessibility does not mean oversimplification. It can be achieved through clarity, rhythm, beauty, precision of framing and precision of language.For us, this recognition also provides international legitimacy to the project. It demonstrates that the series can speak to different audiences beyond the circle of design specialists alone.This is particularly important because design belongs to our shared cultural heritage. It exists in our homes, in our everyday gestures and routines. It silently shapes the way we live.
Maxime Golay:The tension between depth and duration is present in every episode. In the pilot dedicated to the Tolix A Chair, it was particularly significant because the object is both deceptively simple and remarkably rich in what it conveys. Within 150 seconds, we needed to find a visual language that was immediately understandable without becoming simplistic.From an audiovisual perspective, this required an exceptional level of precision. Every camera movement had to support an idea. Every shot needed to contribute something: a curve, a material, a function, a manufacturing detail. With motion control, nothing is filmed by chance. That precision was essential to helping viewers understand the object without relying on lengthy explanations.Filming in Autun, at the Tolix factory, was equally important. We were able to see the machinery, the craftsmanship and the continuity of the industrial process. It allowed us to avoid treating the chair merely as a museum piece. It became, once again, a manufactured object.Olivier Felix Isselin:That transformation was precisely what interested me. I did not want to confine the chair to its status as a design icon. I wanted to rediscover what gives it its authenticity.The A Chair did not become iconic simply because it was declared beautiful. It became iconic because it was right. It was robust, stackable, economical, recognizable and useful.The trap would have been to try to say everything: Xavier Pauchard, galvanization, French industry, cafés, schools, terraces, design heritage. In reality, completeness would have weakened the episode.Instead, we chose to focus on a few essential elements: material, line, function and longevity.Maxime Golay:That is where the short format becomes particularly interesting. It forces you to transform a large body of information into a visual experience. You cannot explain everything, so you must trust the image, the editing, the sound and the rhythm.Olivier Felix Isselin:This experience confirmed one of our core convictions: a carefully composed image, a meaningful detail or a simple sentence can sometimes communicate more than a lengthy explanation.
Olivier Felix Isselin:My background has naturally influenced the series. Architecture teaches you to observe relationships: between a volume and a space, between a line and a function, between light and material. This way of thinking naturally extended to objects.The minimalist cyclorama, the carefully calibrated lighting and the empty space surrounding the object all stem from the same intention: removing anything that might distract the viewer’s attention.The set was never meant to comment on the object. It was designed to give it space. In that sense, the studio becomes a space for observation and interpretation.Maxime Golay:From my perspective, it was important that this level of rigor did not become cold or distant. The visual system is extremely precise and highly refined. Part of my role is to create a more direct connection with the audience.I am not there to perform the role of a presenter. I am there to guide the viewer’s gaze and provide a human presence alongside the object.What matters to me is that someone with no particular knowledge of design can enter the episode without feeling excluded. Precision is important, but so is accessibility.Olivier Felix Isselin:That balance lies at the heart of the series: a strong formal discipline, almost architectural in nature, combined with a living human presence that prevents the project from becoming purely abstract.We wanted to remain precise without becoming cold, and sensitive without becoming decorative.
Maxime Golay:We conceived ICONIC DESIGN[S] as a format designed to travel. An episode can exist on television, on a digital platform, in a museum, or within educational and cultural contexts. That is one of the strengths of the short format: it can adapt to different modes of distribution without losing its identity.From an audiovisual perspective, the fact that the series is mastered in HDR10, with highly defined imagery, carefully crafted sound, and delivery formats suited to multiple environments, opens the door to a variety of uses. On television, the series can function as a premium cultural capsule. In a museum, it can accompany an exhibition. Online, it can serve as a gateway to longer-form content: archives, interviews, research materials, and educational resources.We are currently seeking broadcasters and editorial partners, both in France and internationally. The objective is to identify the environments where the series can genuinely connect with its audience.Olivier Felix Isselin:This capacity to circulate is important because design objects themselves move between different worlds: industry, the home, the museum, and collective memory. An iconic object never belongs to a single place. It emerges from a specific context and sometimes becomes universal.Future episodes may explore a wide variety of subjects: furniture, lighting, transportation, everyday objects, fashion, and industrial design. The Tolix A Chair is a first example, but the series could just as easily feature the Arco lamp, the Bic pen, the Fiat 500, the Citroën DS, a perfume bottle, the Walkman, the Panton Chair, a game console, or a Riva Aquarama.What matters is not merely the fame of an object. What matters is its ability to tell the story of an era. An iconic object is a cultural archive. It speaks of a technology, a use, a collective aspiration, and a particular way of life.Maxime Golay:That is precisely what audiovisual storytelling can accomplish so effectively: creating an immediate connection with an object and then opening the door to something larger. We begin with a form, a material, a movement, and arrive at a story.
Olivier Felix Isselin:The journey of the project has been an essential part of its development. Cannes, in January 2024, was the moment of intuition. Autun brought the industrial and historical substance. The robotic studio near Paris gave the pilot its visual language. The French Riviera became the place of refinement and structuring, while Dublin provided an international perspective.Each location transformed the project in its own way. Cannes provided momentum. Autun provided roots. The studio provided precision. Dublin provided distance.Maxime Golay:Autun was particularly meaningful. Filming at Tolix was not simply about finding a location. It was about returning to the origin of the object. You understand a chair differently when you see where it is made and when you meet the people who continue to carry that history forward.The studio, by contrast, was another world entirely. Everything was controlled: light, framing, movement and sound. The contrast between the factory and the cyclorama became very important to us. On one side, industrial reality. On the other, an almost pure and highly controlled visual environment.Olivier Felix Isselin:This movement between very different places strengthened the identity of the series. ICONIC DESIGN[S] is not merely a French project. It has a European and international ambition.Design objects are often born within a specific context and then travel across the world. We wanted to make that transformation visible: the journey from manufacture to icon.
Showing an object is not enough. One can film a chair, a lamp or a car in a highly elegant manner without creating any real understanding. For an image to become knowledge, the viewer’s gaze must be guided.In ICONIC DESIGN[S], we pay particular attention to progression: first the object’s overall presence, then the detail, then its use, and finally the idea behind it. Composition is not merely aesthetic; it serves an editorial purpose.A camera movement can reveal a curve. A static shot can make a proportion understandable. A close-up can reveal a material. A sound transition can create a new form of attention.We are also careful not to duplicate information. If the image already communicates something powerfully, the text should not simply repeat it. It should open another layer of understanding. Conversely, if the narration introduces an idea, the image should embody it without illustrating it too literally.What our first audience responses have shown is that understanding often emerges from the meeting of a visual detail and a very simple sentence. The viewer does not merely retain information. Their way of looking at the object changes, even if only slightly.That is what interests us most: transforming observation into attention, and attention into knowledge.
Maxime Golay:I hope that a viewer who appreciates design, even without specialized knowledge, will leave an episode with a simple desire: to look more carefully. To see a chair, a lamp, a car or a pen differently. To understand that an everyday object may contain a history, a logic and a beauty that are not always visible at first glance.Audiovisual storytelling makes this possible in a very direct way. A camera can move around an object, reveal a detail, express a proportion and bring a material to life. Sound, movement and light create an immediate relationship. The audience does not simply receive information; they physically experience the presence of the object.That is also why technique matters. Motion control, spatialized sound and precise framing are not spectacular effects. They help the viewer enter into the object without becoming lost. Technology should disappear behind the clarity of the experience.Olivier Felix Isselin:A written essay explains. A museum label provides context. A traditional documentary develops an argument. Audiovisual media can do something different: it can make an idea felt at the same moment it is expressed.What interests me about design is that it makes thought usable. A chair, a lamp, a car or a pen are formal responses to needs, but also to desires, lifestyles and particular moments in history. Design is not merely a question of form. It is a culture.With ICONIC DESIGN[S], we do not simply want to say that an object is important. We want viewers to understand why it is important through the very way it is filmed.Maxime Golay:Ultimately, we would like viewers to think: “I knew this object, but I had never really looked at it.”Olivier Felix Isselin:Exactly. To encourage people to see differently.Maxime Golay:And to use image, sound and movement to make that discovery simple, immediate and almost self-evident.