Dieter Rams admits playing a crucial part in the global problem of overproduction in a new documentary film. In an exclusive interview, director Gary Hustwit says the German designer regrets not promoting his ideas about sustainable design to the masses.
Released in late 2018, Rams is the first ever documentary on the prolific designer who spent more than three decades as chief design officer at German electronics company Braun and whose work was a major influence on the designs of Apple.
According to Hustwit, Rams feels responsible for the fact that mass production of products is one of the biggest causes of climate change.
Director Gary Hustwit spent three years with Dieter Rams, at his home in Kronberg and on his travels
"Dieter recognises that he did play an instrumental part in driving the culture of overconsumption that we're currently in, from his time at Braun," the director told Dezeen. "I think that's one of the things he looks back at with regret," he continued, "regret that he wasn't able to spread his ideas about sustainability further or that perhaps they weren't understood in the right way."
Rams regrets becoming a designer
Hustwit thinks Rams, 86, might not have even become a designer if he'd realised the impact of his work on the planet.
"He says himself that if he could have done it all over again, he would not have chosen to become a designer," he said. "He really wanted to be a landscape architect or an u...