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5 Must-Watch Movies for Design System Teams
Nurture creativity and gain inspiration by watching movies that celebrate design, creativity, and teamwork, perfect for any design system team or system thinker.
Understanding Interconnected and Interdependent Systems
This science fiction film follows the story of a team that specializes in the art of manipulating a person’s subconscious mind. Each person on this team possessed unique talents that would aid the entire team on a high-stakes mission.
Incepting the human mind is to play within the layers of one’s perception of reality, memory, and overall conscious state. Does that remind you of anything within design systems?
In design systems, sometimes complex components can become a huge nightmare. Context, state management, theming, and dependencies can all coincide into a mess. Keeping a lean component library could help when maintaining such a complex system, but what do you do when you inherit the complexity? Similarly to the movie Inception, confusion can arise when updating or modifying these complex components, resulting in unintended consequences.
Storytelling and the Power of Selling the System
“The Founder” is a compelling movie to watch when diving into the impact of powerful storytelling. The film vividly portrays how Ray Kroc’s ability to persuade through communication was pivotal in turning a local burger joint into a global franchise empire. In the movie, Kroc’s knack for weaving a captivating narrative not only engaged investors, franchisees, and customers, but also convinced them to place their trust in his innovative vision (The Speedee Service System) and the potential of the McDonald’s brand.
This mirrors the process of promoting a design system. Just as Kroc’s communication skills were essential, effectively conveying the value of a design system could sway key decision-makers to adopt it. This adoption leads to improved user experiences, streamlined development, and a stronger brand identity. Ba-Da-Da-Da-Daaa I’m Lovin’ It.
The Power of Research and Data
This true story focuses on the Oakland Athletics baseball team and their general manager, Billy Beane. Played by Brad Pitt, Billy Beane takes on the challenge of assembling a competitive team despite a tight budget. With the help of Peter Brand, a Yale economics graduate, he introduces a data-driven approach to scouting and recruiting players. Beane and Brand used data to reveal undervalued players who possessed skills they needed to fill important gaps on the Oakland team.
Billy Beane’s data-driven approach is similar to how design system teams should capture data. Do we know who our undervalued components are, or do we have an idea of components we may need that fill important gaps in our current system?
Although design system analytic tools are relatively new, we are seeing tons of innovation in that space. Not only are we measuring component adoption (link), but we are also measuring the success of each component (link), design team adoption (link), impact (link), and the success of the system (link).
Find Your People and Collaborate
Incredibles II is a sequel to the first Incredibles movie, but this is the first time viewers can see the entire family in action. In short, this movie follows a superhero family living in a world where superheroes are now illegal. The mother of the family, Elastigirl, takes on a new mission to restore the public’s trust in superheroes; however, things take a wild turn. At this point, the family must navigate their new roles and deal with a new villain who threatens the entire world.
After watching the movie, you could agree that this team reminds you of a typical design system team especially during their very first sprint. As new teammates, we go through the usual — set expectations, document task, decide on each individual’s responsibility, complete your first sprint, conduct a retro, etc. The movie, the Incredibles II, took things one step further. What would you do when a team member goes rogue? Would you immediately remain positive or would you eliminate the team member?
Understanding the System as a Whole Even the Parts You Can’t See
“See You Yesterday” follows the story of two brilliant African American high school students, CJ and Sebastian, who invent a time machine backpack capable of sending them back in time for short intervals. The story takes a poignant turn when they confront a tragic event that prompts them to consider using their invention to prevent it.
As they attempt to use the time machine to alter this tragic event, they quickly realize their limited understanding of larger societal systems. Their scientific knowledge did not grant them control over systemic problems such as racial profiling, police violence, and racial oppression. The challenges they face when trying to prevent the tragic event serve as a metaphor for the complexities and the deeply entrenched nature of these systemic issues. Technological solutions alone can not fix deeply rooted issues.
In this movie, one can quickly learn that change can lead to unforeseen consequences, especially if you don’t understand the system as a whole. That goes for design systems as well. When working within design systems, we must address changes by acknowledging their interconnected and interdependent parts rather than problems to be solved in isolation.
Watching these films will not only provide you with a refreshing break from your design system endeavors but also spark new ideas and creative approaches in your work. Remember, great design can be found in various art forms, including cinema. Enjoy the movies and happy designing!