Architects, architecture, buildings, construction and inspiration in film

[edit] Introduction

Architecture, construction, and design share a deep and intrinsic connection with photography, film making, cinema, and the movies. While distinct by function, these disciplines converge by their shared objectives to create immersive, emotionally resonant spaces that tell stories, evoke moods, and influence perceptions. In some respects these forms of creative endeavour can feed off and into one another, with buildings as backdrops, architects as characters or movies as inspiration for what might be possible in the physical world.

Architecture, design and construction shape the physical world, using technology, materials, engineering and imagination to push the boundaries of what is buildable and how space is occupied. Cinema uses visual, acoustic and spatial language, supported by technology, creativity and drama to construct imaginary worlds, create scenes from the past, study the present or imagine the future, and in doing so films themselves can inspire innovation in how the built environment is shaped, occupied, adapted, treated and preserved.

Traditionally the synergy between film and design has been through disciplines such as production design, set construction, direction, sketching, storyboarding and scripting. Today with the increasing use of CGI, AI, computer modelling and so on, the two are in many ways even more closely tied, as these same tools have become an inherent part of design and architectural practice. Whilst on the other side photography, sketching, site studies, film, modelling, animation, fly throughs and walk throughs have for a long time been key design development tools for built environment professionals..

At heart of this relationship is the role of space. Architects, designers, film-makers, directors and actors all consider how people move through, interact with, and respond to spaces. In cinema, the design of sets and choice of location can profoundly affect the tone and narrative of a film. Designers in both fields rely on colour theory, texture, materials, and spatial composition to evoke emotion and guide experience. Likewise, the relationship between site, location, form, and orientation, tie to materiality, narrative, cultural landscape and emotions. Only by working closely with construction teams, craftspersons, clients and designers can visions or even fantasies, which may have never existed before be realised.

Film and photography are key tools of design, helping to more closely inspect sites, record and explain how designs change, how they are used, adapted and built, to test theories, and in a playful way to communicate ideas. Film is an increasingly key tool when working with clients, contractors, and planners alike. The collaborative dance between these disciplines continues to be a fertile ground for innovation and expression, reminding us that great storytelling is often built, designed, and constructed as much as it is written or performed.

Films continue to be a source of knowledge, inspiration, enlightenment in their many different ways. We have tried here to start a long list of films from seminal pieces to what some might say trashy flicks, from detailed documentaries to self promotion, and serious reserach to artistic studies - they all connect in some way between these two disciplines. Enjoy and feel free to add any that we are missing!

[edit] Specific Architects in film

Aalto (2021) - Trailer. Documentary exploring the life and work of Alvar Aalto, a pioneer of Scandinavian (Finnish) design, through the lens of his inspiring creative and personal partnership with his wife, Aino.

A Day with Zaha Hadid (2004). Acclaimed architect reflects on her career, influences, and design approach, guiding viewers through her Vienna decades retrospective, including the centrepiece sculpture Ice Storm.

Alvaro Siza: Transforming Reality (2004) - Excerpt here - Director Michael Blackwood. Renowned Portuguese architect visits 15 key projects with Kenneth Frampton, offering insights into his design philosophy, critical regionalism and the Oporto School.

Antonio Gaudí (1984). Director Hiroshi Teshigahara. The work of Catalan architect Antonio Gaudí, as seen by Japanese New Wave director Hiroshi Teshigahara.

Antonio Gaudí, una visión inacabada (1974) - full movie here - A portrayal of the architect walking through his major works (the Sagrada Familia, Park Güell) accompanied by young disciples, giving advice and explaining his profession.

Bauhaus Spirit: 100 years of Bauhaus (2019) - Trailer. Through its history, Bauhaus tackled the question of how architecture can ensure that people live better together and participate in everyday life.

Bernard Tschumi: Architect and Theorist (2003). Director Michael Blackwood captures Tschumi's final lecture as Dean of Columbia University's Graduate School of Architecture, offering a dynamic exploration of space, time, and movement, while reflecting on his influential theoretical contributions and architectural projects developed in both New York and Paris.

Big Time (2017). Director Kaspar Astrup Schröder. A documentary that follows architect Bjarke Ingels over seven years as he navigates the creative challenges and compromises involved in completing his most ambitious project to date.

Citizen Architect: Samuel Mockbee and the Spirit of the Rural Studio (2010). In rural Alabama, architecture students cross the threshold of poverty to build communities, not just structures, and leave a bit to make a better world.

Citizen Lambert: Joan of Architecture (2007). Director Teri Wehn-Damisch. A look at the life and career of Canadian woman architect Phyllis Bronfman Lambert.

City Dreamers (2018). Director Joseph Hillel. A Canadian documentary film which focusses on four women innovators in contemporary architecture; Phyllis Lambert, Blanche Lemco van Ginkel, Cornelia Oberlander and Denise Scott Brown.

Volume Zero: Documentary on Charles Correa (2015) - Full Movie here - A tribute to great Indian Architect Charles Correa on his demise. The most comprehensive documentary on Charles Correa ever made. Director: Arun Khopkar

Eames: The Architect & The Painter (2011). The relationship between Charles Eames and his wife Ray ignited a burst of design ingenuity whose impact on the world can still be felt over half a century later.

E.1027: Eileen Gray and the House by the Sea (2024). A cinematic journey into the mind of Eileen Gray. A story about the power of female expression, and men's desire to control it.

Eero Saarinen: The Architect Who Saw the Future (2016). Director Peter Rosen. Exploration of the visionary life and enduring legacy of a pioneering architect whose influential work continues to inspire, despite his untimely death at 51.

First Person Singular: I.M. Pei (1997) 90-minute special on the architect, by Director Peter Rosen. Filmed throughout the world over a two-year period.

Frank Gehry: An Architecture of Joy (2002) Director Michael Blackwood. Delves into work of the 1990s, including the Guggenheim Bilbao and the Weisman Museum, highlighting his roots in the art world and how his rebellious, sculptural approach has redefined architecture by blending contemporary art with a personal, rule-breaking design language.

Frank Lloyd Wright (1998) Directors Ken Burns and Lynn Novick documentary about the Architect.

Garbage Warrior (2007) Director Oliver Hodge. Follows architect Michael Reynolds and his unconventional builders as they battle to promote sustainable, off-grid living through innovative, eco-friendly architecture.

How Much Does Your Building Weigh, Mr Foster? (2010). Directors Norberto López Amado and Carlos Carcas.
Film traces the rise of one of the world's premier architects, Norman Foster, and his unending quest to improve the quality of life through design.

Infinite Space: The Architecture of John Lautner (2008) Architectural film-maker Murray Grigor captures the bold, dramatic spaces of John Lautner through choreographed camera work, while archival recordings of Lautner’s own insightful and witty commentary bring his visionary architecture to life.

Le Corbusier - Das Jahrhundert Le Corbusiers (2014) - full movie here German - The Century of Le Corbusier.

Le Corbusier (1968) Director Roy Oppenheim. The film explores the visionary career and philosophy of a pioneering architect whose human centred principles emphasised societal balance, integrating light, space, and greenery into expansive futuristic cities to inspire outward-looking perspectives rather than inward intrusions.

Louis Sullivan: the Struggle for American Architecture (2010) - full movie here - Documentary about the Chicago architect Louis Sullivan his rapid rise to fame, tragic decline, and triumph of his creative spirit.

Make No Little Plans: Daniel Burnham and the American City (2010). Director Judith McBrien. Daniel Hudson Burnham the visionary architect and planner whose groundbreaking work in the late 19th century shaped the modern American city, blending practicality with idealism and laying the foundation for urban planning.

Maya Lin: A Strong Clear Vision (1994). Director Freida Lee Mock. A film about the work of the artist most famous for her monuments such as the Vietnam Memorial Wall and the Civil Rights Fountain Memorial.

Mies van der Rohe: Less Is More (2003). Director Philip Smith. Art critic Robert Hughes analyses the work of Mies van der Rohe, the master of light and space who had an enormous influence on modern architecture.

My Architect (2003) - Trailer here - Director Nathaniel Kahn searches to understand his father, noted architect Louis Kahn, who died bankrupt and alone in 1974.

Oscar Niemeyer, an Architect Committed to His Century / Oscar Niemeyer, un architecte engagé dans le siècle (2000) Director Marc-Henry Wajnberg. Portrait of an artist architect, who loved women and believed in the socialist ideal.

Philip Johnson: Diary of an Eccentric Architect (1997) - trailer here - Featuring the architect and Frank Stella.

Regular or Super: Views on Mies van der Rohe (2004) - Trailer here - Directors Patrick Demers and Joseph Hillel. Documentary offering a compelling introduction to the work of the architect,, showcasing his lasting influence on 20th-century architecture and highlighting the profound social and artistic impact on urban life.

Rem (2016) Directed by Rem Koolhaas

Rem Koolhaas: A Kind of Architect (2008) - Trailer here - Visually inventive, thought-provoking portrait of the architect and theorist, exploring buildings, provocative ideas, and impact on architecture and urban society.

Renzo Piano The architect of light / An Architect for Santander (2018) - Trailer here - Documentary about the architect by film-maker Carlos Saura.

Richard Rogers Inside Out (2008) - Full Film - Director James Nutt. Art documentary presented by Alan Yentob, tracing his Italian roots and creative influences, groundbreaking designs, as the architect revisits iconic works like the Pompidou Centre and Lloyd’s of London, along with the more intimate projects that helped shape his distinct architectural vision.

Sketches of Frank Gehry (2005) Directed by Sydney Pollack

The Mies van der Rohes – A Female Family Saga (2023) - Trailer. Follows the women around architect as they navigate the promises of a new era while confronting the limitations of traditional roles.

The Roberto Brothers (2012) - Trailer. About Marcelo, Milton and Maurício Robert. Contemporaries of Brazilian modernist icons like Lucio Costa and Oscar Niemeyer, the Roberto Brothers—Marcelo, Milton, and Maurício—were key figures in shaping Brazil’s architectural identity, designing major landmarks such as Rio de Janeiro's Press Association building and the Santos Dumont airport.

The World of Buckminster Fuller (1974) - full movie here. Directed by Robert Snyder. Architect, engineer, geometer, cartographer, philosopher, futurist, inventor (geodesic dome, dymaxion car) and perspectives on the world's problems.

Visual Acoustics (2008). Director Eric Bricker. Narrated by Dustin Hoffman, celebrating the life and career of the architectural photographer Julius Shulman, whose brought modern architecture to mainstream America.

[edit] Specific Buildings in film

A House Is Not a Home: Wright or Wrong (2020) - Trailer. Documentary weaving together the film-maker’s lost family home in Tehran, a FL Wright house in Alabama, and J Rosenbaum’s childhood, revealing parallels between architectural quirks and the complexities of family history.

Deconstructivist Architects (1990). Director Michael Blackwood. Documentary that captures the bold, fragmented forms of these buildings across cities like Vienna and Los Angeles, featuring on-site interviews with leading architects and coverage of MoMA’s landmark De-constructivist Architecture exhibition curated by Philip Johnson.

Grenfell: Uncovered. Director Olaide Sadiq. - Trailer here - This powerful documentary exposes the preventable failures and decisions by officials and companies leading up to the 2017 Grenfell Tower fire, while giving voice to survivors, families, and firefighters who recount the harrowing tragedy that claimed 72 lives.

Kochuu (2003) - full movie - Director Jesper Wachtmeister. A documentary exploring the essence of modern Japanese architecture, deep roots in tradition, and influence on Nordic design, highlighting how minimalist techniques, spiritual aesthetics, and a harmony with nature create timeless, transformative spaces.

Loos Ornamental (2008) Director Heinz Emigholz - Trailer here - Austrian architect Adolf Loos was one of the pioneers of European Modernist Architecture. Here, twenty-seven of his still existing building are explored.

Sagrada: The Mystery of Creation (SAGRADA, el misteri de la creació) (2012) Explores the enduring and enigmatic construction of Barcelona’s Sagrada Família, using the unfinished masterpiece and its visionary creator Antoni Gaudí as a lens to examine artistic devotion, collective effort, and the mysteries of creation.

Schindler's Houses (2007) Director Heinz Emigholz - Trailer here - Rudolph Schindler built many houses across Southern California, the film asks what the houses say about the architect.

The House of Tomorrow (2017) directed by Peter Livolsi, weaves the futurist architect Buckminster Fuller into the coming-of-age journey of two teens navigating high school, punk rock dreams, and self-discovery.

The Infinite Happiness (2015) - Trailer here - Directors Ila Bêka and Louise Lemoine Documentary profiles the innovative “8 House” in Copenhagen by architect Bjarke Ingels, showcasing how its looping design fosters a vibrant, bike-friendly, and community-oriented lifestyle for its 500 residents.

The Power of Utopia. Living with Le Corbusier in Chandigarh (2024). Documentary exploring how the design of Chandigarh continues to shape everyday life, blending utopian ideals with lived reality 70 years later.

Unfinished Spaces (2011) Directors Benjamin Murray / Alysa Nahmias. The National Art Schools project Cuba, designed by three young artists in the wake of Castro's Revolution, neglected, nearly forgotten, then ultimately rediscovered as a visionary architectural masterpiece.

[edit] Building culture

24 City / Er shi si cheng ji (2008) Directed and co-written by Jia Zhangke, this film traces three generations in Chengdu—from the 1950s to the present—charting the emotional and social transformations that unfold as a state-owned factory is replaced by a modern apartment complex.

Archiculture (2011). A thoughtful and critical look at studio-based architectural education, following students as they navigate the pressures and creativity of completing their final design projects.

Architecture of Infinity / Architektur der Unendlichkeit (2018). Director Christoph Schaub. Beyond the seeing and explaining of buildings, this architecture documentary deals with a very specific aspect of the effects of space: transcendence, with Cristina Iglésias, Jojo Mayer, Peter Märkli, James Turrell, Álvaro Siza Vieira and Peter Zumthor.

Away From All Suns! (2013) Director Isabella Willinger. - Trailer here - A powerful documentary journey through the fading legacy of Moscow’s 1920s Constructivist architecture, following an activist, an artist, and an architect as they struggle to preserve, inhabit, or reinterpret revolutionary structures, while archival footage and manifestos echo a lost utopian modernity.

Bauhaus - Modell und Mythos (2009) Directors Niels Bolbrinker and Kerstin Stutterheim. Documentary explores the enduring legacy of the revolutionary art and design school founded after World War I, highlighting its profound impact on modern architecture and design through the voices of former students and teachers like Kandinsky, Klee, Gropius, and Mies van der Rohe, tracing its rise, suppression and continued relevance today.

Body Buildings (2021) Director Henrique Pina brings together dance, architecture and cinema, merging identities and concepts. Six choreographies created for six works of architecture in six locations in Portugal.

Columbus (2017). Director Kogonada. Coming of age drama about an unexpected connection between the son of an architecture scholar (John Cho) and a young local architecture enthusiast (Haley Lu Richardson), set against the striking modernist landscape of Columbus, Indiana, and praised for its quiet beauty and emotional depth.

Gia pente diamerismata kai ena magazi! (2005) Exchange Of Five Apartments And One Shop (2005). Documentary exploring 'exchanges', where land is traded for a share in newly built apartments and shops,. This radically transformed Athens and Piraeus, the urban impact this has is shown by comparing 60s film scenes with present-day footage, it is still-popular system which has been brought to city neighbourhoods.

Hands over the City (or Hands of Corruption) / Le mani sulla città (1963) Director Francesco Rosi. - Full Movie Italian - A powerful drama exposing political corruption in post-World War II Italy, honoured in 2008 as one of the “100 Italian films to be saved” for its lasting impact on the nation's collective memory.

Hostile Architecture (2021). - short film - Director Robb Jayne. Short film describing the harsh unfriendliness of architecture and the city, through the main character who needs to survive an afternoon in the city centre until her accomodation can be arranged at a homeless shelter a place where benches erupt into spiked tentacles when seated.

Hostile Architecture: The Fight Against the Homeless - Prism of the Past (2022?) Documentary exploring hostile architecture, where environmental design, like uncomfortable benches, blue lights, and spikes are used to control or discourage certain human behaviours such as loitering or sleeping.

Human Shelter (2018) - Trailer here - Director Boris B. Bertram. UN Habitat poetic documentary that explores the meaning of home through intimate stories from around the world, highlighting both diversity of living conditions and the universal human desire for shelter, belonging, and connection.

In which Annie Gives It Those Ones (1989). Writer Arundathi Roy, Director Pradip Kreshen. Indian English-language television film centred on a rebellious architecture student at the National Institute of Architecture in 1970s New Delhi.

Lotte am Bauhaus (2019) Director Gregor Schnitzler. The story of a young female student at the famous Bauhaus Design Academy in the early 1920's, inspired by the real life of designer Alma Siedhoff-Buscher in German..

Manufactured Landscapes (2006). Director Jennifer Baichwal. Photographer Edward Burtynsky travels the world observing changes in landscapes due to industrial work and manufacturing.

New Town Utopia (2018) - Trailer- Director Christopher Ian Smith. Documentary that explores the British new town experiment through the social history of Basildon with interviews and performances by artists, poets, and musicians.

Koyaanisqatsi: Life Out of Balance (1982) Director Godfrey Reggio with music by Philip Glass - Full movie here - A non-narrative documentary using powerful visuals to explore the disruptive impact of technology and modern civilization on the environment and human life.

The Architect (2006). Director Matt Tauber. A drama about the tension between an architect and a community activist living in his flawed housing project, highlighting the social impact of architectural design and featuring standout performances and striking visuals.

The Architect (2016) Director Jonathan Parker. A couple’s dream to build their perfect home turns into a comedic drama when their stubborn modernist architect insists on constructing his own vision instead of theirs.

The Architecture of Doom / Undergångens arkitektur (1989) Director Peter Cohen. Chilling documentary examines the Nazi regime’s obsession with an Aryan aesthetic, rooted in distorted ideals of purity, art, and race, used to fuel propaganda and horrific policies that led to the extermination of millions.

The Belly of an Architect (1987) Director Peter Greenaway. Follows an American architect as his obsession with Roman history and the 18th-century visionary Étienne-Louis Boullée spirals into personal and professional collapse amid betrayal, illness, and paranoia, culminating in a tragic end set against the grandeur of classical Rome.

The Brutalist (2024). A visionary architect flees post-war Europe in 1947 for a brighter future in the United States and finds his life forever changed by a wealthy client.

The Competition (2013) Director Angel Borrego Cubero. Documentary captures ntense competition between architects like Jean Nouvel, Frank Gehry, and Zaha Hadid for National Museum of Art in Andorra, offering a raw look at contests as high-stake cultural spectacles, and a global crisis in the wake of the real estate bubble.

The Draughtsman's Contract (1982). Director Peter Greenaway, A visually stylized British period mystery in which a draughtsman hired to sketch a wealthy estate becomes entangled in a web of intrigue, seduction, and possible murder, accompanied by a distinctive score from Michael Nyman.

The Fountainhead (1949) Director King Vidor - Trailer - An uncompromising, visionary architect struggles to maintain his integrity and individualism despite personal, professional and economic pressures to conform to popular standards.

The Human Scale (2012) - Trailer Here - Director Andreas Dalsgaard. Exploring the challenges of rapid urbanization and modern city life, following architect Jan Gehl’s four-decade study of human behavior to reveal how cities can be redesigned to prioritise human connection, inclusion, and well-being over cars and concrete.

The Pruitt-Igoe Myth (2011) - Trailer here - Director Chad Freidrichs explores the rise & fall of titular housing complex in St. Louis, examining racism & gov. Policies through interviews with former residents & historical footage. Ft racism, urban poverty & inequality in America.

Urbanized (2011) - watch here- Director Gary Hustwit's documentary about the design of cities, looking at issues and strategies behind urban design, features foremost architects, planners, policymakers, builders, and thinkers.

[edit] General interest and inspiration

Alice in the Cities (1974) Directed by Wim Wenders

A Room With a View (1985)

A Space Odyssey (1968) Directed by Stanley Kubrick

Black Panther (2018) Directed by Ryan Coogler

Blade Runner (1982) Directed by Ridley Scott

Blade Runner 2049 (2017). Directed by Denis Villeneuve. Young Blade Runner K uncovers a hidden truth that sets him on a quest to find the long-missing Rick Deckard, gone for thirty years.

Brazil (1985) Directed by Terry Gilliam

Cathedrals of Culture (2014) Directed by Wim Wenders

Correspondences : Dance and Architecture ( 2017) Miquel Ardevol & Eric de Gispelt

Dark City (1998) Directed by Alex Proyas

Dear Diary (1993) (1993) Directed by Nanni Moretti

Die Hard (1998)

Fellini Satyricon (1969) Directed by Federico Fellini

FRANCOFONIA (2015) Directed by Alexander Sokurov

Gangubai Kathiawadi (2022). After being deceived and sold to a brothel, a young woman rises through the criminal underworld to seize control of the very world that once exploited her.

Gattaca (1997) Directed by Andrew Niccol

Gran Horizonte: Around the day in 80 Worlds (2013) Directed by, Urban Think Tank

Her (2013) Directed by Spike Jonze

Highrise (2015) Directed by Ben Wheatley

Inception (2010) Directed by Christopher Nolan

Isle of Dogs (2018) Directed by Wes Anderson

Kafka’s Supermarket (2019 ) Directed by Aaaron Dylan Kearns

La Haine (1995) Directed by Mathieu Kassovitz

La Intumaine (1924) The Inhuman Woman. Claire Lescot, a celebrated first lady desired by all men, cruelly mocks the young scientist Einar Norsen, prompting him to leave her home vowing to end his life.

La Notte (1961) Directed by Michelangelo Antonioni

Le Mepris [ Contempt ] Dircted by Jean-Luc Godard (1963)

Life as a House (2001). Director Irwin Winkler. A drama film about George, a renowned architect, who embarks on building his dream house while navigating a tense relationship with his architecture student son, Sam.

Locke (2013)

Los Angeles Plays Itself (2003). Director Thom Andersen. Documentary on how is depicted in the movies.

Mamma Roma, directed by Pier Paolo Pasolini, 1962.

Manhattan (1979) Directed by WoodyAllen

Medianeras/Sidewalls (2011) Directed by Gustavo Taretto

Metropolis (1927)

Moonlighting (1982)

Multiplicity (1996)

Mughal-e-Azam (1960)

My Uncle: Mr Hulot (Mon Oncle - 1958) Directed by Jacques Tati

North by Northwest (1959) Directed by Alfred Hitchcock

Objectified (2009) Directed by Gary Huswit

Oblivion (2013) Directed by by Joseph Kosinski

Playtime (1967). Direced by Jacques Tati. Monsieur Hulot curiously wanders around a high-tech Paris, paralleling a trip with a group of American tourists. Meanwhile, a nightclub/restaurant prepares its opening night, but it's still under construction.

Para que no me olvides (2005) Directed By Patricia Ferreira

Parasite, (2019) Directed by Bong Joon-ho

Renaisance (2006) Directed By Christian Volckman

Rear Window (1954) Directed by Alfred Hitchcock

Rocco and His Brothers (1960) Directed by Luchino Visconti

Russian Ark (2002) Directed by Alexander Sokurov

Samsara (2011) Directed by Roy Fricke

San Xia Hao Ren [Still Life] (2006) Directed by Zhangke Jia

Sidewalls (2011)

Skyscraper (2018), director Rawson Marshall Thurber. Action thriller; a former FBI agent blamed for a fire in the world's tallest skyscraper must clear his name, uncover the arsonists, and rescue his family trapped inside.

The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)

The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014). A writer meets the owner of a once-grand hotel, who recounts his youth as a lobby boy during its heyday under the guidance of a legendary concierge.

The Great Beauty / La grande bellezza (2013) Director Paolo Sorrentino

The Lake House (2006). Director Alejandro Agresti. A romantic drama that intertwines love and time travel while highlighting the beauty and transformative power of modern American architecture, featuring the influence of Louis Kahn and the aspirations of architecture students.

The Passenger (1974). Director Michelangelo Antonioni. Film featuring Gaudi buildings describing identity, alienation, and the impact of environment on human behavior, through the use of location and architecture.

Tomorrowlands (2015) Director Brad Bird. A sci-fi action-adventure film about a teenage girl and a former boy genius who discover a hidden, futuristic realm called "Tomorrowland," inspired by the Disney Parks attraction.

Wings of Desire (1987) Directed by Wim Wenders

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