One of my very favorite sources of good design has come to be the entries in the Criterion Collection. It’s very refreshing to see an organization who cares so much for the inside of something put an equal amount of thought (and salivation) into the outside of it too. Criterion’s mission, as listed on their website, is to pull the treasures of world cinema out of the film vaults and put them in the hands of collectors. The Collection, in their own words, is dedicated to gathering the greatest films from around the world and publishing them in editions that offer the highest technical quality and award-winning, original supplements. They then bring in designers from all over to implement a singular vision of how each film is represented. Newer films, like the promotional tools used to present them, are nice, but oftentimes the true surprises lie in reinterpreting the older ones. Criterion seems to have only one rule: don’t make any cover look like any other cover (with the corollary, of course, design it however you want).

The manifestation of this rule has become a virtual encyclopedia of design styles and processes. So much so that whenever Criterion announces a new slate of releases, you know that beyond the basic framework of the brand—the Collection’s logotype along the spine and on the covers, and its logo elsewhere—the rest is going to be a complete surprise. This framework ensures the creation of a great library within your DVD collection.

Regardless of how you feel about world cinema, Criterion’ choices of films, and particularly their price tags ($40 is a very likely cost for each release, regardless of the store you’re shopping at), at least the design can be admired while you browse.

Some of my favorite examples:

Schizopolis, 1996, directed by Steven Soderbergh, Criterion #199.

Seven Samurai, special edition, 1954, directed by Akira Kurosawa, Criterion #2

Sweet Movie, 1974, directed by Dušan Makavejev, Criterion #390

Kicking and Screaming, 1995, directed by Noah Baumbach, Criterion #349

Kind Hearts and Coronets, 1949, directed by Robert Hamer, Criterion #325

Short Cuts, 1993, directed by Robert Altman, Criterion #265

Slacker, 1991, directed by Richard Linklater, Criterion #247

The Man Who Fell to Earth, 1976, directed by Nicolas Roeg, Criterion #304

Halfway-related note: for the next couple of weeks, Amazon.com is holding a sale on selected Criterion titles. You can find all 30 here. All images have been borrowed from the Criterion Collection’s website here. Visit it to see tons more fine examples of great design and a crash course in the finest examples of film throughout history, from Bernardo Bertolucci to the Beastie Boys.