The Oscars are this weekend, so its an appropriate time to turn to movie magic as a powerful force for how American’s perceive environments—from rural to urban and everything between.
Christopher and Lisa Leinberger have compiled a list of top 12 movies about urbanism. Here are the criteria for how the pair formulated the list: “First, the movies had to be popular, not obscure indie films. Second, the urban/suburban setting was an essential “character” in the film, even if a subtle one. Third, there are lessons to learn from the film about urbanism and its consequences on society, economics and the environment.”
Topping the list is Back to the Future 1 and 2, followed by Chinatown. How many more on the list do you think you can guess before you click over to the list?
FULL STORY: The Top 12 Movies About Urbanism
Megalopolis: An Urban Planner’s Review
The sprawling film offers a bleak vision of city-building that minimizes the impacts of top-down development on everyday citizens.
Francis Ford Copolla’s Urban Planning Swan Song
Legendary director Francis Ford Coppola’s likely final major film, Megalopolis, celebrates design and urban planning. It is a dazzling mishmash of architectural, cinematic, and literary history.
Black Panther's Many Lessons in Urbanism
Black Panther is a smash hit with critics and audiences. In addition to long-needed perspective about race, the movie has presented urbanism in a new light.
Rethinking Redlining
For decades we have blamed 100-year-old maps for the patterns of spatial racial inequity that persist in American cities today. An esteemed researcher says: we’ve got it all wrong.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
California High-Speed Rail's Plan to Right Itself
The railroad's new CEO thinks he can get the project back on track. The stars will need to align this summer.
Spain Moves to Ban 66,000 Airbnbs
The national government is requiring the short-term rental operator to remove thousands of illegal listings from its site as part of an effort to stem a growing housing crisis.
Raleigh Launches Greenway Food Truck Pilot to Enhance Park Experiences
Raleigh’s new Greenway Food Truck Pilot Program brings local food vendors to popular greenway locations to enhance park experiences, support small businesses, and encourage community use of public spaces.
‘Displaced By Design:’ Report Spotlights Gentrification in Black Neighborhoods
A new report finds that roughly 15 percent of U.S. neighborhoods have been impacted by housing cost increases and displacement.
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This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
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