Tag Archives: access granted

Fritzes 2026: Big Label Roundup

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The Fritzes award honors the best interfaces in a full-length motion picture in the past year. Interfaces play a special role in our movie-going experience, and are a craft all their own that does not otherwise receive focused recognition. In this post we round-up all the big labels across the survey.

I wrote about the Big Label in 2012 in the Visual Interfaces chapter of Make It So…

Image showing a collection of futuristic screen displays and texts from various sci-fi films, featuring phrases like 'ENGAGE MULTIPLE SURROGATION', 'SYSTEM RESTART', 'NO MATCH', and others.

…and here we are 12 years later cataloging more. It’s understandable why: It’s familiar, it conveys critical plot information in a fraction of a second. It’s inexpensive because it’s fast to design with not a lot of moving parts. It’s not quite an interface, since it’s just output, but there were enough this year to catch my eye. So, uh, here they are.

A tense scene featuring a man in a suit looking alarmed, with a digital overlay displaying an alert for 'EMP DETECTED'.
A digital display screen indicating 'SELF DESTRUCT DISABLED' and 'SYSTEM ONLINE' in bright green text against a dark background.
A tense scene depicting a person aiming a gun at another individual in a futuristic setting, with digital overlays displaying warning messages about 'INAPPROPRIATE LANGUAGE'.
A tense scene featuring a man aiming a firearm in a chaotic environment, with overlay text displaying 'OVERRIDE ERROR 7703' and 'FATALITY RISK: 86%'.
A futuristic digital interface displaying 'Access Granted: Local Integrated System' over a blurred cityscape, suggesting high-tech surveillance or navigation.
A futuristic room with a person lying on a couch, surrounded by ambient lights and decorations, and a red alert popup that says 'THREAT DETECTED' displayed on a screen.
A man in a black shirt appears surprised or alarmed while interacting with futuristic holographic displays showing calendar events and weather information. The background features a modern bar setup with colorful lighting.
Close-up of hands interacting with a futuristic touchscreen console displaying the text 'ACCESS GRANTED' and various digital interfaces.
Close-up of an eye with digital scanning interface displaying 'SCAN COMPLETE' in green and orange text.
A man with curly hair and glasses stands in a dimly lit room, looking at a digital display indicating 'IDENTITY CONFIRMED' and 'ANALYSIS COMPLETED'.
Futuristic user interface displaying information about a volatile substance with various graphical elements and indicators.
A futuristic control panel displaying a countdown timer for 'ION STORM CONVERGENCE' set at 01:58:55:00, with red neon accents.
A futuristic device displaying the text 'ENCRYPTION VERIFIED' on a circular screen surrounded by angular panels.
A futuristic digital interface displaying the text 'EXECUTING ENCRYPTION PROTOCOL' with light beams and abstract shapes in the background.
A female operator at a control station looks concerned while a bald male colleague observes. Both are in front of multiple screens displaying a 'NO SIGNAL' message, with a cityscape in the background.
A control room with screens displaying data, including one screen showing 'NO SIGNAL' in red text. Two operators are in the background, focused on their work.
Close-up of a futuristic control panel displaying a warning message and an error notification, with a top-down view of an industrial area highlighted in green.
Illustration of a data center layout showing multiple servers with a prominent message reading 'DATA CENTER SHUT DOWN — OFFLINE' in bold red.
A person holding a tablet displaying an error message on a digital interface, indicating 'Unable to connect' with details about network issues.
Monitor displaying a warning message 'HULL INTEGRITY LOW' with a graphical interface showing a grid and status information.
A futuristic control panel with colorful lights and holographic displays, featuring a young person with a serious expression. The word 'ERROR' is prominently displayed in the center, reflecting their focus on the technology.

OK. That was fun, but enough stalling.

Next up: The best interfaces of 2025 (currently scheduled for 15 May 2026)