Origo: From Hollywood to Swedish Kitchen Tables – The Unexpected Journey of a Word

It's a small word, just five letters. But once you start listening for it, Origo pops up everywhere. This week came the news that made the entire film industry sit up and take notice. Not in Hollywood, but in Budapest. That's where Origo Studios, one of Europe's largest film production facilities, has just brought a massive new investment online. We're talking about a solar panel industrial park spanning 44,000 square metres.

This isn't your run-of-the-mill solar farm. This is Hollywood's green future, in the flesh. Those working there know it's a game changer. For the first time, a studio of this scale can power its productions largely with its own renewable energy. I've been talking to people in the industry who say this is going to be the model going forward. When the big California studios start calculating their carbon footprint, filming at a place like Origo suddenly becomes incredibly attractive. It's not just about being kind to the environment; it's about staying ahead of the curve.

From the silver screen to the kitchen table

But for us here in Sweden, what does Origo actually mean? For many of us, it's first and foremost a design classic. I'm talking, of course, about the Iittala Origo orange plate 26 cm. That plate that's been in every Swedish home since the 90s. It was designed by Harri Koskinen, but it actually has a longer history. The designers behind the original series, which launched back in 1997, managed something unique. They captured a sense of movement and warmth right in the middle of Nordic minimalism. That clear orange colour, almost like a sunrise on a plate, has a way of making any meal look that bit more special.

I have my own theory that this plate is one of the few items that actually gets passed down. You bought it when you got your first kitchen, and now your kids are eating from the same plate. It's kind of lovely, I think. It's a different kind of origo – a kind of home base.

The origin of language – where it all leads back to

Then there's the literal meaning. The origins of language. The word Origo comes from Latin and means exactly that: "source", "origin" or "beginning". In mathematics, it's the zero point on a coordinate system, where the x- and y-axes meet. Everything starts there. And when I think about it, that's probably why the word carries so much weight. Whether it's a film empire building its future on solar energy, or finding a sense of home in a design object, it's all about getting back to the core.

There's another person carrying that name who also deserves a mention: Iris Origo. She was an Anglo-Irish writer and biographer who lived in Italy during the war. Her diaries from that time are some of the most stark portrayals of everyday courage you'll find. She wrote about finding humanity in the midst of chaos. Her life, too, was about finding the origin – of morality, of responsibility.

Three ways to see Origo right now

• The industrial: Origo Studios in Budapest shows that sustainability and blockbuster filmmaking go hand in hand. This is the new standard, and it's already here.
• The everyday: The Iittala Origo orange plate 26 cm is more than just a plate. It's a timeless symbol of how great design lasts for generations.
• The philosophical: Whether we're talking about language, maths or history, origo stands for the starting point. The only question is: what's yours?

So the next time you hear someone mention Origo, whether it's in a news report about the latest star-studded film shot in Hungary, or when you're setting the table for dinner with that classic plate, you'll know it's all about the same thing. It's about the beginning. And sometimes, just like in Budapest, it's about creating a brand new one.