# Minimalism: A Documentary About the Important Things (2015), directed by Matt D'Avella Source: https://thegisthub.com/documentaries/minimalism-2015 Last updated: 2026-11-03 Documentary · 2015 · 1 h 19 min · Categories: Money and investing, Self-improvement Matt D'Avella's documentary follows Joshua Fields Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus, known as The Minimalists, and others who chose to own less in order to live more deliberately. For anyone who feels buried by stuff, debt or busyness. ## The gist **Minimalism** argues that owning and buying more does not make people happier, and that clearing out what you do not need frees time, money and attention for what matters. The documentary follows Joshua Fields Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus, two former corporate managers from Ohio who gave up most of their possessions and became The Minimalists. Interviews with writers, a neuroscientist, a sociologist and people living in small spaces show different versions of the same idea. The duo's message is not to own nothing. It is to keep only what adds value and to love people and use things, not the reverse. Critics say this choice is easier for the comfortable. ## Key ideas ### 1. More possessions do not bring lasting happiness The documentary argues that consumer culture keeps people in a loop. Advertising promises that a purchase will bring happiness or status, but the pleasure fades and the search starts again. Each item also costs time to earn, clean, store and maintain. Joshua Fields Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus had good salaries and plenty of possessions, yet they felt stressed and in debt. Their story suggests that the problem is not too little, but a belief that more will fix things. ### 2. Keep only what adds value The Minimalists offer one test: does this thing add value to my life? If not, let it go. The test is personal, so the result differs from one person to the next. A book you reread adds value. A gadget kept out of guilt does not. The documentary stresses that minimalism is not about owning a set number of things. It is about choosing deliberately, and the same question can apply to commitments and habits too. ### 3. Test what you need with a packing party Ryan Nicodemus packed everything he owned into boxes, as if he were moving. Over the next weeks, he unpacked only what he actually used. Most boxes stayed closed, and he sold or donated the rest. The method replaces guessing with evidence. People keep things because they might need them one day. A packing party shows what you really reach for. A smaller version works too: box one room or one closet and wait a month. ### 4. Minimalism takes many shapes The documentary shows that minimalism is a tool, not a fixed lifestyle. Joshua Becker simplified a family home. Courtney Carver's Project 333 limits a wardrobe to 33 items for three months. Jay Austin lives in a tiny house. Others travel with very little. The variety lets viewers pick a version that fits their life. You do not need to sell your house. You can start with a closet, a calendar or a budget. ### 5. Less stuff frees time, money and attention The Minimalists insist that owning less is a means, not the goal. Fewer possessions mean lower costs and less debt, which can reduce the hours you must work. Less clutter means less cleaning and fewer decisions. The freed time, money and attention can go to relationships, health and meaningful work. The documentary presents this as the real payoff. The empty shelf matters only because of what you do with the space it creates. ### 6. Loss can reveal what matters Millburn's change began in 2009, when his mother died and his marriage ended in the same year. Sorting his mother's belongings, he realized that her memory did not live in her things. He gave most of them away and then started on his own. The documentary uses this moment to show that a crisis can strip away habits and expose what you value. You do not need a crisis to ask the same question, though. ### 7. Love people and use things The Minimalists' motto is to love people and use things, because the opposite never works. The documentary argues that consumer culture often reverses the order: people come to love things and use other people to get them. Putting people first changes how you spend money, time and attention. Critics note that the message comes from two men who could afford to give things up, which shapes who can follow it. ## Questions this documentary answers ### What is the Minimalism documentary about? It follows Joshua Fields Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus, known as The Minimalists, who left corporate jobs and gave away most of their possessions. Directed by Matt D'Avella, it argues that owning less frees time, money and attention for relationships and meaningful work. ### What is the main message of Minimalism: A Documentary About the Important Things? The documentary argues that buying more does not bring lasting happiness. Its test is to keep only what adds value to your life. Its motto, from The Minimalists, is to love people and use things, because the opposite never works. ### Who appears in the Minimalism documentary? Besides Joshua Fields Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus, it features writer Joshua Becker, Project 333 creator Courtney Carver, tiny house owner Jay Austin, journalist Dan Harris, neuroscientist Sam Harris, psychologist Rick Hanson and sociologist Juliet Schor. ### Where can I watch the Minimalism documentary for free? The Minimalists have posted the full documentary free on their YouTube channel. You can also rent it on Apple TV. Availability changes, so check the links on this page, last checked in November 2026. ## Full summary ### Two managers who had everything **Minimalism: A Documentary About the Important Things** is directed by Matt D'Avella, who also shot it. It follows **Joshua Fields Millburn** and **Ryan Nicodemus**, childhood friends from Dayton, Ohio, who write and speak as **The Minimalists**. It debuted at the Los Angeles Art-House Film Festival in 2015 and reached US theaters in May 2016. By age 28, both men held management jobs at a regional telecommunications company. Millburn directed operations for 150 retail stores. Nicodemus worked in sales. They earned six-figure salaries and bought things they did not need. They also had debt, long hours and a sense that something was wrong. The documentary presents their old lives as the American dream on paper. They had followed the standard script: a good job, a promotion, a bigger house. Each step brought more things and more pressure, but not the satisfaction they expected. The turning point came for Millburn in 2009. His mother died and his marriage ended in the same year. While sorting his mother's belongings, he realized that he did not need to keep her things to keep her memory. He began to give away most of what he owned. Nicodemus noticed how much calmer his friend had become and wanted the same. ### The packing party Nicodemus's version became a well-known story. Instead of slowly sorting his possessions, he held a **packing party**. He packed everything he owned into boxes, as if he were moving. Over the following weeks, he unpacked only the items he actually needed. Most of the boxes stayed closed. He then sold or donated what was left. The documentary uses the story to make a simple point. People often keep things out of habit, guilt or the idea that they might need them one day. A test based on real use reveals how little of it adds value. The documentary presents the story as an experiment that anyone can copy on a smaller scale, with one room or one closet. The two friends started writing about their experience online and later left their corporate jobs. Their blog led to books, a podcast and long speaking tours. The documentary follows them on a 2014 tour for their memoir, as they speak at bookstores and community events across the US. ### Many shapes of less D'Avella shows that minimalism does not look the same for everyone. Between the tour scenes, he interviews people who live with less in different ways: - **Joshua Becker**, a writer and father who simplified his family's home. - **Courtney Carver**, who created **Project 333**, a challenge to wear only 33 items of clothing for three months. - **Jay Austin**, who lives in a tiny house. - The journalist **Dan Harris**, the neuroscientist and writer **Sam Harris** and the psychologist **Rick Hanson**. - The sociologist **Juliet Schor**, who studies consumer spending and work. The variety is part of the argument. A family in a suburb, a traveler with one bag and a person in a tiny house can all practice minimalism. The documentary stresses that it is a tool, not a rule about how many things to own. ### Why more stuff does not satisfy The documentary argues that modern consumer culture keeps people buying in a loop. Advertising promises that a new purchase will bring happiness or status. The pleasure fades quickly, and the search starts again. Credit makes it easy to buy before you can afford it, so debt grows along with clutter. The documentary suggests that the mind adapts to new comforts and then wants the next thing. Each purchase also costs time: the hours worked to pay for it and the hours spent cleaning, storing and maintaining it. The documentary presents clutter as a quiet source of stress. D'Avella also links the theme to media and screens. The constant flow of ads and online images, the documentary argues, keeps people comparing themselves with others and feeling that they lack something. ### What minimalism is for The Minimalists insist that owning less is not the goal. It is a way to make room. With fewer possessions, smaller expenses and less debt, people gain time, money and attention. They can spend these on relationships, health, creative work and contribution to others. The documentary presents a question that the duo returns to often: does this thing add value to my life? If the answer is no, let it go. The test applies to more than objects. It applies to commitments, habits and how you spend your days. This is why the duo reject the image of minimalism as empty white rooms. The documentary does not ask viewers to count their belongings or live in a bare apartment. It asks them to notice what they buy, why they buy it and what it costs them in time and freedom. The duo's motto sums up the message. Love people and use things, because the opposite never works. ### What the critics say Some reviewers found the tone too much like a sales pitch. Basil Tsiokos of the documentary blog What Not To Doc wrote that it can come off as evangelical, which may put some viewers off, and that most of it is people talking about the changes they made. Writing about the duo's 2017 live tour rather than the documentary, Kyle Chayka of New York magazine described one event as halfway between a TED talk and a megachurch sermon and noted their relentless self-promotion. Jia Tolentino, reviewing a book on minimalism in The New Yorker in 2020, wrote that minimalist gurus, the duo among them, target an implicitly affluent audience and rarely admit that many people live with little because they have no choice. ### Who should watch it Watch it if you feel weighed down by possessions, debt or a busy schedule and want a gentle starting point for change. It also suits anyone who wants to think about what they actually value before their next purchase. ## Do this week - Box up everything in one drawer or closet today and unpack only the items you use over the next 30 days. - Before each non-essential purchase this week, wait 24 hours and ask whether the item will add value to your life. - Unsubscribe from five marketing emails and unfollow three accounts that make you want to buy things. - Pick 33 items of clothing, store the rest out of sight and wear only those for the next three months. - Spend the money or hours you saved this week on one plan with a person you care about. ## Read next - [Essentialism by Greg McKeown](https://thegisthub.com/books/essentialism-by-greg-mckeown): McKeown applies the same keep-only-what-matters test to time, work and commitments rather than possessions. - [The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck by Mark Manson](https://thegisthub.com/books/the-subtle-art-of-not-giving-a-fck-by-mark-manson): Manson argues for caring about fewer things, which is the mental side of the documentary's case for owning fewer things. ## Where to watch - YouTube (free, checked 2026-11): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J8DGjUv-Vjc - Apple TV (rent, checked 2026-11): https://tv.apple.com/us/movie/minimalism-a-documentary-about-the-important-things/umc.cmc.5adkjn13h1uje1u3ajwntzl5x Summary by The Gist Hub (https://thegisthub.com). In our own words, not the documentary's script.