Hillman Curtis
David Hillman Curtis (born February 24, 1961 in San Diego , † April 18, 2012 in New York City ) was an American web designer , writer and film director . He is considered one of the pioneers of web design .
Life
Curtis studied creative writing and film at San Francisco State University in the 1980s, but dropped out in favor of his band The Green Things , with whom he toured in the following years. After the band broke up, the autodidact worked as a freelance designer. In 1993 Curtis started working for the software company Macromedia , where he rose to become art director . Curtis was one of the first successful online experts to propagate the FutureSplash platform acquired by Macromedia, the brand and name of which was continued as Flash , as the central key technology for content on the web.
In 1998 he founded HillmanCurtis in New York City , which designed the web design for numerous companies and institutions, including Yahoo , Adobe Inc. and the Metropolitan Opera . Curtis has authored several books on web design and motion design .
Curtis later turned to film and gave up web design in 2007. Short films, commercials, short documentaries on artists ( Artist Series ) and the documentary Ride, Rise, Roar originate from this creative period . A second film, The Happy Film , was in the works when Curtis died of colon cancer on April 18, 2012 at the age of 51.
Hillman Curtis was married and had a son and daughter. He was a nephew of the musician Chris Hillman .
Filmography
- Artist Series , from 2005 (short documentaries on artists such as Daniel Libeskind , Milton Glaser , Paula Scher , David Carson , Stefan Sagmeister , James Victore , Mark Romanek )
- Short films ( Bridge , Embrace , Circles , Soldiers , Roof , Table , American Spirit , Blow up , Powerhouse Books - The Musical , Spinal Tab and Movement Study )
- Ride, Rise, Roar , 2010 (Documentary on the Songs of David Byrne and Brian Eno Tour )
Publications
- Flash Web Design: the art of motion graphics. New Riders, Indianapolis 2000, ISBN 0-7357-0896-7 .
- Flash Web Design: the art of motion graphics. The V5 remix. New Riders, Indianapolis 2001, ISBN 0-7357-1098-8 .
- MTIV: process, inspiration, and practice for the new media designer. New Riders, Indianapolis 2002, ISBN 0-7357-1165-8 .
- Hillman Curtis on creating short films for the Web. New Riders, Berkeley 2006, ISBN 0-321-27891-7 .
literature
- Paul Vitello: Hillman Curtis, a Pioneer in Web Design, Dies at 51 . In: The New York Times . April 20, 2012.
Web links
- Literature by and about Hillman Curtis in the catalog of the German National Library
- Hillman Curtis
- Hillman Curtis in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- Susan Davis: Hillman Curtis: Adding soul to the web with the grand master of Flash. Adobe Web Gallery.
Individual evidence
- ^ A b Paul Vitello: Hillman Curtis, a Pioneer in Web Design, Dies at 51 . In: The New York Times . April 20, 2012.
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Curtis, Hillman |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Curtis, David Hillman (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American media designer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | February 24, 1961 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | San Diego |
| DATE OF DEATH | April 18, 2012 |
| Place of death | New York City |