Richard Florida coined the term "creative class" in 2002 to describe the ascendancy of creative workers, such as designers and intellectuals, who flock to urban centers. To put a face and backstory to these creatives, Amsterdam design firm Present Plus created a video website that captures the insights of six artists, including Blur frontman Damon Albarn and designer Stefan Sagmeister. Present Plus created the short films to promote its file-transferring technology WeTransfer, which is often used among the creative class to share videos, photos and other assets. In keeping with the firm's philosophy of fusing technology with creativity, the profile subjects share how the internet impacts their lives and art. “I think the internet is busy monetizing,” says designer and musician Fred Deakin, “and it needs to get busy empowering creativity.” When users visit the site, it immediately begins the videos, one after another, without requiring another click of the mouse. To learn more, moving the mouse activates pop-up prompts with artist bios and the site's “About” page. The design team chose to use Vimeo for its community and social media tools, but the third party application was a challenge to tailor to the site's minimalistic user experience. However, after five weeks of web development and five months of filming and post-production, the result is an effortless viewing experience. The films received more than 500,000 plays in three weeks. Due to an overwhelming audience demand to see more female creatives, the firm plans to roll out a second installment.
Browse Projects
Click on an image to view more from each project