Studio · Founder

Author · Brand Designer · Filmmaker

Oliver
Hillebrecht.

Founder and Head of Production of Universal Brands. For more than three decades he has been building brands, writing books, making films and inventing formats – and today works as a hybrid: with the strongest AI tools and an attitude that cannot be delegated.

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Oliver Hillebrecht, founder of Universal Brands
Oliver Hillebrecht, Universal Brands, Bamberg. Photograph.

Who

An author who builds brands.

Founder · Head of Production · Universal Brands

Oliver Hillebrecht is an author and brand designer. He has been responsible for Universal Brands since its founding in Bamberg in 2011 and brings more than 35 years of experience in brand building, film production, photography and format development. His work combines strategy with craft: he writes positionings and books, designs design systems, directs brand films and develops formats that become brands in their own right.

With the CultAWARD he has created an award that honours personalities, works and brands with a lasting cultural bond – from the name to the trophy to the gala. With Arschbombe, Splashdiving and Parcouring he has invented sports and turned them into brands; with Karma Astrologie he has developed a consulting and workshop format. His most extensive work as an author to date is the roughly 600-page biography of Jan Hempel: four years of research, interviews with people who were there – documentary accuracy in literary form.

He has been using artificial intelligence in daily operations for years – as a tool for research, variants and production, never as a substitute for judgement, taste and responsibility. This attitude has become the studio’s Human–Machine Protocol.

  • 35+years in brand building, film and photography
  • 2011Universal Brands founded in Bamberg
  • 5own formats: CultAWARD, Splashdiving, Arschbombe, Parcouring, Karma Astrologie
  • 4disciplines: Brand, Design & Story, Film, AI Solutions

Attitude

A brand is not a logo, but a promise that people keep over years. Artificial intelligence makes many things faster. What it cannot do: make a promise.
Oliver Hillebrecht

Milestones

Three decades.
One line.

Selected milestones from brand building, film, sport and publishing – all drawn from the works and formats documented under Works and News.

  1. 1990s

    Start in brand communication

    First years in agency, production and photography – the foundation for an understanding of brand as a craft.

  2. 2003–2004

    Arschbombe – The World Championship

    Overall concept 2003, World Championship 2004: a jump everyone laughs about becomes a format with 75 million TV contacts.

  3. 2005–2018

    Splashdiving

    Founding and invention of the sport – Europe’s largest fun sport in swimming pools, built as a brand without outside help and licensed to nine countries.

  4. 2005–2012

    Parcouring

    A scene from the street gets rules, design and a world championship – building the brand up to the sale of the format.

  5. 2007–2009

    Mentos and the Splashdiving World Championship

    Nationwide “Fresh on Tour” campaign and the Splashdiving World Championship for Mentos – concept, web, design, copy.

  6. 2008

    ASICS Parcouring

    Europe-wide launch of the new ASICS lifestyle collection – not the shoes in the spotlight, but athletes running across rooftops.

  7. 2009

    The idea for the CultAWARD

    The basic idea of an award for things that will not let go, and the first design of the trophy – today “The Monique”. The first nominations and certificates followed in 2010.

  8. 2010

    Chio, Düsseldorf Airport, YOU, Fastbreak

    Launch of Chio X-treme for Intersnack via a dedicated event system, image film for the Airport Arkaden at Düsseldorf Airport, image trailer for the YOU youth fair in Berlin and the new backpack brand Fastbreak.

  9. 2011

    Founding of Universal Brands in Bamberg

    The studio for brand, design, story and film – with the short film “Ariadne 2050” and naming, logo and website for the Chair of Chemical Engineering at the University of Bayreuth.

  10. 2015–2018

    iLoveMyCar and LANZ Hebebühnen

    Brand building for professional vehicle detailing in Kulmbach and, in 2017, relaunch of website, design and copy during the generational handover at LANZ.

  11. since 2017

    Jan Hempel – a life story

    Brand building for Germany’s best diver and the roughly 600-page biography: four years of research, interviews with people who were there.

  12. 2022

    Oliver Schill becomes Oliver Hillebrecht

    Change of name through marriage. Earlier works and rights notices appeared under the birth name Oliver Schill.

  13. 2025

    GEMAC Chemnitz and Karma Astrologie

    Brand building and website for the precision measurement technology manufacturer from Chemnitz. Launch of the consulting and workshop format Karma Astrologie based on Vedic astrology.

  14. 2026

    CultAWARD on the market, tonis EATERY, AI Solutions

    Launch of the CultAWARD as a brand, relaunch of tonis EATERY and start of Universal Brands’ hybrid AI Solutions.

  15. 2027

    CultAWARD gala and Splashdiving 2027

    First gala in Bamberg (planned for December 2027), new event series and “Splashdiving Legends” for the 20th anniversary of the World Championship.

Roles

Five roles. One standard.

Author

Writing

Positionings, brand books, biographies, screenplays, treatments, website copy. Language as a tool of brand management.

Design & Story →Brand designer

Design

Identities, design systems, corporate design, packaging, campaigns – from logo to application.

Branding →Filmmaker

Staging

Treatment, shoot preparation, direction, editing. Brand films, short films, documentaries – and photo shoots with professional equipment.

Filmmaking →Publisher

Honouring

As publisher of the CultAWARD he gives the cult of the zeitgeist a home: trophy, jury system, gala and formats of remembrance.

CultAWARD →AI architect

Connecting

Human and machine in one process: strategy, brand memory, production, automation, training.

AI Solutions →Format inventor

Inventing

Arschbombe, Splashdiving, Parcouring, CultAWARD, Karma Astrologie: formats that turn ideas into brands – and brands into communities.

Works →

For press & partners

Short biography.

For use in programmes, press texts and partner documents. A portrait in print resolution is available on request.

Request portrait and bio
Short biographyOliver Hillebrecht is an author, brand designer and founder of Universal Brands in Bamberg. For more than 35 years he has been building brands for industry, retail, media and sport, writing books and making films. He is the inventor of the sports formats Arschbombe, Splashdiving and Parcouring, author of the biography of Jan Hempel and publisher of the CultAWARD, an award for personalities, works and brands with a lasting cultural bond. His studio works as a hybrid: with artificial intelligence and human responsibility.
In briefOliver Hillebrecht, author and brand designer, founded Universal Brands in Bamberg in 2011. He invented Splashdiving, publishes the CultAWARD and combines brand craftsmanship with artificial intelligence.

Interlude · Studio

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what remains.

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Note: the portrait on this page is a photograph. Other visual motifs on this website are created with AI support based on our own designs and labelled accordingly.