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The Beauty of Bézier Curves

Freya Holmér · explainer · Watch on YouTube

Computer graphics & renderingRecreational & visual mathAnimation & visual effects

What it is

Freya Holmer explains how Bezier curves work, from the helper-line construction to their uses in animation, text rendering and shapes. It uses visuals from her Unity Shapes plugin and was a SoME1 contest winner.

Why Hacker News recommends it

HN repeatedly calls it one of the best math and graphics explainers on YouTube, praised for bridging game dev and math.

  • 16 people recommended it
  • 13 different months
  • 7 strong recommendations
  • first 2021, last 2026

What HN commenters said

  1. “This video bridges those two areas and is absolutely beautiful.”

    Bridges game dev and math explanation beautifully

    progbits, 2021-11 · Strong recommendation · in “SoME1 results”

  2. “it absolutely blew me away(and most people I forwarded it to)”

    Beautifully explained Bezier curves that impressed many people

    eveningtree, 2022-01 · Strong recommendation · in “A Primer on Bézier Curves”

  3. “Source is a really interesting video on bezier curves which I highly recommend”

    Interesting video on Bezier curves and their derivatives

    armchairhacker, 2022-07 · Strong recommendation · in “Ask HN: Higher order derivatives in everyday life?”

  4. “I could not recommend these videos from Freya Holmer enough.”

    Videos on splines and Beziers highly recommended

    viggity, 2025-02 · Strong recommendation · in “Jacksonpollock.org (2003)”

  5. “it's genuinely one of the best math/graphics/explainer videos ever made”

    One of the best math and graphics explainers ever

    amtunlimited, 2025-08 · Strong recommendation · in “An interactive guide to SVG paths”

  6. “is in the running for one of the best educational videos on YouTube.”

    Among the best educational videos on YouTube

    jedimastert, 2026-04 · Strong recommendation · in “A Primer on Bézier Curves – So What Makes a Bézier Curve?”

  7. “I came across this video explaining Bezier curves yesterday and thought it was pretty awesome.”

    Explains Bezier curves in an awesome way

    nrjames, 2021-08 · Recommendation · in “Manim: An animation engine for explanatory math videos”

  8. “Worth a watch for a quick introduction/recap on how these curves work in the first place (with a focus on gamedev applications).”

    Visualizes helper lines for Bezier curves, aimed at gamedev

    ud_0, 2021-08 · Recommendation · in “Chaikin’s Algorithm: Drawing Curves”

Excerpts from Hacker News comments, linked to the originals. Summaries and labels were written by a language model from those comments.

Topics: bezier, splines, computer graphics, animation, game dev, math visualization

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