I released Screengem on October 18, 2000. I built it using elements of my Sui Generis typeface, but the goal was different: I wanted to capture the bouncy, mixed-case display style that had been popular in the 1960s. That look had returned in the late 1990s and early 2000s, especially in children’s cartoons, toys, and media tied to the Y2K aesthetic. Screengem wasn’t copied from any one typeface; instead, I drew on the broader trend and gave it my own interpretation. The result was a playful design that referenced an earlier era but fit with the visual culture of its time.

It was originally released under a free commercial use desktop license. On November 2022, I placed it in the public domain. I never issued additional styles or weights beyond the original release.

Looking back, Screengem was tied to a very specific moment in typography and pop culture. It was designed as part of the Y2K wave of retro influence, but I think of it now as one of my experiments in adapting a past style into something contemporary without being derivative.