埃德温·希勒尔，Of mixed German and English family, Erwin studied briefly at an art in Berlin but was then forced to leave and find a job. A friend introduced him to the great genius of German silent films, F.W. Murnau who looked at Erwin's paintings and asked him to become a camera assistant on his next (and final) picture, Tabu: A Story of the South Seas (1931).