I found these websites extremely useful when researching and planning the production of our own ident:
http://idents.tv/blog/2008/05/18/the-idents-of-cinema-the-big-six-studios/
These six videos are some of the most ubiquitous examples of entertainment branding found in popular culture. They come from the “big six” studios and preface the vast majority of films produced, and all have one thing in common.. unusally epic and grandiose imagery that only the film industry could get away with using.
The histories behind these stately logos are as interesting as some of the movies they precede: Paramount’s mountain logo for example is the oldest surviving studio emblem dating back to 1912, and is believed to be based upon Ben Lomond Mountain in Utah, although Peru’s Artesonraju is a closer fit.
While Columbia’s torch carrying lady dates back to 1924, the most recent incarnation is not as some thought modelled by Annette Benning, but actually the much more unassuming Jenny Joseph, a mother of two from Houston.
And the iconic Art Deco monument that 20 Century Fox uses as a logo was developed in 1935, and received a series of revisions before being standardised in 1994 with CGI, but only after a failed attempt to actually build a live action version of the monument.
What are some of the better studio idents around at the moment? I’ve always been a fan of Pixar’s jumping desk lamp myself.
12 Great Film Company Idents
-A few months back, I discussed the evolution of the Universal Pictures ident in some detail. Many incarnations of the intro evoke positive movie memories for me. But they aren’t the only film company whose ident has a positive connotation. Not including Universal, here are twelve more great film company idents. The plan was for eleven but there was one that would get left out, which seems pointless:
The Criterion CollectionIt’s simple, it’s clean, it evokes a running film projector, and it serves as the intro to some of the best films in history:
Metro Goldwyn Mayer (M.G.M.)This one has been around forever and ever, dating back to 1917 (per the Wikipedia page). MGM currently is on their fifth lion, Leo, who has been used since the 1950′s.
Tri-Star (now TriStar)As you can guess from the image header, TriStar was bound to make an appearance. If you grew up during the 80′s, then you have a huge amount of nostalgia for Pegasus leaping over the serif font version of “Tri-Star”. The ident has since been updated but I’ll always think of this particular version:
20th Century FoxMuch like MGM’s lion, the fanfare and spotlights on the oversized studio name is as iconic as they come in movie theaters. Here’s one of the older versions, not that it’s changed much:
Columbia PicturesHere’s another that hasn’t changed much. To my knowledge, it’s always been the robed woman holding the torch. However, they have added some motion and depth to the old gal through the years:
Svensk FilmindustriOk, ok… I get it. Most people aren’t real familiar with this one. If you’ve ever seen an Ingmar Bergman film, or really any Swedish film, then you know this intro. Given the intense quality of Swedish films, you’re almost certainly in for a great movie when you see this:
Studio CanalSimilar to Svensk, if you’re seeing this intro, you’re probably watching a foreign film that’s been distributed in the U.S.
Warner BrothersIt’s extraordinarily difficult to associate this with anything other than Bugs Bunny. Somehow, that doesn’t seem like a bad thing for WB. All the same, here’s their non-Looney Tunes version:
Paramount PicturesParamount has stayed true to its brand, featuring the mountain peak and the stars seemingly forever. Like Columbia, the only difference is that it’s been polished and updated to add depth and motion:
DisneyDisney is one of the few major studios who HAS changed their ident quite a bit, going from a simple white-on-blue vector drawing to this more majestic piece. I have to confess, I preferred the simpler, less over-the-top version:
DreamworksIt should come as no surprise that John Williams, frequently the composer on Steven Spielberg’s films, would compose the music for Spielberg’s film company ident.
Hammer StudiosAs my friend Marty has pointed out in the comments section, Hammer Studios’ famous gong is an omission. So I’ve added it. Unfortunately, I can’t find a video of it. But if you’ve ever seen a Hammer Horror, you recognize this image:
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