I haven't seen anything on screen yet, but the pylon ident on here does remind me very much of five's 2002 relaunch, except a bit of effort has been made with the logo but it still looks pretty awful and wrong.
I like the break bumpers and trailer ends, the logo actually looks quite nice on these and a nice idea to take the programme and use that as the 3D texture.
I'll have to look at it more, but at the moment I'm not heavily impressed,
Well, one way of looking at it is that the new C4 logo is a shadow of it's former self, while others describe it as 3D!
I love it myself. The promos work really well, much better on screen than in print. The C4 logo also looks as more 2D than 3D on screen and is very clear. I'm not that keen on the font though, especially for the channel4.com tags - is that supposed to be the "4" 4.
The menus used are brilliant - simple and effective. The only thing I'd change is when focusing on text it should only increase to fill the left hand side.
As I mentioned before, the new ECP takes up the right half of the screen. However, for repeated programmes the ECP takes up just the right third of the screen as we are used to. I think this is sufficient myself, as no extra info is added to the larger ECP. Also really like the way it animated on screen, rather than just fading on as previously.
No ones mentioned the break bumpers. It appears to have been scrapped from the beginning of commercial breaks and is now used at the end of each break.
And now on to the idents. These are completly different to the promos and work really well. The logo only appears on screen for a split second though, but the idents are completly clutter free with no Now/Next or channel4.com text. Surprised no-ones mentioned the similarities with some of the new Five idents.
A big improvement and thumbs up from me.
P.S. As for C4 News, there is no need for any changes as the logo isn't obviously different, just viewed from a different angle. However, the current look is now exactly 6 years old (and has dated very well!) so I'd imagine there will be changes within the next year. If they were changing it now, I'd guess it be on Tuesday - and if it was Tuesday we'd know about it!
I think it all looks great! The promos and stuff are okay, but the idents are just incredible! You may only see the logo for a tiny amount of time, but I think it's very clever. I think what they've done with the website is also great.
The Idents: Ugh, they are bland. The music is uninspiring, the camera work is lazy and dull, and the "4" is difficult to make out and only appears for a very short time. This does not make for a strong brand. The choices of location (that we've seen so far) aren't exactly awe-inspiring either - road signs, hay bails and electricity pylons aren't particularly positive images. The greyness and negative aspects of the locations, in particular the thick clouds, the traffic cones, the temporary road signs etc. don't make you feel good about the channel, they remind you of negative experiences. I realise that the idea is to make the channel feel a part of everyday life but it has been proven time and time again over the last few years that this does not work. It simply looks downmarket, cheap and bland. Ordinary people do not think in the same way as these marketing folk - they aren't looking for the message of 'diversity' in the idents, they're simply going to see the clouds, the cones and the floating boxes out of the corner of their eye and think "Ugh". And as for being modern - yeah, right. This 'real life' concept is tired and worn by now. I will, however, grant them that the forming up of the "4" is a very good concept, but it's spoilt by the poor execution. Why not keep the "4" formed up at the end, coupled with a dramatic climax in the music? Why let it drift away into nothingness, as if it's not important? Why use music that has no theme or concept to it?
The Breakbumpers: I haven't seen one yet!
The Menu: Now this is much better, an
original
idea that functions in the way that was intended: to provide information about the programmes coming up, whilst highlighting specific points in the schedule for promotion purposes. It looks a little basic and cheap, but menus don't need to be any more than that, I suppose. The animation looks a little bit dodgy, and the way the programme name expands over the clip with the white strap behind it isn't very attractive, BUT this does draw your attention to it so I can see that it is a good idea.
The Promo Endboards: I do like this, it will take some getting used to but it's certainly creative usage of the new '3D' logo. The only problem is...
The Font: This has the same problem as the font used in the ITV logo - it's just too darn friendly. It doesn't grab your attention and some of the letters, in particular the "r", are difficult to read, especially in smaller sizes. I have a similar issue with the new font used on the BBC's "shutters" - okay, you don't have to use Gill Sans everywhere, but if you're going to replace it you should use one that's just as authoritative if not more so. And finally...
The Website: Arrrghhh, what have they done? He's some advice - when using 'real life' idents, do not attempt to implement them into your website! Apartment blocks and vampiric false teeth are not images that should ever be used as backgrounds - they look like the kind of backgrounds 9-year-old would make by using a repeating, tiled image. The transparent panels where there is no text look tacky as well, they should be solid white like the rest. The pages without the background images look fine, though there is dire over-use of the colour white and there are too many "gaps", if you get my meaning.
Overall, they have taken an original idea and have turned it into something that looks far inferior to what it could have been - dancers and celebrities, anyone?
What I don’t understand is, people complain that UK pres has no imagination put into it. Channel 4 come up with really different, interesting idents and people are still complaining...
I personally quite like the idents, they don’t follow the conventional style... I say good on them! I would have hated to see them use predictable idents, such as the ones used on ITV1. The music is a bit weak, but the suggestion of the ‘4’ is meant to be subtle. Therefore I don’t think they would work with loud dramatic music.
What I don’t understand is, people complain that UK pres has no imagination put into it. Channel 4 come up with really different, interesting idents and people are still complaining...
But this is my point - there's plenty of imagination. Promoting your channel using its well-known talent, energizing your channel with the theme of rhythm and movement, and making your channel feel more in touch by forming up its logo using images from everyday life are all very imaginative ideas. The problem is that they are executed extremely poorly and that those in charge are either too blind to see this or cannot be bothered to/do not want to spend more money on putting it right.
aru posted:
I would have hated to see them use predictable idents, such as the ones used on ITV1.
ITV1's idents are clearly stop-gap idents, designed on the cheap to fill the time between Jim Hitler leaving and the new marketing director putting her mark on the channel. I would imagine that the new director's inevitable "vision" will be announced to us within the next year or two.
aru posted:
The music is a bit weak, but the suggestion of the ‘4’ is meant to be subtle.
Again, this is pointless - Channel 4 is not meant to be a "subtle" channel. This also defeats the object of having idents in the first place - ordinary people
will
ignore them unless they are bold, loud and attention-grabbing. These new idents could have been all that, but sadly they are not. It's good to have variety, but these new idents are Salt & Vinegar in a variety pack of crisps - yucky.
What I don’t understand is, people complain that UK pres has no imagination put into it. Channel 4 come up with really different, interesting idents and people are still complaining...
But this is my point - there's plenty of imagination. Promoting your channel using its well-known talent, energizing your channel with the theme of rhythm and movement, and making your channel feel more in touch by forming up its logo using images from everyday life are all very imaginative ideas. The problem is that they are executed extremely poorly and that those in charge are either too blind to see this or cannot be bothered to/do not want to spend more money on putting it right.
I don't understand what people complain about either. I mean, take the BBC One idents. They contain dancers, and they are dancing. What else do you expect them to do? Emit fireworks from their stomachs?
How can you have an 'everyday life' scene without it looking depressing? Everyday life
is
depressing!
I really like the understated way the Channel 4 logo appears. It makes a change from the chest-beating of, say, ITV1. But I think one thing that the Channel 4 idents could do with is a little flash or something when the logo forms. Or a 'thwoom' type sound in the music, just to emphasise the fact that the logo is there, and then move on.
But I think one thing that the Channel 4 idents could do with is a little flash or something when the logo forms. Or a 'thwoom' type sound in the music.
That’s a good idea. The speed of passing could also be slowed slightly in a sort of Matrix style.
Bit off topic but what’s with the shoes on the Channel 4 website?
But I think one thing that the Channel 4 idents could do with is a little flash or something when the logo forms. Or a 'thwoom' type sound in the music.
That’s a good idea. The speed of passing could also be slowed slightly in a sort of Matrix style.
You're quite right - these are simple ideas that, if implemented, could have thrown several of my negative points out of the window. But, they haven't, and they probably now never will be.
