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Assignment One: Tasks 1 – 4

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Unit 32: Designing Idents

for Television

+ Assignment 1: Task 1:

Understanding the purpose of television idents and the opportunities they present

+Assignment1: Task: 1

Identifying the channel Organising the schedule (telling you what is on) Segmentation of the scheduling (providing a break for non-commercial

channels) Creating corporate identity (being used off air/on merchandise) Creating a brand and encouraging brand loyalty Branding of particular content (e.g. Sports, News) Creating the right tone and appealing to the target audience A marketing opportunity Packaging and Re-packaging a series of programmes or event (e.g. a

season of programmes, sports, national event)

+Identifying the channel The most straight forward function of a Television Ident

is to identify the channel. The ident first appeared in 1953 on the BBC as

commercial television began to expand and viewers need to be able to identify different channels

The first ident on BBC one was nicknamed the "Bat's Wings".

Idents have changed a great deal and new technologies have played a large role in their development with

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In 1960 the first "BBC tv" logo within a circle was introduced.

It appear on top of a map of Britain split into the BBC's broadcast regions.

The most famous ident “the globe” appeared in 1963. It rotated as the BBC TV logo would appear and a voice would announce “ This is BBC Television“.

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History of BBC Idents: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xOCBj_PACE

+BBC 2 arrived in 1964

+Organising the schedule An ident plays an important role when it comes to

keeping a channel’s schedule organised. An ident is an ideal opportunity to provide the audience

with key information about programming on that channel.

This information may entice the viewer to continue watching that particular channel rather than switching over to another channel.

+Segmentation of the scheduling Non-commercial channels like the BBC do not have the

time between programmes that advertisements provide for commercial channels (ITV, Channel 4).

Idents therefore add time in-between programmes to:

A) Provide information

B) Promote a variety of programming

C) Regulate the scheduling (fill time)

D) Provide a break for studio workers (News, Sports)

+Television Idents also have a number of more complex uses.

+Creating the right tone and appealing to the target audience As well as simply identifying a channel an ident is a

chance to provide the audience with information about that channel.

It is important that an ident sets the right tone for the channel it is on and is appealing for the target audience.

When the channel BBC Four arrived it built it’s reputation on having more factual and informative programming. The initial idents therefore reflected this.

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BBC Four Identshttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iAw6PBf9BXU

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http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=cbeebies+idents

+Creating a brand and encouraging brand loyalty Building a “brand” for a particular channel is vitally

important. An ident helps to endorse the brand of a particular

channel by allowing the audience to become familiar with the logo and the style of the channel.

It is a visual reminder of a particular channel and imprints the “brand” into the mind of the audience.

This in turn encourages them to stay loyal to that particular channel.

+Creating corporate identity

Television channels are no longer restricted to one country. An ident therefore helps to create a brand in a range of

different locations Consistency across a range of channels such as the BBC

helps to establish a corporate identity that can the be sold across the world.

With the growth of online platforms like the BBCiplayer it is vital for corporations to retain the image that could be so easily diluted in the online world.

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• Branding of particular content

• A marketing opportunity

• Packaging and Re-packaging a series of programmes or eve

+Branding of particular content

An ident can be used to identify that particular content or a particular program belongs to a certain channel.

It can also be used to provide a consistent theme across a range of platforms

The Voice http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9rSMAdQOBbc

BBC Three Olympics http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mgRo40FBAU8

+Branding of particular content

+A marketing opportunity

An Ident is a clever promotional tool ITV Christmas http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ceW6mNDFRVI

+Packaging and Re-packaging a series of programmes or event Often Idents are used to promote large events or a new

series of programmes. Strictly Come Dancing Identhttp://

www.youtube.com/watch?v=aM5_4qGWRC0 Sky http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OW5LBsl3cvk

+ Assignment 1: Task 2:

Understanding the limitations of the television ident

+Typography

+Colour

+Aspect-ratio

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+Adhering to a desired tone

+Duration

Why produce an ident that lasts 3 minutes? Why not produce an ident that only lasts 30 seconds? Dog Display Team – Short Version http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JE1lc8q6zy0

Dog Display Team – Long Version http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LB-REla0Sgc

+ Assignment 1: Task 3:

Understanding the design of a suite of television idents

+What is a Suite of Idents? When a television channel designs a new ident, they

don’t just design one, they create suite. A suite of idents consists of several different idents that

all have a similar theme that links them together Having a suite of idents rather than just one provides

variety and interest for the audience. Having a single theme helps to create/maintain brand

identity.

+BBC Suites BBC 'Rhythm & Movement' idents - 2002 - 2006 The BBC One 'Circle' idents - 2006 - 2010Rhythm & Movement http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YWgZZnNnl_o

Hippos http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P62npJkxji4

+Time and Place A suite of idents helps to ensure that the right type of

ident appears next to the right type of content. Different times of the day might require an ident with a

different tone. The programme content might also require an ident with a

particular tone. A suite of idents allows the channel to always appeal to

the right target audience. Channel 4 Suite http://

www.theidentgallery.com/c4-2004.php http://www.theidentgallery.com/c4-2004-2.php

+Seasonality Christmas always signifies a new suite of idents across

almost all channels.

More4 Christmas http://manvsmachine.co.uk/projects/project/more4_christmas

BBC Christmas Idents – Original _Part 1http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69quw1y-iakBBC Christmas Idents – Part 2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yQW4NyxUz2Q

+Re - branding a channel

More4 recently re-branded their channel and entirely changed its image.

The new suite of idents was used to help do this.

+Re branding a channel http://manv

smachine.co.uk/projects/project/more4_rebrand

+ Assignment 1: Task 4:

Understanding the design of a specific channels idents

+Investigate Your Chosen Channel In Unit 32 you can choose to produce an ident for one

of the following channels: 4Music E4 4Kids Before you complete Assignment 1: Task 4 you must

decide which you would like to make.

+Task 4 has three parts:

1. Choose at least five different idents from a range of different channels and write a detailed analysis of them

2. After investigating at least five existing idents you must write a summary of your research

3. You must now take one of the idents that you have analysed and collect more idents in that suite

+Part 1: A Detailed Analysis

How much information is included in the design (what it tells you about the channel)

How long it lasts What the onscreen tempo is (how fast or slow paced it is) How/why it appeals to the viewers (e.g. creating a

particular tone to target a particular audience type) Whether it is information-led or entertainment led

(explain how and why) What impression it gives you about the channel

+Part 2: Write A Summary

What do the idents have in common? What key conventions have you noticed? What elements do you now know you need to include

in your own ident design?

+Part 3: Analyse the Suite

How it uses a key theme? How/why it is different? What time of day you would image it being shown? What type of programme  it would appear next to?

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